EPA RCRA ID: DED002348845
The Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) is the public law that creates the framework for the proper management of hazardous and non-hazardous solid waste. Corrective action is a requirement under RCRA that facilities that treat, store or dispose of hazardous wastes, or did so in the past, investigate and clean up hazardous releases into soil, groundwater, surface water and air. For more information, and for more information on RCRA-specific terms used on this page, please visit EPA’s umbrella RCRA web page or EPA’s RCRA Corrective Action page.
On this page:
- Cleanup Activities
- Facility Description
- Institutional/Engineering Controls
- Enforcement and Compliance
- Related Information and Publicly Available Electronic Records
- Contacts for this Facility
Cleanup Activities
The investigation, remedy selection, and remedy implementation at this Facility are complete, and Institutional Controls have been put into place to prevent exposure to contamination remaining on-site. As the current owner of the real property, INVISTA S.A.R.L. is responsible for on-going monitoring and/or maintenance of the remedy consistent with the Record of Decision (ROD).
A revised Administrative Order on Consent for the facility was executed by DuPont and Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control (DNREC) in September of 2014. On March 30, 2016, DuPont notified EPA of the transfer in title to INVISTA S.A.R.L, who will assume responsibility for ongoing monitoring and maintenance of the remedy per the ROD.
Following an investigation and comment period that extended from April 16 to May 15, 2006, DNREC issued a final RCRA corrective action decision for this Facility on May 25, 2006.
The selected remedy at the Seaford Facility consists of the following items:
- Solid Waste Management Unit (SWMU) 1: Sampling of well L-6D and monitored natural attenuation of carbon tetrachloride in conjunction with institutional controls. The institutional control is a groundwater management zone around the limits of the carbon tetrachloride plume. On July 20, 2010, the Solid and Hazardous Waste Management Section (SHWMB) concurred with DuPont's recommendation to discontinue sampling monitoring well L-6D for SWMU 1, as carbon tetrachloride has been reported below its maximum contaminant level (MCL) for the past three consecutive monitoring rounds.
- SWMU 7/12/13: Sampling for arsenic in twelve existing wells and three surface water locations, and monitored natural attenuation of arsenic in conjunction with institutional controls. The institutional control is a groundwater management zone around the limits of the arsenic plume.
- SWMU 13/17: Installation of a protective soil cover installed over exposed solid waste; completed October 30, 2006.
Installation of a protective soil cover over exposed solid waste proximate to SWMU 13/17 was completed October 30, 2006. On July 20, 2010 The SHWMB concurred with DuPont's recommendation to discontinue sampling monitoring well L-6D for SWMU 1, as carbon tetrachloride has been reported below its MCL for the past three consecutive monitoring rounds.
On November 30,2023, the EPA conducted a Long Term Stewardship assessment to assess whether the remedy was implemented and protective of human health and the environment. EPA determined that the remedy institutional and engineering controls have been fully implemented and no control deficiencies were identified.
Cleanup Actions or environmental indicators characterizing the entire facility are shown below. This listing, and all the data on this page, come from EPA’s RCRAInfo and are refreshed nightly to this page. For this table, a blank in the Status column could mean the action either has not occurred or has not been reported in RCRAInfo.
Cleanup Activities Pertaining to the Entire Facility
| Action | Status | Date of Action |
|---|---|---|
| Human Exposure Under Control Human Exposure Under Control(CA725) | ||
| Groundwater Migration Under ControlGroundwater Migration Under Control (CA750) | ||
| Remedy DecisionRemedy Decision (CA400) | ||
| Remedy ConstructionRemedy Construction (CA550) | ||
| Ready for Anticipated Use Ready for Anticipated Use (CA800) | ||
| Performance Standards AttainedPerformance Standards Attained (CA900) | ||
| Corrective Action Process TerminatedCorrective Action Process Terminated (CA999) |
For definitions of the terms used, hover over or click on the term.
Cleanup Activities Pertaining to a Portion of the Facility
| Action | Area Name | Date of Action |
|---|
For definitions of the terms used, hover over or click on the term.
Facility Description
Link to a larger, interactive view of the map.
The Seaford Facility is located south of Seaford, Delaware on DuPont Road (formally named Woodland Road). The 750 acre plant property is bordered by the Nanticoke River to the east and the Norfolk Southern Railroad to the north. Two branches of the Nanticoke River flow east along the facility's south and southwest property lines.
The facility was constructed in 1938 by DuPont for the production of textile fibers. It was owned and operated by DuPont until the sale of the operations and assets to INVISTA in 2004. DuPont retained ownership of the real property to conduct the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) corrective action activities at the facility.
