MADISON COUNTY WATER WATCH
Superfund Sites
A Superfund site is an area that has been contaminated with hazardous waste — like toxic chemicals, heavy metals, or industrial pollutants — and is considered dangerous to human health or the environment.
These sites are placed on the EPA’s National Priorities List and targeted for cleanup under a federal law called the Superfund program (officially the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act, or CERCLA).
Once a site is listed, the EPA investigates the contamination, holds responsible parties accountable, and oversees cleanup efforts — a process that can take years or even decades.
Interactive Map
Above: Interactive Map of local Superfund sites include:
Abandoned factories or chemical plants,
Old landfill Sites with groundwater or soil contamination,
Places where hazardous waste was improperly dumped or leaked.
Below: The Broadway & Grand Ave. Superfund Site Summary
Indiana: Madison County has 1 National Priority List Superfund Site
Site Summary
1992 Broadway & Grand Corridor Superfund Site contamination was discovered in the 80s. Groundwater contamination site consists of comingled plumes of chlorinated substances that have contaminated the groundwater in the City of Anderson, Indiana. The Plume has contaminated one of the city's two municipal well fields. (Ranney Well 4-5)
2011 the Indiana Department of Environmental Management (IDEM) reported trace concentrations of TCS, PCE, and cis-1,2 DCE in the finished water at the Treatment Plant and referred the site to IDEM's Site Investigation Program.
2013 IDEM Found Vinyl Chloride (VC) in raw water.
2018 Intro to the Wheeler Ave Water Plant that was added to the EPA National Priority List - (Anderson Drinking WATER Plant in Irondale)
2024 October - November Neal McKee states the Anderson Water has been testing high for PFOS Forever Chemicals.
2025 October concerned citizens discovered a blue green algae bloom surround Ranney Well 4-5 on the National Priority List Superfund Site.
Anderson, Madison County, Indiana
Contaminated WATER & Environment - Source Unknown
.jpeg)
Above: National Priority List Superfund Site located at Broadway & Grand Ave in Anderson, Madison County, Indiana a.k.a. the Killbuck Wetlands.
This location is contaminated with TCE, PCE, DCE, PFOS, and E.Coli/Coliform.
This site connects the Wheeler Ave Water Treatment Plant and to the Ranney Wells 4-5.
Below: Ranney Well #5 has some type of algae growing on the water well casing.
EPA - Harmful Algal Blooms & Drinking Water Treatment:
IDEM Blue Algae - Cyanotoxins
Anderson NPL Superfund Site
on The Political Spotlight
+ HeadzUp Productions & the Chatter Network
Can a Water Park be built on top of a Superfund Site?!?
by Nicole (Schuyler) Kapuscinski
No, a water park cannot be built on a Superfund site that has not been cleaned up because the contamination would pose an unacceptable health risk to the public. Building a water park would require the site to be cleaned to a standard that prevents public exposure to the hazardous substances, which is not possible while the cleanup is still ongoing.
-
Health risks: Superfund sites are contaminated with hazardous waste, and the presence of this contamination would be a significant public health risk for a public recreation area like a water park.
-
Cleanup standards: The cleanup plan for a Superfund site is based on its intended future use. A water park is a "recreational use," and the site would need to be cleaned to a standard that is safe for that use. A site cleaned to commercial or industrial standards may not be suitable for a water park without additional cleanup.
-
Land Use Controls: During the cleanup process, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) may implement "land use controls" to restrict how a site can be used to protect public health. A water park would likely be prohibited under these controls until the site is completely cleaned and all risks are eliminated.
-
Redevelopment: While a water park is not feasible on an uncleansed site, many Superfund sites can be redeveloped for other uses after they have been cleaned to a specific standard. For example, some sites have been redeveloped into residential areas, shopping centers, business parks, and other recreational facilities, but only after they have met all the cleanup and safety requirements for those specific uses.
I personally can't believe that we are having this conversation about a water park in a Superfund Site ZONE. It should be labeled a no go zone until the City of Anderson gets a handle on the who or what is polluting the environment. Trust me when I say that nobody wants to watch their grandparent, parent, and/or child get sick from a mysterious illness that could be traced back to a water park in a historically known area for environmental contaminants.
I'm not warning people of things that could happen. I'm warning folks because it already happened to my family starting back in the 1960s Irondale within a half mile radius of the Wheeler Ave Water Treatment Plant. Little did I know that the City of Anderson just happened to reconstruct the Wheeler WTP around 1965. Truth be told that City Officials have been fully aware of water issues as far back as we read about in local news articles.
FASTFORWARD: In the 90s the Broadway & Grand WATER corridor were added to the EPA National Priority WATCH List of Superfund Sites across the Nation. The Wheeler AVE WATER Treatment Plant was added to the Broadway & Grand Groundwater Plume Contamination Superfund Site with the EPA in 2018.
I would not learn about Superfund Sites until January 2025 after my mom passed away from health complications to a medically frail liver.
In her later years 2020 she was put on a liver transplant list 2022 then we decided her quality of life would diminish. By 2023 We decided to let her live out life without a liver transplant. She died 11/01/2025 from a botched procedure on her liver. (TRAUMA)
During the same timeframe I started learning about the PFAS/PFOS finished drinking water from Neal McKee at a City Council meeting.
The Wheeler Ave. WATER Treatment Plant to the Broadway & Grand Ave corridor are connected by the White River. The White River is being contaminated by multiple sources including the misc. Sewage Wastewater being pumped into it.
The EPA has done a wonderful job with their websites. Without the EPA many residents, voters, and taxpayers may still be in the dark about just how bad our water truly is. Per the EPA they track issues leading to the Water Plants. Once it hits the water treatment plant and into our home taps is monitored by the State of Indiana. So, the EPA can't do much about the PFAS/PFOS in the drinking water. We know because we tried to get them to help us already.
EPA Superfund 101 Town Hall at the Anderson Public Library (video above)
Virtual Tour of the White River September-October 2025 (video above)
I say all the above to say that the Wheeler AVE WTP share the same White River corridor into Broadway & Grand as the Athletic Park location.
Athletic Park area is also smacking dab next to CSO 16 and a hop skip and a jump to CSO 25 upstream in Irondale close to Riverside Dr. where my mom got sick as a child. They all have one thing in common and that is the water. If the water is contaminated, then the area around the White River is contaminated.
To be continued...
11/25/2025 Anderson Redevelopment Commission just pledged 38.5 million towards a WATER Park in the Superfund Site Zone.
Facility Search Results | ECHO | US EPA
Enforcement and compliance history?!?