Cream Wine

The site had been developed for industrial use since approximately 1942. An evaporated milk plant operated on the site from that time until 1986. The features of the plant included a truck shop garage, mechanical shop, coal bin and boiler, underground storage tanks (USTs), above ground storage tanks (ASTs), and chemical storage. The facility was repurposed as a winery from 1988 to 2010 under different owners and operators.
 
The site is located downslope from a former fueling station at Valley View Market (VVM). VVM had USTs for fuel which resulted in a release that flowed with shallow groundwater towards the southeast under First Avenue and onto the Cream Wine site. Through the sampling program completed for the VVM tetrachloroethylene (aka perchloroethylene or PCE), was detected in groundwater at the Cream Wine site at concentrations above state cleanup standards. Studies indicate that the PCE was not released from the fueling station. Historical records indicate that a laundry and dry cleaner did operate on the VVM property between 1964 and 1995. PCE was commonly used in dry cleaner operations. 

In 2012, the site was added to Ecology’s Hazardous Sites List with a ranking of “2”. Sites on the Hazardous Sites List are a priority for Ecology, and have completed a Site Hazard Assessment (SHA). A SHA provides information about the environmental risk of the site. Risk is based on the amount of contaminants, how toxic they are, and how easily they can come in contact with people and the environment. Sites are ranked relative to each other on a scale of “1” to “5”, with a rank of “5” being the lowest.

In December 2012, the Port of Sunnyside and Ecology entered into an agreement, called a Prospective Purchaser Consent Decree, to clean up metals such as lead and solvents at the site.

In September 2013, chemicals were used to reduce the contaminants in the groundwater. These were injected into the groundwater using a number of monitoring wells as injection points. In November/December 2013, cleanup actions consisted of removal and disposal of lead-contaminated soils at Columbia Ridge Landfill in Arlington, Oregon. After it was confirmed that all soil contamination above state cleanup levels had been removed, the excavation was backfilled with clean soil.

Groundwater sampling was conducted for four quarters beginning in February 2014 and ending in November 2014. At the conclusion of four quarters, the groundwater concentrations of PCE were below state cleanup levels.

Based upon cleanup activities, Ecology has determined the site is no longer a threat to human health and the environment. Ecology made a no further action determination and removed the site from the Hazardous Sites List in June 2015.