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Carl's Retreading (Grawn, Grand Traverse County)

Carl's Retreading (Grawn, Grand Traverse County)

Disclaimer: Web content may not be routinely updated on this page.

Please contact the Site Lead for the most up-to-date status of this site.

EGLE site lead

David Maynard, MaynardD@Michigan.gov or 231-429-1656.

Background

The Carl's Retreading site is located at 5175 Sawyer Woods Drive in the city of Grawn. The site is approximately four acres, 900 feet west of the Blair Elementary School. Land use in the vicinity is residential/rural/light industrial. Drinking water in the area is provided by a mixture of private wells, community (Type II) wells for individual subdivisions and for Blair Elementary School, and the township's water supply system. Cox Pond and Beitner Creek are located 1/3 mile to the north.

Carl's Retreading operated for several years as a scrap tire collection/recycling site. On December 29, 1995, a fire began in a tire shredding machine which then ignited scrap tires that were piled up to 30 feet high. The fire burned for several weeks, during which time Blair Elementary School was closed and 62 residents were evacuated from their homes. The fire department initially tried using Aqueous Film Forming Foam (AFFF) to put out the fire, but this proved ineffective. Ultimately, the fire was extinguished by spraying it down with water and burying the burning tires utilizing heavy construction equipment.

After the fire was extinguished, Carl's Retreading did not diligently address outstanding obligations under state environmental laws, such as the removal of partially burnt tires and remediation of the resulting soil and groundwater contamination. This resulted in the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE) filing a complaint against the company and its owners in circuit court during the spring of 1998. In October 1998, a Default Judgment was entered in Grand Traverse County Circuit Court holding Carl's Retreading and its partners liable for those activities. In 1999, Carl's Retreading abandoned the site and initiated bankruptcy proceedings.

Content posted March 2021.

Carl's Retreading Map

Site map

See an aerial view of the location of the site.

Expand the map

Drinking water

Twelve households have been provided bottled water by the Grand Traverse County Health Department (GTHD). The same 12 households have been provided filters by the GTHD. Twelve homes where PFAS was detected were recently connected to the Blair Township Type I Drinking Water system. Although costs were covered by a grant, three impacted homes refused to connect. For additional information on residential well testing and results, visit the Frequently Asked Questions. EGLE has sampled all municipal water supplies for PFAS. View the results for Blair Township.

Anticipated activities

There are no specific steps scheduled at this time.

