SITE INFORMATION AND CORRESPONDENCE_1992

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C-SHADRIFS91.6/GW PP.3 01/22/92 SITE BACKGROUND DDRW-Sharpe Site, formerly Sharpe Army Depot, is located northeast of Lathrop, California, just west of Interstate Highway I-5 and east of California Highway 99, with the Southern Pacific and Western Pacific Railroads paralleling and contiguous to the west and east boundaries of the site, respectively. The South San Joaquin Irrigation District Canal parallels the eastern boundary. Land around SHARPE is used for a variety of purposes, including residential, agricultural, and light industry. Built to assist in defense efforts during World War II, SHARPE's principal missions have been the storage, shipping, packaging, and maintenance of general supplies. Maintenance and overhauling of heavy equipment and aircraft were major parts of SHARPE's mission until 1976 when most of this activity was phased out. SHARPE is divided into four major areas, the Administration and Housing Area (AHA), located at the extreme northern end of the site, the North Balloon Area, located just south of the AHA, the South Balloon Area, located at the extreme southern end of the site, and the Central Area, located between the North and South Balloon Areas. The two "balloon" areas are named for the balloonlike shape formed by railroad tracks in each area. An aircraft hangar and runway are located along the western boundary of the Central Area (Map 1). Previous environmental studies revealed contamination in the North and South Balloon Areas, with offsite migration of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in the groundwater appearing to originate from the South Balloon Area. Soil and groundwater contamination were discovered at SHARPE in 1980. In 1981, studies revealed VOCs, particularly trichloroethene (TCE). These VOCs likely resulted from past mission-related activities such as vehicle maintenance, but the VOCs may also originate from former burial trenches (which contained wastes 3