Federal Agency seeks comments on North Shore Drive health report in Elkhart, IN and invites community to public meeting

Elkhart, Indiana

Thursday, April 06, 2017

ATLANTA, GA – The Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) released a new report for public comment for the North Shore Drive Groundwater Contamination Superfund site. ATSDR will accept comments from the public until May, 18, 2017.

ATSDR scientists will discuss the findings of the report for public comment with the community at a public meeting:

WHEN
Thursday, April 20, 2017
6:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.

WHERE
Elkhart County Health Department
608 Oakland Ave.
Elkhart, IN 46516

During the public meeting, community members and other interested individuals can learn about the report’s findings and recommendations, and will have the opportunity to meet and talk with scientists, ask questions, and discuss their environmental public health concerns.

The report evaluated environmental sampling data for trichloroethylene (TCE) in groundwater. To read the report, visit: https://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/HAC/PHA/HCPHA.asp?State=IN.

Copies of the report can be reviewed during regular business hours at the library:

Elkhart Public Library – Central 
300 2^nd Street
Elkhart, IN 46516

The public comment process gives residents the opportunity to review the report, ask questions, and provide their input. ATSDR’s response to those comments will be included in the appendices of the final report.

Comments on the report must be submitted in writing to: ATSDRRecordsCenter@cdc.gov, or mailed to:

Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry
Attn: Records Center -- Re: North Shore Drive GWC (Elkhart, IN)
4770 Buford Highway, NE (MS F-09)
Atlanta, Georgia 30341

BACKGROUND

The North Shore Drive site is located in Elkhart, Elkhart County, Indiana, and is an approximately 70-acre groundwater contaminant plume bounded by the St. Joseph River.  The area includes approximately 35 residential properties and a few commercial establishments.  Federal, state, and local agencies began investigating the area because residents’ complaints of skin irritation, headaches, and rashes.

This report is based on a public health evaluation of available environmental data for TCE as well as community concerns to determine whether people were exposed to hazardous substances in the groundwater and whether those exposures are harmful.

For more information about the North Shore Drive site contact CDC-INFO at 1-800-CDC-INFO (1-800-232-4636) or www.cdc.gov/info or visit www.atsdr.cdc.gov.

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ATSDR, a federal public health agency of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, evaluates the potential for adverse human health effects of exposure to hazardous substances in the environment.

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Related PHA & HC For this Press Release

North Shore Drive Groundwater Contamination
Document Date: 9/28/2017 - PHA  [PDF - 2636 KB]

North Shore Drive Groundwater Contamination
Document Date: 4/6/2017 - PHA  [PDF - 4732 KB]

North Shore Drive Groundwater Contamination
-Fact Sheet
Document Date: 4/6/2017 - PHA  [PDF - 395 KB]

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Related News Releases For Elkhart, Indiana, USA

 

ATSDR Releases Final Public Health Assessment For Lane Street Ground Water Contamination
Release Date: Wednesday, July 17, 2013
The Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) has released its final public health assessment for the Lane Street Ground Water Contamination site in Elkhart, Indiana.

ATSDR Invites Public Comment on the Revised Draft Lane Street Ground Water Contamination Report
Release Date: Thursday, March 14, 2013
Groundwater beneath some properties along Lane Street in Elkhart, Indiana, is contaminated with volatile organic compounds, including trichloroethylene (TCE), says the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) in its revised draft public health assessment. The report is available for public comment until April 29, 2013.

Public Invited to Comment on Lane Street Ground Water Contamination Report ATSDR to Host Public Meeting August 22
Release Date: Monday, August 08, 2011
Groundwater beneath some properties along Lane Street in Elkhart, Indiana is contaminated with volatile organic compounds, including trichloroethylene (TCE), the federal Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR)concludes in its draft public health assessment.

ATSDR releases final report on Lusher Avenue Groundwater Contamination
Release Date: Friday, July 24, 2009
About 200 people were exposed to chemicals in drinking water wells near Lusher Avenue in Elkhart, IN, in the late 1980s, including an estimated 53 who were exposed to levels that may put them at greater risk for adverse health effects, concludes the final public health assessment (PHA) on the site from the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR).

Public Comment Sought for the Lusher Avenue Groundwater Contamination ATSDR Assessment
Release Date: Monday, March 02, 2009
Two decades after contamination was first found in Elkhart groundwater, federal officials continue to advise people who live in affected areas and use private wells to take precautions. The Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) released its public health assessment of the site March 2 and is welcoming public comment on the assessment until March 31.

ATSDR to Host Open House Session about Upcoming Environmental Health Activities at the Lusher Avenue Groundwater Contamination Site
Release Date: Friday, October 31, 2008
The Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry will hold an Open House in Elkhart, Indiana to gather community health concerns from residents of neighborhoods near the Lusher Avenue Groundwater Contamination Site.

ATSDR To Hold Meetings About Its Public Health Assessment for the Conrail Rail Yard Superfund Site in Elkhart, Ind.
Release Date: Thursday, July 29, 2004
The Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR), a public health agency of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, will hold a public availability session followed by a public meeting Aug. 3, 2004, about the Conrail Rail Yard Superfund Site in Elkhart, Ind. The agency recently issued the public comment version of its public health assessment for the site. At the public availability session from 4:30-6:30 p.m., ATSDR representatives will be available to talk one-to-one with community members about health concerns they believe are related to possible exposure to contaminants from the Conrail site.

ATSDR Releases for Public Comment Its Public Health Assessment for the Conrail Rail Yard Superfund Site in Elkhart, Ind.
Release Date: Thursday, July 01, 2004
The Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR), a public health agency of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, today released for public review and comment a public health assessment for the Conrail Rail Yard Superfund Site in Elkhart, Ind. The report was done at the request of community members and to update a preliminary public health assessment completed in 1989.

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