Sunset Annex Landfill, Formerly Used Defense Site Completion Of Five-Year Review Notice

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
Published Oct. 5, 2023

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Baltimore District, has begun the third five-year review of the United States Air Force (USAF) Formerly Used Defense Site, also known as Sunset Annex. The process will evaluate the remedies that were implemented by the Record of Decision to clean up the site, and the subsequent Explanation of Significant Difference to the decision.

The Sunset Annex Landfill Site is situated on Sunset Hill in Londonderry Township, Pennsylvania, located approximately 1.5 miles southeast of the Harrisburg International Airport, and just east of Pennsylvania Route 441 and the Susquehanna River. The non-contiguous Sunset Hill was acquired by the USAF in 1956 as part of a program to upgrade the former Olmsted Air Force Base (AFB) to accommodate jet aircraft. To create a proper glide angle for jets, the top of Sunset Hill was removed. Following the removal of the hilltop and prior to construction of the golf course, the USAF used approximately 15 acres of the property as a landfill to dispose of metals, wood, paper, and liquids wastes, including spent solvents generated at the AFB. The landfill was used from 1956 to 1964. Olmsted AFB was retired in 1966, and in 1968, the Sunset Golf Course, including the Landfill Site and the Hillside Dump, were sold to Londonderry Township, a municipal subdivision of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. In the 1983 as a result of the discovery of a drum labeled "TCE" (i.e., trichloroethene) and water samples identifying seeps of various solvents into ground water the landfill was capped. In 2007 it was determined that groundwater at the Sunset Annex Landfill Site attained the Residential Statewide Health Standard for organic and inorganic contaminants. The environmental monitoring confirmed that the site is safe for recreational use. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) and Londonderry Township both monitor the remedies and maintain the grounds of the site.

Once the third five-year review process is completed, anticipated date sometime in March 2024, the Review will be available on the Baltimore District environment Public Notice site https://www.nab.usace.army.mil/Missions/Environmental/Formerly-Used-Defense-Sites/

Contact Information:  USACE welcomes your comments and questions.  The point of contact for further information is Kendrick Nelson, Project Manager, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Baltimore District at (443) 666-0633 or Kendrick.J.Nelson@usace.army.mil.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Baltimore District, has begun the third five-year review of the United States Air Force (USAF) Formerly Used Defense Site, also known as Sunset Annex. The process will evaluate the remedies that were implemented by the Record of Decision to clean up the site, and the subsequent Explanation of Significant Difference to the decision.

The Sunset Annex Landfill Site is situated on Sunset Hill in Londonderry Township, Pennsylvania, located approximately 1.5 miles southeast of the Harrisburg International Airport, and just east of Pennsylvania Route 441 and the Susquehanna River. The non-contiguous Sunset Hill was acquired by the USAF in 1956 as part of a program to upgrade the former Olmsted Air Force Base (AFB) to accommodate jet aircraft. To create a proper glide angle for jets, the top of Sunset Hill was removed. Following the removal of the hilltop and prior to construction of the golf course, the USAF used approximately 15 acres of the property as a landfill to dispose of metals, wood, paper, and liquids wastes, including spent solvents generated at the AFB. The landfill was used from 1956 to 1964. Olmsted AFB was retired in 1966, and in 1968, the Sunset Golf Course, including the Landfill Site and the Hillside Dump, were sold to Londonderry Township, a municipal subdivision of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. In the 1983 as a result of the discovery of a drum labeled "TCE" (i.e., trichloroethene) and water samples identifying seeps of various solvents into ground water the landfill was capped. In 2007 it was determined that groundwater at the Sunset Annex Landfill Site attained the Residential Statewide Health Standard for organic and inorganic contaminants. The environmental monitoring confirmed that the site is safe for recreational use. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) and Londonderry Township both monitor the remedies and maintain the grounds of the site.

Once the third five-year review process is completed, anticipated date sometime in March 2024, the Review will be available on the Baltimore District environment Public Notice site https://www.nab.usace.army.mil/Missions/Environmental/Formerly-Used-Defense-Sites/

Contact Information:  USACE welcomes your comments and questions.  The point of contact for further information is Kendrick Nelson, Project Manager, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Baltimore District at (443) 666-0633 or Kendrick.J.Nelson@usace.army.mil.