• Site At-a-Glance

    • Asarco Smelter Site

      Location

      El Paso, Texas

      Regulatory Jurisdiction

      TCEQ & EPA Region 6

      Description
      • Located on the edge of the Rio Grande River near the U.S.-Mexico border
      • Began operations as a lead smelter in 1887. The Site also produced copper, zinc, antimony, and cadmium
      • Smelter property is ~300 acres; Plant site itself is ~100 acres

Asarco Smelter Site

PNL's Role

In late 2009 TCEQ selected Project Navigator's Roberto Puga as the Site Trustee. Currently PNL is responsible for all phases of the project including: Community and Regulatory Outreach, Data Consolidation and Data Assessment, Site Demolition, Remediation and Site Disposition. Our responsibilities also include the management of all associated workplans and selected contractors.

Technical Milestones

  • Selection of Contractors:
    • In March 2011, Brandenburg Industrial Service Company was selected as the Site Demolition Contractor.
    • In 2010, Malcolm Pirnie was selected as the Environmental Engineering Consultant, and ERM was selected as the Demolition Consultant.
  • Site Assets: Marketing of Site assets to increase remediation fund (current estimates are ~$400K) in sales. Additionally there have been sales for the Oxygen Plant and copper matte and scrap lead for nearly $11MM.
  • Electrical Re-route: Completed electrical re-route of the site ($84K/year in cost savings).
  • Site Demolition: Began in 4th Q 2010 Read Demolition magazine's article about the demolition process at ASARCO
  • Live Webcam Installation: There is a live webcam available for the public to view Site activities. This webcam can be viewed on the homepage of www.recastingthesmelter.com.
  • Site Documents and Information:
    • Completed the Survey of the Trust properties.
    • Updated the operations and site safety manual.
    • Completed asbestos survey of remaining site facilities.
    • Creation of database and data gap analysis.
  • Historical Artifact and Document Preservation

Stakeholder Relations

  • A public website was launched in early 2009 to host project information, site activities and incorporates community and stakeholder input, www.recastingthesmelter.com
  • The Site Trustee continues to meet regularly with community members, local city officials and state representatives
  • A Community Relations Plan (CRP) and Community Assurance Plan (CAP) are available on the project website
  • A community meeting was held in October 2010
  • The Trustee continues to have regular interaction and communication with various media outlets
  • Creation of Site models to facilitate understanding of the phased demolition sequence
  • Site tours upon request

Additional information can be found on www.recastingthesmelter.com.