Historic and Contemporary Contamination in Kokomo, IN
Brought to you by the Toxic Action Lab and Students of "CSUS 310: Community Engagement for Sustainability" at Michigan State University
Welcome. We're excited to share the results of our research with you. To learn more about us, visit: www.toxicactionlab.org . This page is best viewed on a desktop or laptop computer, though will also work just fine on a mobile device.
Listed below are individual sites with known historic and/or contemporary contamination in Kokomo, IN. To toggle easily between locations you can either scroll down the page or easily jump to the intended location by using the table of contents bar across the top. The bar follows down with you as you scroll. Additionally, click the arrow to the right of the sites to show more. After each site there is a link for the “Entire Source.” If you follow the link you will find more information regarding the site, including known chemicals, full citations and other interesting information.
Also, be sure to check out the interactive map below to see which sites may overlap with each other or with other sites you care about.
If you are a resident of Kokomo and would like to share your thoughts about this StoryMap or suggest an additional site for us to investigate, we'd love to hear from you. Please take a moment to click here and share your ideas with us. If you'd like to contribute a response to our Kokomo Community Survey (and haven't already done so) please click here , we're very happy to learn from you there too.
Kokomo, Indiana Interactive map
Photography of the headstone designating the burial site of Chief Kokomo taken on 9/10/23 by Jennifer Lee Johnson.
Kokomo, Indiana is currently based on land that was occupied mainly by the Miami tribe (Miayaki) until they ceded their land to white settlers in the 1834 “Treaty of Kokomo.” From the perspective of members of the Miayaki tribe, this treaty may have been signed under duress. The tribal chief at the time, Chief Kokomo (pronounced ko-kum-wah), who the town is named after, signed this treaty, possibly against the will of his own people.
In the couple of decades immediately following the establishment of Kokomo, aspects of a prominent transport industry were already beginning to take root. In 1853, the railroad system was introduced and in 1886, natural gas reserves were found in the land. That discovery, along with Indiana’s status as an “at fault” (needing proof of malintent or neglect to sue businesses for injury, etc) state attracted many manufacturing companies to bring their business to Kokomo for its inexpensive insurance rates and ease-of-access to required resources. This helped establish Kokomo’s economy as an industrial one, an identity which was once again reinforced by the surge of technology following WWII.
A map of native tribes in Indiana created on an unknown date by the Bureau of American Ethnology. The location of the Miami tribe around modern-day Kokomo has been outlined in black marker.
Landsat imagery of Kokomo in 1990 and 2020 courtesy of Google Earth.
Kokomo's early growth was held back by swamps, which contributed to the spread of malaria. In 1853, the railroad came to Kokomo. Then in 1886, Natural Gas was discovered, this is what kickstarted the growth of the area. In 1884, one of the first horseless cars was designed and test driven. “Metallurgical experiments by Haynes paved the way for other industries, including the manufacture of stainless steel and a durable cobalt-chromium-tungsten alloy known as Stellite.” World War II brought the city back into the manufacturing world, where they were important contributors to the production of electronics, machinery, automobile parts, and aluminum die castings.
Continental Steel Corp
The Continental Steel Corporation plant in Kokomo originally opened in 1896. The plant started as the Kokomo Fence and Machine Company before its assimilation with the Superior Sheet Steel Company and Chapman Price Steel Company in 1927. When these companies merged, they created the Continental Steel Corporation. Throughout the facilities’ time in operation, it faced management issues, recessive markets, and foreign competition. The setbacks and obstacles would eventually lead to it closing in 1986. A few years later, the Environmental Protection Agency determined the facility was contaminated and added it to its national cleanup list or the “Superfund”. When the cleanup began in 1999, the main buildings at the site were demolished. There was Volatile organic compounds (VOCs), polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), and metals associated with site activities were found (groundwater, soil, sludges, and sediments) at the site.
