The Waldorf Nike Launch Area became eligible for funding under the Formerly Used Defense Site program in 1987. Since then the Corps of Engineers has conducted several investigations at the site. Groundwater, surface water, surface and subsurface soil and silos were sampled for semi-volatile organic compounds (SVOCs), polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), pesticides, metals, perchlorate, total petroleum hydrocarbons (TPH), and radioactivity analyses. None of these materials were detected at concentrations exceeding Maximum Contaminant Levels.
However, during the environmental investigations conducted at the Launch Area groundwater samples collected for volatile organic compounds (VOCs) from monitoring wells immediately adjacent to and down gradient of the Missile Assembly Building contained Carbon tetrachloride (CCl4) and Trichloroethylene (TCE). Samples collected from monitoring wells MW-4 and MW-12 contained the highest concentrations of CCl4 and TCE . This indicates that the source of the contaminants is likely a superficial spill or spills of solvents used to clean missile parts behind (west of) the Missile Assembly Building.
It is important to remember that groundwater is not a source of drinking water in the area.