OSWER/OSRTI 

Washington, DC 20460 

NATIONAL PRIORITIES LIST (NPL) 

***Final Site*** September 2011 

SANDOVAL ZINC COMPANY Sandoval, Illinois 

Marion County 

 Site Location: 

The Sandoval Zinc Company facility is located east of Sandoval, Illinois, approximately 1,400 feet east of U.S. Route 51 

and 2,200 feet south of U.S. Route 50 at the eastern end of Smelter Road (a.k.a. Mississippi Avenue). 

 Site History: 

The Sandoval Zinc facility was constructed on a 14.16 acre parcel of land in 1898 and operated as a primary zinc smelter. 

In 1915, the company began operating as a secondary zinc smelter. Compounds fed into the kilns were pure zinc, zinc 

oxide, zinc chloride and possibly aluminum chloride and other trace metals. Large quantities of cinders and slag from the 

smelting process were used as fill material on the property. The cinders located at the site were also offered to the public 

and the Village of Sandoval for fill. The facility was closed in 1985, and the company filed for bankruptcy in 1986. 

Currently, the property is owned by a private individual with no smelting activities taking place. 

 Site Contamination/Contaminants: 

An uncontrolled waste pile made up of cinders and slag covers approximately five acres of the facility. The cinder/slag 

contains elevated levels of lead, zinc and other metals. Contaminants have migrated from the site to a drainage ditch and 

adjacent pond and wetlands. Antimony, arsenic, cadmium, lead, mercury, nickel and zinc were detected in the wetlands in 

excess of EPA’s regional sediment screening values. Antimony, arsenic, lead and zinc have been found in residential yards 

in excess of EPA’s regional screening levels (RSLs). 

 Potential Impacts on Surrounding Community/Environment: 

Access to the site is unrestricted. There are numerous signs of recreational use on the property. An estimated 1,500 people 

live within 1 mile of the facility. Trespasser contact with surface soil and sediment containing hazardous substances is 

possible. Hazardous substances have migrated from the waste pile to a designated wetland adjacent to the facility. 

Hazardous substances have been transported by various means, including stack deposition and filling, into residential yards 

and the Village of Sandoval. 

 Response Activities (to date): 

On April 24, 1991, a seal order was placed on the abandoned facility by the Illinois EPA. The Illinois EPA undertook 

removal actions in November 1991 in response to a spill of fuel oil from an above ground storage tank. Additional cleanup 

activities performed by Illinois EPA in 1998 consisted of repairing and replacement of fencing, the removal of hazardous 

substances inside the buildings and the demolition and disposal of site buildings. 

 Need for NPL Listing: 

The State of Illinois referred the site to EPA to pursue a comprehensive cleanup to address human health and environmental 

risks posed by the site. Other federal and state cleanup programs were evaluated, but are not viable at this time. EPA 

received a letter of support for placing this site on the NPL from the state. 

[The description of the site (release) is based on information available at the time the site was evaluated with the HRS. The description may change 

as additional information is gathered on the sources and extent of contamination.] 

For more information about the hazardous substances identified in this narrative summary, including general information regarding the effects of exposure to these 

substances on human health, please see the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) ToxFAQs. ATSDR ToxFAQs can be found on the Internet 

at http://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/toxfaq.html or by telephone at 1-888-42-ATSDR or 1-888-422-8737.