Image right: Earliest Map (1987)
Latest Map (2009)
Haynes International
Established in 1912 as Haynes Stellite, Haynes International pioneered nickel and cobalt-based alloys, pivotal in aerospace and chemical processing. Accelerated by World War I, it supplied essential alloys for powerful aircraft engines. Over the years, ownership changed hands, leading to the current owner being an investment banking firm. Despite innovation, Haynes is a top U.S. polluter, emitting hazardous chemicals like hexavalent chromium. On the EPA’s high-priority violators list for ten quarters, it generates substantial hazardous waste, regulated under RCRA, NPDES, CAA, and Indiana's waste management program. With 790 employees, Haynes must prioritize pollution control, highlighting the need to hold corporations accountable for environmental protection alongside economic growth.
Image right: Earliest map of site -1989 (Andrew Gerdom, 1989)
Latest map of site (Unknown, 2001)
Pittsburgh Plate Glass (PPG)
The Kokomo, Indiana site, once managed by PPG Industries from the late 19th century until 1931, was a glassmaking hub. Amid waste disposal disputes in 2010, Mervis Industries alleged soil and water contamination due to historical practices, leading to legal battles. Contaminants like TCE and arsenic were found, posing health risks through soil, water, and vapor exposure. Now owned by OmniSource, the site is in the Indiana Voluntary Remediation Program, making strides in assessing pollutants but facing challenges in groundwater remediation. This historical site underscores the clash between industrial legacies and modern environmental standards, demanding ongoing efforts for comprehensive cleanup and safeguarding community well-being.
Image right: Kokomo East Map. Old Maps Online. USGS, 1961. https://ngmdb.usgs.gov/img4/ht_icons/overlay/IN/IN_Kokomo%20East_156964_1960_24000_geo.jpg.
Most recent map of PPG Melissa Williams, “PPG 2022: Environmental Restriction Notification” (IDEM, November 14, 2022), IDEM VFC,
Kokomo Contaminated Groundwater Plume
From 2007-2010 the Indiana American Water company detected chlorinated solvents in untreated water. The site was referred to the EPA for further testing and determined to contain unsafe levels of arsenic and chlorinated solvents. During the investigation, the Indiana Department of Environmental Management (IDEM) found that 14 different sites handle these chemicals and are contributing to the plume. Listed on the National Priorities List (NPL) as a Superfund Site since March 26, 2015, the site now encompasses 294 acres and several municipal city wells. Monitoring wells have since been installed to monitor the levels of contaminants at the site.
Peter's Pond
The Peters' Pond Site occupies approximately 15 acres within a farmland area privately owned by Mr. Wiliam Peters, and is located approximately 11⁄4-mile southwest of the town of Sharpsville in Tipton County, Indiana. The property was utilized for gravel mining operations in the late 1800s. Abandoned gravel pits later formed ponds. It is reported that grinding sludges and waste oils from the [then} Chrysler Corporation Transmission Plant in Kokomo, Indiana, were transported and disposed by General Oil Company of Detroit, Michigan in three on-Site abandoned gravel pits between 1958 and 1964. Grinding sludges contain abrasive materials such as silicon carbide and aluminum oxide, and waste oils can include very hazardous substances like perchloroethylene, trichloroethylene, and methylene chloride. Mr. Peters purchased the Site in 1962, and by 1985 had backfilled all but one of the pits with local soils. Black & Veatch, Inc. (B&V) performed assessment and remedial activities on-Site from 1983 through 1988, at which time Environmental Resources Management, Inc. (ERM) was retained by Chrysler to develop a detailed post-remediation hydrogeological study of the Site. ERM, using available B&V data and the results of their own investigations, evaluated the on-Site geology and hydrogeology, including the shallow aquifer, intermediate aquifer, and deep aquifer underlying the Site.
Most Recent Satellite Image from Google Maps: November 29th, 2023
Kokomo has a long history with the automobile industry. On July 4th, 1894, Elwood Haynes test drove the first gasoline powered automobile down the once Pumpkin Vine Pike (now called Boulevard). The car itself was made out of almost entirely steel. The creator, Elwood Haynes, and the Apperson brothers (mechanics) formed the Haynes-Apperson Automobile Company. This manufacturer opened up in Kokomo in 1896. In 1902 the Appersons left to form the Apperson Brothers Automobile Co., also located in Kokomo, and then remained there until 1926. The Apperson’s South factory was located at 306 S Main St. The plant stood until 2016, when it was torn down to make room for an apartment development: 306 Riverfront. In addition to the Haynes-Apperson Automobile Company, many other automobile companies have set up in Kokomo.
