Preliminary Assessment and Site Investigation  Canyon City mill  

  pROJECT IMPACT ANALYSIS 

• Environmental Impact
•                                       The environmental impacts of the Canyon City Mill project depend on whether or not remedial action is pursued. Pursuing a No Action alternative would leave the eleven COCs exceeding Eco-SSLs to impact existing plants and animals such as the grazing donkey herd. The soil contamination would also have the potential to migrate through surface run off and wind transport, thus spreading to nearby ecosystems. Leaving the contamination untouched would expose endangered or threatened species in the area to the pollutants. Pursuing phytoremediation combined with institutional controls as a remediation strategy would allow the site to return close to background conditions. Phytoremediation would benefit the surrounding environment and the Canyon City Mill by increasing vegetation and prevent erosion of contaminated soil. The institutional controls which include fencing would decrease the donkey population’s ability to access the more heavily contaminated area of DU1, thus preventing their exposure.
• Economic Impact
•                               Economic impacts of the projects also depend on whether or no remediation is pursued. Remediating the site would have an associated expense depending on the action taken, but any action would benefit the local economy of Oatman. Remediating the site to background conditions and creating an accessible recreational area could bring hikers or mountain bikers to the area, which would encourage them to travel through Oatman and spend money in the town. Within the specific scope of this project, the cost was decreased due to the change of sampling method. By using the Incremental Sampling Method as opposed to the original sampling strategy outlined in the Work Plan, the total volume of samples decreased, and less money was spent on materials and hazardous waste disposal.
• Societal Impact
•                                 Societal impacts of this project depend on if remediation is pursued. No Action would increase the risk to public health by exposing recreational users to the contaminants. Loss of public land is a negative societal impact associated with pursuing No Action. Remediating the site using phytoremediation would restore the aesthetic value of the site, and further developing the area for recreation would promote public health by encouraging exercise. Signage could be added to the site to explain what the Canyon City Mill was, the scope of contamination it created, and the remediation strategy applied. This development would have a positive societal impact by educating the public about phytoremediation, creating a sense of community pride in the town of Oatman, and would restore the land to the public for recreational uses.