Zonolite Company/W.R. Grace, End of Dixie Lane, Little Rock, Arkansas
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EPA
Region		 Location of facility Type of facility Amount
of ore
received
(in tons)		 Did
EPA
visit
the
site?		 Were
samples
taken?		 Results of
evaluation
6 End of Dixie Lane, Little Rock, Arkansas Former exfoliation facility 85,050 Yes-February 17, 2000 No According to an EPA database compiled from W.R. Grace shipping invoices, 85,050 tons of vermiculite ore from the Libby mine were shipped to this site between January 1966 and July 1989. According to reports issued in 1953 and 1964 by the Bureau of Mines (at that time in the U.S. Department of the Interior), this facility had been a vermiculite exfoliation plant. U.S. Geological Survey reports in 1970, 1975, 1980, and 1985 also indicated that this facility was a vermiculite exfoliation plant. When EPA visited, this site was an auto salvage yard. EPA noted there was a railroad located at the facility entrance and an abandoned railroad track on the site which could have been used to transport vermiculite. Only commercial properties were located adjacent to the site. Although the site had an entrance gate, no security fence surrounded the facility. EPA contacted a former manager of the Zonolite Company and he confirmed that this was the location of the former exfoliation plant. EPA conducted a walk-through of the site and found that the original buildings--including a warehouse, shed, and loading dock--remained at the site. The former Zonolite manager confirmed that these buildings were used by Zonolite and the silos were used to house vermiculite ore. According to the Zonolite manager, when W.R. Grace purchased the site in 1964, a new three-story warehouse/administrative building was constructed, along with a storage structure with four silos. EPA observed that the silos were empty and appeared "clean." The entire site was covered with salvaged vehicles. Although EPA did not observe any vermiculite waste piles at the site, the entire site did appear to have a light covering of what could be vermiculite debris. This debris could have also been absorbent materials from the salvage operations. Since EPA did not see any vermiculite waste piles at the site during its visit, it did not collect samples. EPA revisited the site on March 21, 2000, with a representative of W.R. Grace. No vermiculite waste rock was observed in the community immediately surrounding the facility but a small volume of very fine grained vermiculite was observed on the site near an area where the ore had been fed into the furnace for expansion. This area appeared to be out of the way and not disturbed by the salvage yard operations. EPA decided not to collect samples. EPA determined no further action was needed.

GAO-09-6R