Chrysler/Stellantis, Kokomo Transmission
The Chrysler/Stellantis Kokomo Transmission Plant began its production in 1965 as a die-cast facility. The plant produces parts for automotive components, transmission and transaxle cases, and engine block castings made from aluminum. There are many contaminants commonly used in the die-cast process such as Trichloroethene and Vinyl Chloride that also remain apparent in groundwater contamination exams at this site. This plant still operates as a die-cast facility today, but several expansions have been made (with at least one planned for 2024) that have led to increased production and output.
Delco Park
Information available to the public regarding the activities occurring in the area of Delco Park prior to the park’s establishment is limited to none. It is reasonable to infer the park got its name from the Delco Electronics company. This company has been held responsible for the negligent production and misuse of toxic chemicals in the area, contaminating groundwater, soil, and the people of Kokomo. Detailed development plans are in play that would transform 70 acres of the public park into a private commercial space. Wildcat Creek, which runs through the park, has much more information available regarding contaminants in the water, including but not limited to PCBs, Arsenic, and Benzene. This creek runs through most of Kokomo and connects the other sites featured in the Toxic Action Lab by collecting and transporting their contaminants.
Delco Plant 5
The Delco Plant 5 site located in Kokomo, Indiana was first built in 1915 and utilized until 1926 for building Haynes cars by the Apperson Brothers Automobile Company. The lot was then purchased by a company who manufactured women’s clothes and packaged World War II parachutes in the late 1930s. In 1953, General Motors Delco Division bought the plant and began manufacturing and assembling circuit boards for automotive electronics. Throughout this time, many chemicals were used including lead, trichloroethylene (TCE), tetrachloroethylene (PCE), cis-1,2-dichloroethylene (DCE), methylene chloride, and vinyl chloride. Various types of PFAS were not tested directly at this site, but it is more likely that they are present given their widespread use in manufacturing electronics. The site was officially closed in 1991 and demolished in 1993 and is currently going through a remediation project.
Image left: The earliest site map of Delco Plant 5 located in Kokomo, Indiana. This map is from an ARCADIS Data Report for the General Motors Corporation - Former GM Delco Plant 5, the document was last updated May 2007.
The most recent map image of the Delco Plant 5 site retrieved from the Environmental Protection Agency website. This site map is from 2016 and is circled with an arrow pointing to it on the map with the marker “Project Location.” The EPA website regarding the hazardous waste site was last updated in July 2023.
General Motors (GM)/Delphi Plant 1/New Samsung-Stellantis Battery Plant
GM/Delco/Delphi Plant 1/New Samsung-Stellantis Battery Plant is located at 700 E. Firmin St, Kokomo, Indiana. The site has filtered through multiple different owners, all in relation to the automotive industry. When GM took over, the manufacturing plant employed over 12,000 people in the city. Delco Electronics became a part of Delphi Automotive Systems in 1997. In 1989, there was a hazardous UST removal, which led to the plant closing in 1998. Delphi donated the building to the community for an incubator space in the admin buildings. Recently, Delphi went bankrupt and the environmental monitoring they were once responsible for is no longer their responsibility. Now, Stellantis and SDI are using the site to prepare an electric vehicle battery plant, with hopes to open in 2025.
Image left: Google. 2023. “Google Earth Image of 700 E. Firmin St.” Google Earth. https://www.google.com/maps/place/700+E+Firmin+St,+Kokomo,+IN+46902/@40.4693659,-86.1260205,668m/data=!3m1!1e3!4m15!1m8!3m7!1s0x881485c7f57a8af7:0x70405597a00545a2!2s700+E+Firmin+St,+Kokomo,+IN+4
Brugeman, Valerie, Kristin Dziczek, and Joshua Cregger. “Repurposing Former Automotive Manufacturing Sites in the Midwest.” Center for Automotive Research, June 2012. https://www.cargroup.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/Repurposing-Former-Automotive-Manufacturing-Sites-in-the-Midwest.pdf.
