J.H. Baxter Superfund Site in Oregon
EPA is working with the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality to address contamination on and around the former J.H. Baxter wood treating facility in Eugene, Oregon.
Superfund listing
EPA added J.H. Baxter to the Superfund National Priorities ListEPA's list of the most serious uncontrolled or abandoned hazardous waste sites identified for possible long-term remedial action under Superfund. The list is based primarily on the score a site receives from the Hazard Ranking System. (NPL) in a rulemaking published in the Federal Register on July 3, 2025.
Listing the site on the NPL helps secure a comprehensive and timely cleanup, and provides access to critical federal funding. EPA received support for placing this site on the NPL from the state of Oregon, the Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde and the Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians.
Information explaining the basis for EPA's decision and public comments received during the proposed listing process are available in the public docket on Regulations.gov.
Additional information about the NPL listing, including the NPL Site Narrative and Support Document, is available on EPA's website at Current NPL updates: new proposed NPL sites and new NPL sites.
Cleanup activities at the site
Time critical removal action
EPA is currently conducting a time-critical removal action to address the wood preserving chemicals abandoned when activities at the facility stopped in 2022.
This action is considered an interim measure to prevent additional releases of hazardous substances but will not address all contamination. The Superfund NPL listing will allow EPA to further characterize the nature and extent of contamination, evaluate the risks posed by hazardous substances remaining at the site, and ensure a thorough cleanup.
Superfund site work will begin after the time-critical removal action has been completed in fall 2025.
For more information, visit J.H. Baxter Time Critical Removal Action.
Residential yard cleanups
From 2021 to 2023, the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality, with support from EPA, conducted collected soil samples from 62 residential properties in the neighborhood north of the J.H. Baxter property.
The sampling identified yards with elevated levels of dioxins, which were a component of wood treating chemicals used at the facility.
DEQ cleaned up seven properties in 2024, which involved excavating and disposing of contaminated soil and replacing it with clean soil. Contractors then restored the yards.
Background
From 1943 to 2022, J.H. Baxter treated wood products at their facility in West Eugene, Oregon. Environmental contamination from chemicals that were used to treat wood products, such as creosote and pentachlorophenol (also known as "penta" or PCP), have contaminated the soil and groundwater and are an ongoing concern for surrounding neighborhoods.
J.H. Baxter stopped operations at the site in January 2022, but the chemicals remain in tanks and environmental contamination has not been addressed.
EPA added the site to its Superfund National Priorities List in July 2025.
Documents
Publicly available documents for this site, such as technical reports, legal documents, fact sheets, and other information, will be posted in EPA's online Superfund document repository at the links below.
- Site documents
- Hazard Ranking Score Package (The Hazard Ranking System provides the basis for EPA's decision to list the site on the NPL).
Contacts
- Alice Corcoran (corcoran.alice@epa.gov), 206-473-2725, EPA Community Involvement Coordinator.
- Randy Nattis (nattis.randy@epa.gov), 503-628-9419, EPA Project Manager.
Additional information about this project is available on the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality’s website.