Belvoir Ranch and Trichloroethene (TCE)
Ground Water Contaminant Plume

Belvoir1The Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality (WDEQ) website provides the community with the latest information on groundwater contamination at the former nuclear Missile site on the Belvoir Ranch and provides a forum for community input.  This website is maintained by WDEQ Public Information, part of the Outreach Office.  The Outreach Office strives to provide up-to-date information for Wyoming citizens, media-types, and other interested parties.  WDEQ welcomes you and encourages you to Send comments and Add to the BLOG.

Background and History of the Missile Site

The former nuclear Missile Site lies approximately sixteen miles west of Cheyenne and was built during the Cold War.  From historical records and interviews, it is known that Trichloroethene (TCE), a contaminant hazardous to human health, was used to flush fuel chambers in missiles and to clean other components.  It is suspected that TCE was introduced into the groundwater from operation and maintenance by missile site crews disposing of spent TCE onto the ground where it then infiltrated and sunk into the aquifer.  Investigation of the extent of TCE groundwater contamination and clean-up of the TCE is currently underway.

Tricholorethene (TCE) was first discovered in Cheyenne municipal wells west of town in 1997.  It was subsequently found in other wells in the Borie well field, an important source of city water during the summer months, and in nearby domestic drinking water wells.

City officials suspected the former Missile Site as the source of TCE contamination but initially they could not afford to investigate.  Eventually the Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality won a grant to proceed with testing that confirmed the Missile Site was the source of TCE contamination in the groundwater.

TCE has been detected on-site at former Atlas Missile Site 4 at a maximum level of 6600 parts per billion (ppb).  TCE has been detected in municipal wells 8 1/2 miles down-gradient from former Atlas Missile Site 4 at a maximum of 40 ppb.