31 Bypass Plant, GM Plants 7, 8, 9, 10
The plant that we are researching is the 31 Bypass Plant which is owned by General Motors. It was opened in 1936 on 175 acres of land. Although it was opened nearly a century ago, General Motors did not take it over until 2009. At our plant in Kokomo, General motors produces different types of electronic components for their vehicles. This includes Engine Control Modules, Body Control Modules, Transmission Control Modules, and Airbag Sensing Diagnostic Modules. All of these components are used in various cars and trucks that GM produces. In the past they havemanufactured many other products including Delco Radio, which was the first radio to be put in the dashboard of a car. At the 31 Bypass Plant, we found that the most commonly used chemicals are Epoxy, Trichloroethylene, Sulfur Dioxide, Hexane, and Butanol.
Image left: Earliest Map found in 1943
The automotive industry contributes greatly to Indiana’s economy even today. In fact, it is large enough to contribute $15 billion to the United States GDP each year. This contribution from the automotive industry is the second largest in the nation. Also, the amount of people working in the automotive industry in Indiana is 459% higher than the national average (Schellinger, J. 2016 ). It’s safe to say that automobiles are a hegemonic part of Indiana’s economy and culture. The deep roots this industry has both culturally and economically, may make it hard for some Hoosiers to believe it is to blame for environmental contamination. Even harder for some to believe is how the company’s that built and sustain their home may be the cause of generational illness.
The current top four employers present today in Kokomo are manufacturers for the automotive industry. Number 1, Stellantis, employs 6,600 Kokomo residents and has been operating in the town since 1965. The 2nd top employer is Haynes International, with 720 employees. Haynes International, operating in Kokomo since 1912. BorgWarner Inc., currently employs 600 people. BorgWarner purchased the facility in 2020 from Delphi Technologies (Historic Inventions- n.d.). Lastly, General Motors Kokomo Operations employs 200 Kokomo community members. This plant was originally manufacturing for Delco radio technologies, before General Motors took it over in 2009. Operations of manufacturing have been running for 86 years (Historic Inventions- n.d.).
City Water
Drinking water in Kokomo is managed by the company Indiana American Water, a private, publicly traded company. The source of the water is Wildcat Creek and 16 groundwater wells, and it is treated through a filter system with chloramines as a disinfectant. Vinyl chloride and arsenic were found in a contaminated groundwater plume in 2007, affecting multiple of the groundwater wells in the city. The EPA has been investigating to find the source of the contaminants, but has still yet to be determined. In 2020, the EPA installed six groundwater monitoring wells in response to the plume in Kokomo being listed as a Superfund site. It may take several years for the EPA to understand the contamination fully. The city installed a filtering system to remove contaminants in the water before the water reaches residents. The remedial investigation is set to be finished in the summer of 2025. A “feasibility study” will be conducted within the following year.
Firestation
Located 64.7 miles north of Indianapolis. The Kokomo City fire Station One sits atop land that was once used for the processing and storage of gasoline products in the 1920s. This industry released hazardous contaminants such as Arsenic, Lead, Naphthalene, and most predominantly, Benzene, while at the time providing jobs and cheap gas to the people of kokomo. The benefits outweighed the known consequences at the time, thus leading to the buildup of contamination in the soil and groundwater under the Fire station that currently sits there today. Exposure to these chemicals can have harsh effects on human health such as leukemia, anemia, and lung cancer, ultimately harming and limiting a crucial city service at the expense of the community's safety. Recent efforts have been made to remediate the effects that this site has on the firefighters, but little is being done far too late. After over one hundred years of contamination, sadly most of the damage has already been done, the levels of toxicants are on the decline and mostly because it has been seeping into the water, air, and soil then moving elsewhere over time.
“Toxicant and Disease Database.” Collaborative for Health & Environment, www.healthandenvironment.org/our-work/toxicant-and-disease-database/. Accessed 10 Dec. 2023.
“Toxicant and Disease Database.” Collaborative for Health & Environment, www.healthandenvironment.org/our-work/toxicant-and-disease-database/. Accessed 10 Dec. 2023
The map shown above is from 1927 and shows the area where the fire station will be built. It does not show the gas plant that caused the contamination but shows that a few other businesses occupied the area in between the tear down of the gas plant and the construction of fire station one.
