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BP Achieving Brownfield Site Remediation
BP, a leading energy provider and world-class oil company, is
cleaning up the site of a former Amoco oil refinery located in
Sugar Creek, Mo. Working with the City of Sugar Creek, plans
are being made to turn major potions of the 500-acre former
refinery into a bustling industrial/commercial business park with
three miles of new roads and utilities. The name Sugar Creek
evokes images of sugar maples, verdant landscape and, as it
implies, the city offers a sweet way of life. Located eight miles
east of Kansas City, Mo., the site of the former refinery, which
operated from 1904 to 1982, is located on the Missouri River
where Lewis and Clark camped during their historic journey, and
down the road from the Harry and Bess Truman home in
Independence, MO.
BP and the City of Sugar Creek are committed to
reusing the site of the former refinery. Three hundred acres will
be leased to the City for a business park. Remediation and
redevelopment of the site is aimed at attracting new businesses
to the area, generating more jobs for the local populace, and returning
the property to tax rolls. This all sounds pretty and nice, yet the truth of the matter is that the very nature
of petroleum products and groundwater can make remediation of former oil refinery sites tricky business.
BP (formerly known as Amoco) has been monitoring and investigating groundwater conditions
at the refinery for quite some time. Sampling revealed the existence of hydrocarbon contaminants, some of
which mix with groundwater and others that are lighter than water and float on top of it. Some of the hydrocarbons
were discharging into surface water. “BP’s goal is to keep hydrocarbons from migrating into the (Sugar)
creek,” said Lloyd E. Dunlap, who manages BP’s remediation program at the site.
Initial efforts
used a trench-type recovery system
to control migration of hydrocarbons
and groundwater into
the creek. The system consists
of a trench filled with rocks and
drain tiles to carry water containing
hydrocarbons to an API
separator and then to a public
operated treatment works (a
POTW or sanitary sewer). For
the northern area of the site with
different geologic conditions, a
decision was made to install
Blackhawk 102 Electric
Anchor Piston Pumps because
they were effective in the clayey
soils and less intrusive than the trench-type system.
“Blackhawk Anchor Pumps proved to be better for us in the northern area near the creek. They
effectively control and contain the groundwater from migrating toward the creek. We’re using four Anchor Pumps
right now, all of them electric 102Es, to pump groundwater mixed with hydrocarbons to the API separator and then
to the POTW. Our Blackhawk pumps have worked steadily around the clock for 9 to 12 months now and they have
been very effective. Installing them was easy, too. They’re low maintenance, and with the controls on top, easy to
inspect, trouble shoot, and maintain”, Dunlap explained.
Blackhawk Environmental’s Anchor Piston Pumps are well known for their ability to handle dirty,
oily, and sticky liquids. The pumps feature the pump inlet at the bottom of the pump, so that each pump works like
a syringe, extracting liquid from the bottom to the top with every stroke for highly reliable pumping. The pumps operate
consistently whether the pumping action is clean or dirty. Even in the most sticky or oily situations, the
pump’s positive displacement action resists lowdown or stoppage. The pump operator can always see if the pump
is working or not, because the pump drive mechanism and controls are positioned at the top.
“Ours was a joint decision among BP and our consultants to purchase Blackhawk Anchor
Piston Pumps. Since we have used them, we have been very satisfied with their performance,” said Dunlap.
Blackhawk Environmental Co. specializes in manufacturing quality pumps and controls for demanding
pumping applications. Blackhawk pumps can be powered pneumatically or electrically and can work in
hazardous or potentially hazardous environments. For more than a decade, Blackhawk pumps have been successfully
operating in a wide range of pumping applications across the United States. Blackhawk’s pumps are custom
manufactured in a variety of sizes and designs depending on the application.
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