Dirts piles at CFAC for basement fill

The large piles of soil on the south edge of the Columbia Falls Aluminum Co. site will be used to eventually fill in the basement of the plant once its torn down, Montana Department of Environmental Quality spokeswoman Jeni Flatow confirmed last week.

The fill is being mined at the site and was found to be clean of contaminants, Flatow said.

DEQ is the agency overseeing the demolition of the old plant. The Environmental Protection Agency is overseeing the actual cleanup of the site and its landfills — a process that is expected to take years under the federal Superfund process.

Demolition of the buildings is expected to be complete in December of 2018.

To date, nearly 1.69 million pounds of non-regulated asbestos have been taken off the site and another 87,150 pounds of regulated asbestos have been removed since demolition began, according to the DEQ.