Image right: Kokomo Fire Station One with the location of the old gas plant overlaid to give some more context as to why the contamination is where it is, and a better view of the scale.
Kokomo City Landfill
Waste Management Inc. applied to develop a sanitary landfill located at 100 E, 300 N in Howard County in 1974. Before receiving a permit to start construction, many residents expressed concerns about the location of this landfill, which was only two miles northeast of downtown Kokomo, and the possibility that leachate emerging from the potential landfill may contaminate soil, surface water, and groundwater. There was a lot of back and forth with permits and zoning between Waste Management Inc. and the State Board of Health, Stream Pollution Control Board, and the County Zoning Board from the initial proposal in 1974 to 1981 when it was abandoned.
Most recent satellite image of landfill outlined in blue.
Kokomo Municipal Airport
The Kokomo Municipal Airport relies heavily on diverse chemical compounds for daily operations, pivotal for safety and efficiency—de-icing, anti-icing, runway cleaning, and fuel enhancement. Substances like propylene glycol, ethylene glycol, calcium magnesium acetate, sodium formate, nitrites, and nitrates are crucial. Understanding their impact is key; while some pose minimal environmental risks, others, like nitrates and certain de-icing agents, can harm ecosystems if mishandled. Though no immediate construction plans exist, ongoing airport development is common in municipal airports. A recent $2.8 million grant for runway rehabilitation emphasizes infrastructure upkeep. Environmental vigilance persists, notably concerning a nearby groundwater contaminant plume, showcasing a proactive stance and collaboration with EPA and FAA for sustainability and community responsibility.
South Lafountain Street Shopping Plaza
In 1961, a company established South LaFountain Street Shopping Plaza. From the 1970’s to the mid 2000’s, multiple dry cleaning businesses were located in the plaza. These dry cleaning businesses had multiple violations of not storing chemicals properly or maintaining proper records of these chemicals. However, little legal action was taken. In 2007, Troy Risk found that the site was over the concentrations in many cVOC’s. This caused IDEM, Troy Risk, and ASF Partnership to establish monitoring and remediation efforts for the site. They ended up excavating soil, which improved the concentrations of chemicals in the groundwater and soil. The chemicals are still over the industrial standards today, despite the remediation efforts, and monitoring continues.
Image right: Earliest map of plaza from archives.
Today, Kokomo has almost 60,000 residents. The automotive and manufacturing industries are still the main economic activities in Kokomo. The automotive industry contributes significantly to Indiana’s economy. In fact, it contributes $15 billion to the GDP each year. This contribution from the automotive industry is the second largest in the nation. Additionally, the number of people working in the automotive industry in Indiana is 459% higher than the national average. At the same time, Indiana ranks first in the nation for the release of toxic chemicals per square mile, and consistently ranks poorly in terms of health standards: 35th for overall health, 45th in public health funding, and one of the 10 worst death rates from cancer in the United States.
If you are a resident of Kokomo and would like to share your thoughts about this StoryMap or suggest an additional site for us to investigate, we'd love to hear from you. Please take a moment to click here and share your ideas with us.
Dr. Jennifer Lee Johnson, Associate Professor and Founder and Director of the Toxic Action Lab.
Map compiled and designed by Naylor, Z. Toppen, S. Martorana, C. Jaranson, J.
Content drafted by students of CSUS 301: Community Engagement for Sustainability at Michigan State University, including: Sean Monroe, Ethan Frost, Thomas Wilfong, Olivia Lowry, Alyssa Cogan, Emily Hill, Andrew Louis Compton, Aubrey Everett, Isabella Archer, Jordyn Frohner, Josie Caldwell, Janelle Grech, Owen Sullivan, Dakota Spink, Kayla Hippensteel, Emily Knox, Madeline Frisbie, Emily Sinclair, Tess Bradley, Rachael Griffin, Kelley Chase, Megan Hobrla, Amber Traub, Asher Howarth, Trajana DiVitto, Jocelyn Jones, Anna Thomas, Hayden Buck, Lillian Vreeland, Mel Miles, Zoe Naylor, John Jaranson, Cori Martorana, Susan Toppen, and Nikki Chopra.
