Potentially toxic chemicals found in Tontitown’s air in latest round of testing
TONTITOWN, Ark. (KNWA/KFTA) — A new report released by the Arkansas Department of Energy and Environment shows five potentially toxic chemicals were discovered in the air surrounding Tontitown's Eco-Vista Landfill, exceeding certain Environmental Protection Agency levels. In 2022, KNWA/FOX24 released an investigation that revealed the Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality (ADEE) chose to not conduct chemical air quality tests after citizens complained the landfill's fumes were making them sick.
It said those tests were too expensive.
After that report and continued complaints from Tontitown's mayor Angela Russell, the Arkansas National Guard conducted its own tests. The ADEE did its own testing in February 2024 through the Center for Toxicology and Environmental Health.
The company said it found two toxins in the air nearby, acrolein and benzene.
Harmful chemicals found in Tontitown air at landfill, officials say
In the most comprehensive study yet, the same company says three days of testing in late April revealed these chemicals were still around and several other new chemicals were found.
After analyzing 10 sites immediately surrounding the Eco-Vista Landfill and four a bit farther away, CTEH said its researchers found these five toxic chemicals in the air at notable levels: acrolein, benzene, carbon tetrachloride, chloroform, and naphthalene.
To give a sense of how concentrated they were, CTEH used a metric called a regional screening level (RSL).
The EPA said the level is designed to give communities a sense of when risks grow to a point that they may warrant a closer look.
CTEH said the amount of acrolein researchers found at one spot was 4,900% over the RSL threshold, with the highest concentration detected at 0.45 parts per billion (ppb). Across all 10 sites near the landfill, the chemical averaged 0.13 ppb, 1344% more than RSL.
The amount of benzene found in one spot was 209% over the threshold, with the highest concentration detected at 0.34 ppb. In all 10 sites, the chemical averaged 0.15 ppb, 36% more than RSL.
Timeline: Tontitown's landfill controversy
While these were the highest concentrations found, all 14 analysis sites around the landfill reported levels above the EPA threshold for the two chemicals.
The other chemicals were discovered more sparingly but also exceeded that level on at least one occasion.
: detected in 1 surrounding site, only on two of the three testing days and had the highest concentration at 0.054 ppb (116% more than RSL)
: detected in 0 surrounding sites but 1 slightly further one, on one testing day and had the highest concentration of 0.17 (963% more than RSL)
Carbon tetrachloride was only detected at four of the surrounding sites and averaged at 0.072 ppb (3% than RSL). However, at its highest concentration, it was found at 0.08 ppb (8% more than RSL)
This data does not prove the Eco-Vista Landfill is the source of the chemicals found in the air around it but for a community that's long asked for official testing to learn whether there are toxins in the air, the report may be just what they needed to move forward.
