Hill AFB pollution no risk to water

HILL AIR FORCE BASE (AP) — Recent tests show no health risk to the Layton city drinking water supply from contaminants found in groundwater plumes, Hill Air Force Base officials say.

The contamination of groundwater, which ranges in depth from 10 feet to 150 feet, was caused by the disposal of degreaser solvents used on military planes.

Water levels in some areas of the plume show the system is working and containing contaminated groundwater.

Hill's Operable Unit 8 site manager Barbara Hall last week told the Layton City Council that January tests show the plumes are not expanding. Base officials hope monitoring will better define the size of the plumes within the next 18 to 24 months, however, not much change is expected.

"We're going to be here for awhile," Hall said.

The base has been on the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's list of Superfund cleanup sites since 1987 and restoration efforts have been under way since 1990.

Last year, officials installed eight new monitor wells in Layton. Well sampling is done on a regular basis, but some wells will be tested more often to evaluated new sampling techniques, Hall said. Indoor air sampling also continues in Layton homes located over shallow plumes.

Base officials have contacted 855 Layton homeowners near the plume. Of those, 160 agreed to sampling, and 107 samples have been taken since October, Hall said. Few problems have been detected.

Base officials are providing air mitigation systems to the effected homes, said Bob Elliott, chief of the Environmental Restoration Branch.