The facility in Ellsworth, Kansas has been active in the Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE) State Cooperative Program since the early 1990s. The facility was identified as the source for tetrachloroethylene (PCE) impact discovered in two City of Ellsworth public water supply wells. 

Investigations conducted in the early 1990s concluded there were no remaining PCE source areas. Remediation including pump and treat for impacted groundwater combined with groundwater monitoring was conducted through 2023. Due to a potential merger and acquisition, Braun Intertec was retained to evaluate the Site for closure within 5 years to support the transaction.

Our team conducted expedited site characterization using direct-push methods with a mobile laboratory and including digital imagery methods such as the Geoprobe™ Hydraulic Profiling Tool. Two previously unidentified source areas for PCE were identified with one showing dense non-aqueous phase liquids (DNAPL). Remedial technologies were evaluated and in situ chemical oxidation (ISCO) was selected as the preferred technology based on site-specific geochemistry. A treatability test was conducted to design a pilot study phase involving injection of sodium permanganate into source areas to affect remediation and mitigation of PCE. The pilot study was completed in August 2025, and a final design for full-scale remediation has been developed. The treatability study, pilot study, and full-scale design were conducted in association with Orin Technologies, a remedial contractor based out of Verona, Wisconsin.

Work conducted for the project has been in concert with KDHE oversight and approval. The full-scale design, upon approval by KDHE, will be implemented in early 2026 and will involve continued operation of groundwater containment wells, strategic injection of sodium permanganate, and installation of a permeable reactive barrier using Orin’s Bioavailable Absorbent Media (BAM) as an additional measure to control plume migration during the remediation process.