Historical Timeline

    • During the Fall of 2002 and Spring of 2003, approximately 36,000 tons of scrap tires were removed and hauled to a landfill utilizing state funds. Following the tire removal, approximately 86,000 tons of contaminated soil, ash, and tire debris was excavated and disposed of at a landfill. Other remediation activities occurred for the next few years.
    • In 2018, state-funded response activities were again initiated at the Carl's Retreading site to evaluate whether the past application of AFFF on the tire fire resulted in PFAS contamination in the groundwater.
    • During May 2018, EGLE conducted a limited scope groundwater investigation in an area immediately downgradient of the Carl's Retreading site to check for PFAS contamination. Five sampling locations (labeled A - E on the site map) were selected for vertical sampling of the aquifer down to 70 feet below ground surface. (During vertical sampling, a sample is taken every 10 feet). Analytical results were received for sample locations C, D, and E on June 1, 2018. PFAS was reported in all three of these samples.
      • At sample location C, the sample was collected at 36-40 feet below ground surface. The concentrations were reported at 60 ppt PFOA and 260 ppt PFOS.
      • At well B, one of the results had 92 ppt PFOA and 69 ppt PFOS.
    • On July 16, 2018, sampling of the drinking water at Blair Elementary School and one residence directly downgradient of the Carl's Retreading site was completed. The school sample was non-detect for PFAS, and the residence was non-detect for PFOS+PFOA, however it did have 6 ppt Total Tested PFAS. Although detections were low, it was determined that the investigation should be expanded to sampling 41 residential drinking water wells further downgradient from the Carl's Retreading site.
    • Between August and October 2018, a total of 30 samples were collected from residential wells. PFAS compounds other than PFOA and PFOS were detected in seven samples at low concentrations. PFOA and/or PFOS were detected in three samples, however, all were well below 70 ppt (the highest combination of PFOA and PFOS was 8 ppt).
    • On October 8, 2018, the GTHD along with Blair Township hosted a public engagement event at the Blair Township hall. The event was attended by approximately 25 residents from the impacted area, as well as three persons from media.
    • On November 14, 2018, EGLE's project work plan was finalized. The work plan would include installation of permanent monitoring wells adjacent to the site and collection of quarterly groundwater samples beginning in the first quarter of 2019, in order to determine if there are any seasonal variations in PFAS concentrations.
    • On January 10, 2019, the contract with Fleis & VandenBrink Environmental Consultants was finalized.
    • On March 7, 2019, EGLE staff met with Fleis & VandenBrink on-site and staked locations for the new monitoring wells.
    • During the week of March 11 to the 15, seven permanent monitoring wells were installed.
    • On April 10, 2019, EGLE collected the first round of groundwater samples.
    • On May 10, 2019, EGLE received the laboratory reports for the first round of quarterly groundwater samples. These were collected from permanent monitoring wells installed in March 2019. Results were lower than the set samples collected from temporary monitoring wells in 2018. The highest result was 19.89 ppt PFOS+PFOA.
    • On June 19, 2019, EGLE sampled three homes in the area that were recently discovered to not be connected to Blair Township's water system as previously thought, but were instead using private residential wells. One of these homes was Non-Detect for Total Tested PFAS; the other two had extremely low levels of PFAS with no detections of PFOS or PFOA.
    • On June 19, 2019, EGLE sampled Blair Elementary School; the result was Non-Detect for Total Tested PFAS.
    • On July 10, 2019 the second round of samples was collected from the permanent monitoring wells. Results continue to be lower than the set samples collected from temporary monitoring wells in 2018. The highest result was 14.27ppt PFOS+PFOA.
    • A Drinking Water Contaminant Remediation grant between the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy (EGLE) and Blair Township in the amount of $74,520 was finalized on October 1, 2019.  The Grant will pay for the connection of thirteen homes to the Blair Township Type I Drinking Water System.  PFAS constituents were detected in samples collected from the homes drinking water wells.  Although the detections were below the drinking water advisory it was determined that connection of the homes was protective of public health.
    • On November 19, 2019, a third round of samples was collected from the permanent monitoring wells. Results continue to be lower than the set samples collected from temporary monitoring wells in 2018. The highest result for this round was 20.25 ppt PFOS+PFOA.
    • In July 2020, a set of 13 re-samples was collected from homes where PFAS was detected in the past.  The reason for the sampling was to evaluate PFAS concentrations over time, and to gauge the effectiveness of water filters in the homes.  Analytical results found PFAS at concentrations near or below results from past sampling.
    • Twelve homes where PFAS was detected were recently connected to the Blair Township Type I Drinking Water system.   Although costs were covered by a grant, three impacted homes refused to connect.  Also, at the request of the resident, a home not tested in the past was sampled in February 2020.  Results found PFBS at 2 ppt and PFHxS at 2 ppt.  The home was re-sampled in April with the same results. A water filter will be provided to the home.
    • On February 21, 2020, the fourth round of samples was collected from the permanent monitoring wells. Results were like those collected in the past.
    • On July 24, 2020, a fifth round of samples was collected from the permanent monitoring wells. Results were like those collected in the past.
    • At the request of the resident, a home not tested in the past was sampled in February 2020.  Results found PFBS at 2 ppt and PFHxS at 2 ppt.  The home was re-sampled in April with the same results. A water filter was installed in July 2020.

    Type of Sample

    Date Sampled (or Range)

    Number of Samples

    		 Number of Results Received Number of Non-detects Number of Non-detect and standard*

    Number of > Standard

    Groundwater

    		 2018-2019 54 54 20 28 6
    Drinking Water (residential, Type I, II) Jul 2018 - July 2020 53 53 36 17 0

    *Groundwater results are compared to EGLE Part 201 Criteria of 70 ppt PFOS+PFOA.
    *Residential well results are compared to the EPA LHA of 70 ppt PFOS+PFOA. 

    Sampling Results

    Type of Sample

    Date Sampled (or Range)

    Numberof Samples Results Received

    Number of Samples above Criteria*

    Groundwater Monitoring Wells

    		 July 24, 2020 7 0

    *Residential well and groundwater monitoring well results are compared to EGLE Part 201 criteria for 7 PFAS compounds: PFOS (16 ppt), PFOA (8 ppt), PFNA (6 ppt), PFHxS (51 ppt), PFHxA (400,000 ppt), PFBS (420 ppt), and HFPO-DA (370 ppt).

    Sampling Notes

    • Other PFAS analytes were detected in samples. There are no federal or state standards for these analytes.