Site Assessment & Clean Up

Operable Unit #2 (OU-2) of the Vasquez Boulevard and Interstate-70 (VBI70) Superfund Site includes the former Omaha-Grant smelter that was built on 50 acres of land bordering the South Platte River south of Interstate 70 and the existing Denver Coliseum.  Various portions of the former lead smelter facility were deeded to the City and County of Denver (City) between 1920 and 1947.

The Environmental Quality Division (EQ) is the technical adviser and lead agency for the City on issues related to the VBI70 OU2 Superfund Site. The elements of primary concern at the site are arsenic and lead that resulted from the former smelting operations.  EQ is committed to ensuring that exposure to these metals is minimized to prevent unnecessary health risks to recreational users or City employees.  The City, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA), and the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) are working diligently together to investigate potential impacts of arsenic and lead on soil, ground water, surface water and sediments at and adjacent to the Site.  The City, as a potential responsible party, has hired a contractor to assemble and analyze the existing data as a first step in the process of determining how the site will be remediated based upon likely future uses of the Site.  This work has just been initiated and results of this preliminary work are forthcoming.  Based upon the results of this first step, recommendations on additional data gathering and next steps will be made.  The work will be of interest to the surrounding community as well as to the City.