Superfund status debated for Black Eagle refinery

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By The Associated Press

Story Published: Aug 11, 2009 at 6:40 AM MDT

Story Updated: Aug 11, 2009 at 6:40 AM MDT

GREAT FALLS - Cascade County commissioners are expected to vote on a resolution Tuesday asking Gov. Brian Schweitzer to nominate the former Missouri River metals refinery in Black Eagle for the federal Superfund list.

Commission Chairman Joe Briggs says the alternative to Superfund listing would be to have the state Department of Environmental Quality oversee a remediation plan for the former Atlantic Richfield Co. refinery site. He says that option will delay a solution because the DEQ doesn't have the resources for the cleanup.

A Schweitzer spokesman says the governor wants more information before he makes a decision.

Plant operations stopped in 1980 and testing in 2003 found elevated levels of arsenic and lead at and near the refinery. Testing in 2007 and 2008 found elevated levels of arsenic, lead and cadmium in the soil of some residential yards in Black Eagle.

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