INVISTA recently restructured the operations at the Seaford plant. The Seaford plant no longer produces the Bulk Continuous Filament (BCF) nylon and has idled the facilities associated with their Polymerization Operations. As a result of the restructuring efforts, hazardous waste generation is mainly from the facility's process lab and two maintenance shops. Waste is accumulated in the facility's Process Lab Less Than 90-day Accumulation Area and the C2 Warehouse Less Than 90-day Accumulation Area.
The Seaford plant receives hexamethylenediamine (HMD) by rail. The HMD is used in a remaining production process to manufacture a salt product that is then shipped to other plants.
Wastes evaluated included fly ash, spent halogenated solvents, discarded commercial chemical products and wastes that exhibited corrosive and/or ignitable properties. Groundwater underlying localized areas of the facility contains low levels of metals and volatile organic compounds and previously exhibited low pH. The primary metal of concern in groundwater and sediment is arsenic. The source of increased concentrations of arsenic in groundwater was identified as coal ash generated by the facility power plant. A coal pile adjacent to the power plant was identified as the source of low groundwater pH. A formerly operating landfill was identified as the source of volatile organic compounds in the groundwater. These releases to groundwater were remediated by the implementation of various interim measures, corrective measures and final remedies.
Institutional and Engineering Controls at this Facility
Two Institutional Controls were enacted from 2008 – 2009 plus an amendment :
- A Memorandum of Agreement between the DNREC Division of Air and Waste and the DNREC Division of Water Resources was signed and put in place on April 3, 2008. The Agreement restricts water supply wells from being installed within the footprint of two groundwater management zones. One groundwater management zone (GMZ151) extends beyond the footprint of an onsite arsenic groundwater contaminant plume. The second groundwater management zone (GMZ152) extends beyond the footprint of an onsite carbon tetrachloride groundwater contaminant plume.
- An Environmental Covenant (EC) between DNREC and DuPont was filed with the Sussex County Assessment Division (Sussex County) on September 29, 2009. The EC prohibits withdrawal of groundwater from the Groundwater Management Zones (GMZs). In addition, the EC enacts land use restrictions (non-residential) for designated areas and bans any activities which may interfere with the remedy. The EC covers Solid Waste Management Units (SWMU) : SWMU #1 is in GMZ152, while SWMUs #13 (large and small) that are in GMZ151. In addition the EC covers SWMU #6, SWMU # 19 , and Golf Course Ash Refuse Area . Also SWMUs #13and #17 have a protective soil cover installed over exposed solid waste that was completed October 30, 2006.
- An amendment to the EC was file with the Sussex County on August 5, 2014. INVISTA S.A.R.L. is now responsible ongoing monitoring and maintenance of the remedy.
Institutional and Engineering Controls help ensure human exposure and groundwater migration are under control at a cleanup facility. Where control types have been reported by states and EPA in EPA’s RCRAInfo, they are shown below. Not all control types are needed at all facilities, and some facilities do not require any controls. Where there are blanks, the control types may not be needed, may not be in place, or may not be reported in RCRAInfo.
Are Controls in Place at this Facility?
|
Control(s) Type |
Control(s) in Place? |
Areas Subject to Control(s) |
|
|---|---|---|---|
|
Institutional ControlsNon-engineering controls used to restrict land use or land access in order to protect people and the environment from exposure to hazardous substances remaining in the site/or facility. (CA 772) |
Informational DevicesInformational Devices (ID) |
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Governmental Controls (GC) |
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Enforcement and Permit Tools (EP) |
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| Proprietary ControlsProprietary Controls (PR) | |||
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Engineering ControlsEngineering measures designed to minimize the potential for human exposure to contamination by either limiting direct contact with contaminated areas or controlling migration of contaminants. (CA 770) |
Groundwater ControlGroundwater Control (GW) |
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Non-Groundwater |
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For definitions of the terms used, hover over or click on the term.
Enforcement and Compliance at this Facility
EPA’s Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance (OECA) provides detailed historical information about enforcement and compliance activities at each RCRA Corrective Action Site in their Enforcement and Compliance Historical Online (ECHO) system.
RCRA Enforcement and Compliance Reports from ECHO
Related Information and Publicly Available Electronic Records
For more information about this facility, see these other EPA links:
- RCRA information in EPA’s Envirofacts database
- Information about this facility submitted to EPA under different environmental programs as reported in EPA’s Facility Registry Services
- Alternative Names for this facility as reported by EPA programs in EPA’s Facility Registry Services
- Cleanups in My Community provides an interactive map to see EPA cleanups in context with additional data, and lists for downloading data
- Search RCRA Corrective Action Sites provides a search feature for Corrective Action Sites
Documents, Photos and Graphics
Contacts for this Facility
EPA Region implements and enforces the RCRA Corrective Action program for and federally recognized tribes.
For further information on this corrective action site, use the Contact Information for Corrective Action Hazardous Waste Clean Ups listings that are accessible through Corrective Action Programs around the Nation.