Delisted from the Superfund program’s National Priorities List in 1998, the NL Industries/Taracorp/Golden Auto site met the U.S. Environment Protection Agency's (EPA) requirements for reuse in 2009 and is now home to industrial, commercial office and warehouse space employing nearly 100 people and generating more than $17 million in annual sales revenue.

The site is located in area just southeast of the former Sam’s Club site off Louisiana Avenue and Highway 7.

History

From 1940 to 1982, a secondary smelter operated on site recovering lead from lead plates, battery fragments and lead containers. The waste disposal activities at the smelter and the metal refining business resulted in high lead levels in the air, soil and groundwater. In 1983, the EPA placed the site on the Superfund program’s National Priorities List.

Cleanup involved removing contaminated soil, refilling and revegetating the area, cleaning or demolishing buildings and installing a protective asphalt cover. Groundwater monitoring continues.

Learn more

• NL Industries/Taracorp/Golden Auto site (EPA)