Buckeye Niles Terminal (Niles, Berrien County)

Pablo Mora, MoraP@Michigan.gov or 269-910-0136.

Buckeye Niles Terminal (BNT) is located at 2303 South Third Street.  In 2010, Shell Oil Products US reported a 19,000-gallon gasoline release at the site at the Tank #24 dike area. An April 2019 report showed the Niles Fire Department used a fire-retardant foam to help mitigate an explosive atmosphere at the site. Shell Oil and BNT performed response activities to address the gasoline contamination of site soils and groundwater but had not evaluated PFAS contaminants that may have been associated with the use of fire-retardant foam. In early 2021, an investigation found level of PFAS contaminants exceeding groundwater clean-up criteria.

The groundwater flow in the area is to the south/southwest. The nearest surface waterbody is the St. Joseph River a half mile west of the site.

Content posted October 2021.

Niles Charter Township services most of the residents near the site. MDHHS determined there are approximately 14 residential wells in the area that need to be sampled. Buckeye has agreed to conduct the sampling and has provided a sampling plan to EGLE for review and comment.

BNT's contractor, Antea Group will be collecting samples of previously sampled monitoring wells for PFAS and will also include a few other wells to further assess PFAS contamination and its transport. Furthermore, Antea Group will install a deeper well to assess potential deeper contamination and delineate the PFAS plume vertically.