EPA to conduct Climate Vulnerability Assessment at Smurfit-Stone Mill site in Frenchtown, Montana

Frenchtown, Mont. — Today, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced the approval of a Climate Vulnerability Assessment (CVA) project for the Smurfit-Stone Mill site in Frenchtown, Montana. CVAs help EPA project managers design Superfund remedies that are resilient in the face of a changing climate, taking drought, severe weather, temperature, wildfire and other factors into account.

“This forward-looking assessment demonstrates EPA’s commitment to a full understanding of potential risks, both now and in the future, at the Smurfit-Stone Mill site,” said EPA Region 8 Administrator KC Becker. “The effects of climate change are already apparent in Montana. Ensuring that cleanup remedies are designed with these effects in mind will strengthen their long-term effectiveness and protect human health and the environment.”

The CVA will begin in late September and will run alongside current Superfund remedial investigation and risk assessment work. EPA and partners will use the results to evaluate how climate change is likely to affect the protectiveness of site-specific cleanup actions, remedies and infrastructure over time and identify needs and adaptive measures to improve remedy resilience under future climate conditions. This information will ensure that future decisions about final cleanup actions and remedies will protect human health and environmental resources, including surface waters, fish and aquatic life, from exposure to harmful levels of site contaminants.

CVAs are typically conducted later in the Superfund process, once remedial investigations are complete. By initiating the project now, remedial project managers at the Smurfit-Stone Mill site will gain a greater understanding of potential risks while the site investigation is still underway, helping to develop the most forward-looking, adaptive and resilient site plan possible. EPA expects the CVA to be completed in 2024.

“The Frenchtown Smurfit-Stone Mill Community Advisory Group (CAG) strongly supports the efforts of the EPA to secure a Climate Vulnerability Assessment,” said CAG Administrative Team members Bruce Sims, Jeri Delys and Jennifer Harrington. “The assessment will significantly benefit our efforts to ensure a protective, climate-resilient cleanup for the community we are fortunate to call home.”

The site, a former paper and pulp mill located three miles south of Frenchtown, Montana, covers 3,200 acres and is divided into three operable units spanning agricultural lands, the former mill site and parts of the Clark Fork River floodplain. Efforts are currently underway to characterize and understand risks related to prior site activities and waste disposal practices.

Information about the site, including timelines, operable units and current characterization efforts, is available on the EPA Superfund page.

Comprehensive information on EPA’s current and forthcoming efforts related to climate change is available on EPA’s Climate Change page.