EPA #: AZD980737530

Superfund National Priority List (NPL) Placement: Sept. 8, 1983

Location

The TIAA Superfund Site covers an area of approximately 7,500 acres and is divided into seven separate project areas. The project areas include Air Force Plant 44, Tucson Airport Remediation Project, Texas Instruments (formerly Burr-Brown), Morris Air National Guard, Airport Property, West Plume B, and West-Cap. 

The Airport Property is located in the central portion of the TIAA Superfund Site site and is generally bounded by Elvira Road to the north, Los Reales Road to the south, Tucson International Airport to the east, and Benson Highway to the west | View Map >

Contaminants of Concern (COCs)

Soil | COCs in soils include polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), trichloroethylene (TCE), 1,1-dichloroethene (1,1-DCE), and carbon tetrachloride

There is little to no health risk unless there is contact with skin or ingestion of contaminated soil.

Groundwater | The COCs in groundwater include volatile organic compounds (VOCs), primarily TCE and to a lesser extent tetrachloroethylene (PCE) and carbon tetrachloride. Other contaminants under investigation include per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), including perfluorooctanoic acid, perfluorooctanesulfonic acid, perfluorohexane sulfonic acid and perfluorononanoic acid.

The City of Tucson is the main municipal water provider at this site. All municipal wells in the area that were contaminated with TCE have been shut down. Most of the domestic wells have either been shut down or converted to irrigation wells. 

If you are drinking water from a private well within the boundaries of the site,  we encourage you to test the well water. 

Not sure what to test for? | Learn More >

COCs at the site may change as new data become available.

Action Taken

The Settling Defendants, which include General Dynamics Corporation, McDonnell Douglas Corporation, the City of Tucson, and the Tucson Airport Authority (TAA) have performed remedial actions on soil, soil vapor, and groundwater at several locations across the Airport Property. A groundwater and soil vapor treatment facility is located south of the Three Hangers area and since 2007 has treated contaminated soil vapor and groundwater in the shallow groundwater zone. Additional remedial actions include:

In 2005 an In-Situ Chemical Oxidation pilot test was conducted to reduce the mass of 1,1-DCE in groundwater beneath the Samsonite Bldg. area of the Airport Property. 

The Settling Defendants completed a Resource Conservation and Recovery Act Subtitle D landfill cap for the TAA landfill in July 2011.

In 2015, a vapor intrusion investigation was completed in the neighborhood immediately west of the Airport Property Three Hangars area because it was thought that this area presented the greatest potential for vapor intrusion.  Results showed that vapor intrusion was not a significant health concern in this area.

Between 2000 and 2011 PCB contaminated soil and sludge were cleaned-up and removed off-site. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency provided a Certification of Completion for the PCB Soils remedy in July 2017. 

Status

A groundwater and soil vapor treatment facility continues operation at the site. Groundwater is treated by an air stripper and soil vapor is treated with vapor phase Granular Activated Carbon. Treated water is injected into the regional aquifer.

This site is subject to programmatic five-year reviews, and the next review will be conducted in 2028.

Learn more about this Superfund site on the EPA website | View >