Whirlpool Corp. says in its new quarterly report that chemical injections this year at its closed Fort Smith facility decreased groundwater contamination levels.
The company's former plant used trichloroethylene, known as TCE, as a degreasing solvent from the late 1960s through the early 1980s. The chemical is now known to be linked to increased cancer risk.
The Times Record reports state officials approved a cleanup plan for Whirlpool in December to address the chemical in groundwater and soil. The company treated contaminated groundwater with a chemical oxidant in March. A second round of chemical injections occurred in late May.
The report the company released this week says that following those chemical injections, groundwater samples show TCE concentrations decreased by as much as 80 percent in some targeted areas.
