Warren Ranch, Laramie County, WY: F. E. Warren Air Force Base Facility Former Atlas "D" Missile Site 2

Formerly Used Defense Sites (FUDS) Program

Published April 16, 2015
Atlas "D" missile site operated by the Air Force as part of the 564th Strategic Missile Squadron at F.E. Warren Air Force Base, Wyoming.

Atlas "D" missile site operated by the Air Force as part of the 564th Strategic Missile Squadron at F.E. Warren Air Force Base, Wyoming.

Location and Description: The property was one of three Atlas "D" missile sites operated by the Air Force as part of the 565th Strategic Missile Squadron at F.E. Warren Air Force Base, Wyoming. The property is located 20 miles northeast of Cheyenne and consisted of 857 acres acquired by purchase and condemnation between 1958 and 1961. 

The property was excessed to the General Services Administration (GSA) in 1965. The 415 fee acres and easements over 80 acres were sold to Southern Scrap Iron and Metal Company, St. Louis, Missouri. This portion of the property was later sold to the Warren Livestock Company, Cheyenne, Wyoming: the current owners, as were easements over 327 acres that were under GSA control. Easements over 35 acres were conveyed to the original owners. These easements are currently owned by Dorance and Todd Berry. 

Problem and Response: Due to trichloroethene (TCE) groundwater contamination, a Hazardous, Toxic and Radioactive Waste project has been initiated for this site under the Defense Environmental Restoration Program for FUDS.

Remedial Investigation: The remedial investigation was started by an in-house team. The final remedial investigation report was submitted in June 2009, and re-sampling of all monitoring wells was conducted. An addendum to the report was completed in February 2011. An additional remedial investigation plume delineation was conducted in 2011, and the report has been finalized. 

Interim Monitoring: A U.S. Army Corps of Engineers contract was awarded in 2010 to conduct bi-annual interim monitoring under the remedial design phase. The monitoring of the groundwater has been conducted over a four-year timeframe to assess plume migration. Work will continue in the fourth year of interim monitoring. Award of the fifth year of interim monitoring has been cancelled and the proposed plan and decision documents are being developed.

Activities for 2015: Evaluate the feasibility of hydraulic fracturing to increase the distribution potential of injected substrate. To achieve this goal, a remedial action study will be conducted to evaluate hydraulic and geo-technical characteristics of the subsurface and the interaction of injected material with porous media. The study will focus on two areas: an area up-gradient of impacted groundwater, and an area within the groundwater plume where TCE concentrations are greater than 5,000 μg/L. 

Proposed Activities for 2016: Further the implementation of the hydraulic fracturing to perform a proposed plan and decision document. 

Issues and Other Information: The remedial investigation has determined that there is no significant concern with surface and subsurface soil contamination, and TCE groundwater contamination is the only concern. The state is pushing for remedial action of the TCE-contaminated groundwater. The site is lower on the priority list for FUDS projects in Wyoming. The biggest challenge will be to satisfy WDEQ concerns regarding the TCE-contaminated groundwater plume.