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Document Title:
Site Assessment and Cleanup of the Youngs Road Small Arms Firing Range at Moosehorn NWR Baring, Washington County, Maine
AUTHOR(S):
Steven E. Mierzykowski
REPORT NUMBER:
FY09-MEFO-1-EC
PAGES:
1 - 30
PUBLICATION DATE:
December 17,
2008
ABSTRACT:
A former small arms firing range was located adjacent to Youngs Road in an upland
portion of the Baring Division of Moosehorn National Wildlife Refuge, Washington
County, Maine. The small arms range had been used for decades by federal, state, and
local law enforcement personnel, and refuge staff for weapons qualification and target
practice. Although principally used for small arms practice, shell casings and wads at the
firing line and on the range floor indicate that shotguns and rifles may have also been
used at the site. The range was closed to all shooting activities in 2005.
A site assessment of the range floor, berm, and nearby areas was conducted in late 2005.
Soil samples from the range berm indicated highly elevated levels of lead (Pb). The
maximum Pb concentration detected in soil from the range berm was 12,400 parts-permillion
(ppm) on a dry weight basis, a concentration nearly 250 times higher than the
normal background Pb level in Maine. Soil samples analyzed for Toxicity Characteristic
Leaching Procedures (TCLP) from the berm also exceeded the regulatory criterion and
indicated that the Pb-contaminated soil had to be classified as hazardous waste. Only
low, near background levels of Pb were detected from the range floor and at the firing
line. Surface water and sediment samples collected from a brook about 100 yards from
the range did not contain elevated levels of lead.
Study ID: 1261-5C32
PUBLISHED BY:
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
DOCUMENT LINK:
http://www.fws.gov/northeast/mainecontaminants/pdf/5C32_Final_Report.pdf, 2 MB
ADDITIONAL LINKS:
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service - Maine Contaminants Program
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