The US EPA, the US Department of Justice (DOJ), and the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ) on Aug. 22 announced a proposal to enter into a Bona Fide Prospective Purchaser Agreement with Seven Seas Terminals LLC for the purchase of the former plant portion of the Mississippi Phosphates Corp. (MPC) Superfund Site in Pascagoula, Miss.
Seven Seas, which is based in Gulfport, Fla., and was incorporated in October 2022, plans to purchase and redevelop the former MPC manufacturing plant area at 601 Industrial Road in Pascagoula as a dry bulk storage and tank terminal operation. The demolition and construction work will require several years and is anticipated to create 25-30 jobs when complete.
Under the agreement, which is subject to a 30-day public comment period ending on Sept. 20, 2023, Seven Seas will conduct a Removal Action under EPA oversight that includes demolition of the sulfuric acid plants; demolition and/or reuse of the phosphoric acid plant, diammonium phosphate (DAP) plant, and two bulk storage warehouses; installation of an impermeable cap as a containment control for the area proposed as a tank terminal operation; sampling of soils under demolished structures and slabs; removal, treatment, or containment of contaminated soils outside of the capped area; and payment of EPA’s oversight costs.
Seven Seas will also allow the EPA continuing access to the water treatment plant, laboratory, shops, and other buildings/equipment at the plant to support EPA response actions on other portions of the site. The agreement will provide Seven Seas with legal protections against Superfund liability for legacy contamination at the site.
MPC manufactured DAP fertilizers at its Pascagoula facility from the late 1950s until it filed for bankruptcy in October 2014 (GM Nov. 3, 2014). As a result of former phosphate ore processing operations, including phosphoric and sulfuric acid plants, the soil at the site is contaminated, primarily by heavy metals, radium-226, and low pH.
Groundwater beneath the former plant contains elevated metals concentrations and low pH, generally located in the central portion of the property. The EPA placed the site on the Superfund National Priorities List in January 2018 and is overseeing the ongoing cleanup of the site.
The federal register notice and instructions for submitting public comments are posted at www.federalregister.gov/documents/2023/08/21/2023-17943/mississippi-phosphates-corp-superfund-site-pascagoula-mississippi-notice-of-proposed-settlement.