A deadline set this week to submit offers for the former Fansteel Metals industrial site adjacent to the Port of Muskogee, Okla., was extended for nearly two months, the Muskogee Phoenix reported. The site, most of which is owned now by Fansteel subsidiary FMRI Inc., was contaminated by a process used to extract tantalum and columbium from uranium and thorium ores and tin slag. The facility was shuttered in 1989 and slated for decommissioning and limited site remediation. Documents produced by state and federal regulatory agencies show the radioactive residue produced by the extraction process contaminated much of the site, including some of the buildings, the process ponds, surrounding soils and groundwater. Nuclear Regulatory Commission documents summarizing FMRI’s decommissioning efforts indicate remediation of the site’s contaminated areas was expected to be completed by 2023. Those efforts have been delayed due to unexpected environmental issues and a second attempt bankruptcy filing in 2016. Observers expressed doubts there will be any takers for the 110-acre tract that is being assessed now as a potential Superfund site. The immediate plan is to secure enough of the debtor’s assets through bankruptcy proceedings to maintain the status quo for the near future until a long-term solution can be delivered.
