Residents near a shuttered chemical plant in westside Indianapolis are facing the lingering health effects of decades of pollution, even as the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency prepares to launch a new groundwater cleanup effort.
Sophie Hartley reports for Indianapolis Star.
In short:
- The EPA is set to begin a new phase of groundwater cleanup at the Reilly Tar Superfund site, using a technique called air sparging to accelerate the breakdown of toxic chemicals like benzene and pyridine.
- Residents report decades of exposure to noxious fumes, and a recent public health study found higher rates of lung cancer and respiratory disease near the site than elsewhere in the county or state.
- Although production ceased in 2024 and much of the contamination is now contained, experts warn the area's air and soil remain polluted, with monitoring and remediation expected to continue for years.
Key quote:
“Cleaning up groundwater is never exactly what you think.”
— Dion Novak, EPA remedial project manager
Why this matters:
Superfund sites are often silent legacies of America’s industrial past — places where decades of chemical dumping and poor oversight have poisoned soil, water, and people. The Reilly Tar site, which operated for over a century, sits in a working-class neighborhood where residents have long lived in the shadow of chemical fumes and cancer fears. Like many Superfund locations, it tells a story not just of contamination, but of environmental injustice: where low-income families and people of color are disproportionately exposed to pollution. These communities often lack the political power to push back or the resources to move away. Though production at the site has stopped, the chemicals it left behind—like benzene, a known carcinogen — can persist underground and in the air for decades. The EPA’s new cleanup plan aims to accelerate remediation, but even the best-case scenarios stretch across generations.
Read more: Scientists warn of hormone impacts from benzene, xylene, other common solvents
