Scientists are gathering samples to see what kind of clean-up is needed at a former Macon landfill. The Environmental Protection Agency may label it a Superfund site by September.

Armstrong World Industries manufactures ceiling tiles. The company’s wastewater treatment landfill sits next to a tributary of the Ocmulgee River. The waterway is contaminated with high levels of PCB’s, pesticides and heavy metals.

The EPA’s Sherryl Carbonaro says the site could make the National Priorities List in September. That would make it eligible for federal funds to clean it up. Carbonaro says they’re testing to determine how extensive that clean-up would be.

“They are focusing on this landfill to make sure that the PCBs are there, that they are in place and that they are not moving any further than where they are right now.”

The state asked the EPA for help after cancer-causing PCBs appeared in Ocmulgee River catfish.

Tags: Macon, Environmental Protection Agency, Ocmulgee River, Armstrong World Industries, PCBs