By Jason W. Brooks
Mail | X: @JasonWBrooks2

A $7 million contract for airport site environmental remediation likely will be on the Chandler City Council’s agenda for its Thursday, March 21, meeting.

The item was one of dozens that appeared on the council’s Monday, March 18, study session agenda, but wasn’t pulled for discussion by any council members.

Thursday’s meeting is set for 6 p.m. at Chandler City Hall, 88 E. Chicago Street.

The $7 million contract, with Glendale-based WSP USA Environment & Infrastructure Inc., includes approval of a contingency transfer of $410,000.

A staff report states the Chandler Municipal Airport area contained a crop-dusting applicator tenant who left in 1991. The airport also included aircraft maintenance, fuel and chemical storage.

There was also a landfill at the site from the late 1940s to the late 1970s, the report states. Soil samples have indicated contamination was limited to shallow soils at the site and would not impact the underlying groundwater.

The report says the area is not a hazard to the public since it is within the airport fence.

In October 2021, council approved an agreement with WSP USA to complete an investigation project. In 2022, the firm completed the engineering evaluation and cost analysis of soils, soil piles and landfill area, to develop a remediation plan.

WSP USA consulted with city staff and management. A recommendation was made to choose the option of remediating soil contamination on site.

In December 2022, the city applied for the Voluntary Remediation Program at the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality, and in February 2023, the project was accepted.

ADEQ has reviewed a removal action plan and soil sampling of stockpiles, and after various revisions and 30 days of public comment that received no comments, ADEQ approved the plan on Feb. 13 of this year.

The soil treatment is anticipated to take no longer than six months, the report states.

Combined with the Cooper-Insight Loop Road project currently in design, the remediation will open up the southern half of the airport for development and support the goals of both the Airport Master Plan and the Airpark Area Plan, the report states.

We’d like to invite our readers to submit their civil comments on this topic.  Email AZOpinions@iniusa.org.  Jason W. Brooks can be reached at jbrooks@iniusa.org.

Jason W. Brooks
News Editor | Chandler Independent

Jason W. Brooks joined Independent Newsmedia, Inc., USA, in July 2021 as an associate editor. After a year covering Buckeye, he has covered Chandler since the fall of 2022, in addition to assisting the Daily Independent throughout his time at INI.

Education: University of New Mexico, bachelor of arts in journalism and mass communication, print emphasis, English minor.

Random Fact: He and his siblings witnessed a Space Shuttle launch and landing in the same year in person, on opposite coasts.

Hobbies: Karaoke, bicycling and American Sign Language.

Community: He supports animal shelters.