OSWER/OSRTI 

Washington, DC 20460 

NATIONAL PRIORITIES LIST (NPL)

***Final Site*** March 2010 

VAN DER HORST USA CORPORATION Terrell, Texas 

Kaufman County 

 Site Location: 

The former Van der Horst USA Corporation (Van der Horst) site is located approximately 300 yards from downtown 

Terrell, Texas. The site is located within Kaufman County and is situated on approximately 3.5 acres of land. The 

main building where chrome and iron plating occurred is located at 419 East Grove Street. The wastewater treatment 

building is located at 410 East Grove Street. The remaining land consists of undeveloped land on the east side of the 

wastewater treatment building. 

 Site History: 

The Van der Horst facility began operations as a chrome and iron plating facility in the 1950s and operated until 

December 2006. Finished products associated with these plating operations included natural gas pipeline cylinders for 

the transportation of natural gas and cylinder bores for large diesel engines such as railroad locomotive engines. 

 Site Contamination/Contaminants: 

As part of the plating operations, the facility generated spent kerosene, wastewater treatment sludge, and chromium 

contaminated wastewater and soil. When the site was abandoned in April 2007, these wastes remained on-site in two 

underground sumps, 27 variously-sized plating vats, and 450 55-gallon drums. Two closed surface lagoons which 

treated chromium wastewater were also present to the east of the wastewater treatment building. 

 Potential Impacts on Surrounding Community/Environment: 

The closest residences are located in the Stallings Addition housing complex, less than one mile southeast of the 

facility. Before EPA response activities began in May 2008, the lack of segregation of drum waste, the open 

chromium-contaminated waste vats and the chromium-contaminated wastewater within the basement sump created a 

significant and imminent threat to public health and the environment. Discolored water has been seen running down 

East Grove Street and discolored soils are visible within drainage pathways. 

 Response Activities (to date): 

On May 28, 2008, a small fire occurred in the main building at the Van der Horst facility. On May 29, 2008, EPA 

initiated Emergency Response activities. The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality and EPA collected 

samples, performed hazardous categorization, separated various drums and containers into similar waste streams, and 

removed the chromium rinse water from the facility basement sump to stabilize the site. Site stabilization included the 

construction of a temporary earthen berm around the site to minimize off-site migration of site contamination to the 

sewer and overland drainage. Fencing was also erected around the site to prevent access to the facility. EPA removal 

activities are ongoing. 

 Need for NPL Listing: 

The State of Texas referred the site to EPA for NPL listing and potential remedial activities. Without Superfund 

cleanup, this site will continue to be a source of chromium to surface water, to ground water underlying the facility 

and nearby residential areas. Other federal and state cleanup programs were evaluated but are not viable at this time. 

[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.