For Immediate Release:  April 5, 2022

Contact:  Erin Hatfield, (405) 437.8468, erin.hatfield@deq.ok.gov

The Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) will join the City of Commerce’s City Council Meeting at 6:00 p.m. on Tuesday, April 12, 2022, to provide information on the upcoming Tar Creek Superfund Site Chat Base (CB032) cleanup set to begin this spring. The meeting will be held at Commerce City Hall, 618 Commerce Avenue, Commerce. Representatives from DEQ will be available to discuss and answer questions related to the upcoming cleanup activities.

The Tar Creek Superfund Site is part of the Tri-State Mining District, which includes northeastern Oklahoma, southeastern Kansas, and southwestern Missouri, where lead and zinc were mined from the early 1900s to the 1970s. When the mining stopped, huge volumes of waste, including chat, were left on the ground. Due to the overwhelming size and complexity of the site, it is divided into multiple Operable Units (OUs). The cleanup of chat bases and chat piles are the basis of OU 4 and cleanup is accomplished by removing chat, lead, cadmium and zinc-contaminated soils to the remedial goals established by the Environmental Protection Agency.

For more information about the Tar Creek Superfund Site, contact Brian Stanila, DEQ Program Manager, at (405) 702.5138.

Media inquiries should be directed to Erin Hatfield at (405) 437.8468.

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