By: Duane Craig
Property owners near Reading, Penn. got news recently that lead contamination left over from using old batteries as fill material will likely never be completely cleaned up. The affected area is on Mt. Laurel Road in Alsace Township. People who attended a recent town meeting about planned cleanup efforts also remembered collecting battery caps from the crushed carcasses of discarded batteries when they were children.
Samples taken at four residences showed elevated levels of lead, with one having concentrations seven times the acceptable limit. A nearby well also exceeded the acceptable levels of lead, however, an official with the Department of Environmental Protection said he thought that contamination was more likely from lead solder that was used in the plumbing system.
In 2011, property owners noticed what appeared to be battery casings in random places within their yards. The DEP investigated and confirmed the material was indeed battery casings. The agency took surface soil samples and confirmed the contamination at three of the properties. A check of surface water and stream sediment found no lead contamination.
Cleanup plans include excavating and removing the battery casing material as well as the contaminated soil. Following that, work crews will grade the area and plant grass. The cost of the project is expected to be $500,000.
Even after the cleanup is complete, the DEP said, the properties will still end up having environmental covenants on them that will alert future owners to the lead contamination history. You can read a news article on this topic here, and a statement from the DEP here.
Water Contamination, Land Pollution & Hazardous Waste Material are issues families all across America are afflicted with daily.
Showing posts with label dep. Show all posts
Showing posts with label dep. Show all posts
Wednesday, October 10, 2012
Wednesday, August 29, 2012
Maine Gas Spill Threats Show Signs of Diminishing
By: Duane Craig
Five thousand gallons of gasoline spilled
on Maine’s Route 11 in 2011. As of the end of July 2012, the remediation effort
has been scaled back, according to this report.
The accident happened when a tanker truck carrying more than
8,000 gallons of gasoline rolled over near Wallagrass and spilled about 5,000
gallons. As of mid-July 2012, 2,300 gallons of gasoline had been removed and
because of diminishing returns from the southern vapor extraction system, the
Maine Department of Environmental Protection shut it down July 12. The northern
extraction system had previously been turned off, but weather conditions
prompted the department to turn it back on.
The DEP is leaving monitoring wells in place for at least
another year. One local well owner had elevated levels of contaminants
associated with gasoline and the well has been fitted with a carbon filtration
system. Still, the DEP may require new drinking water wells to be drilled.
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
EPA Flags 2 Contaminated Sites in Seminole County, FL
September 28, 2010 - Two business properties in Central Florida, both in Seminole County, were placed Monday on the federal government's list of the nation's most dangerously polluted sites.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency said it added to its Superfund cleanup program a longtime dry cleaners in a historic part of downtown Sanford and an industrial property near Longwood once used by General Dynamics Corp. and other companies. Toxic industrial chemicals have found their way underground at both locations, though they pose no immediate health risks, officials in the EPA's Atlanta office said.
Central Florida has relatively few properties listed as Superfund sites, a designation many communities seek to avoid because it tends to lower nearby property values or harm a neighborhood's reputation.
More...
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency said it added to its Superfund cleanup program a longtime dry cleaners in a historic part of downtown Sanford and an industrial property near Longwood once used by General Dynamics Corp. and other companies. Toxic industrial chemicals have found their way underground at both locations, though they pose no immediate health risks, officials in the EPA's Atlanta office said.
Central Florida has relatively few properties listed as Superfund sites, a designation many communities seek to avoid because it tends to lower nearby property values or harm a neighborhood's reputation.
More...
Friday, September 10, 2010
NJ DEP Investigating School Board For Alleged Contamination
September 9, 2010 - School board officials authorized testing of the water in several wells around the high school complex this past week, acting on concerns regarding contaminated soil stockpiled behind Macopin Middle School.
The site, approximately 550 feet behind the middle school, allegedly contains cinder as well as asphalt and concrete millings, according state Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) press officer Lawrence Hajna. The dust from asphalt millings may contain unacceptable levels of known carcinogens, which pose a health risk through inhalation or consumption, according to DEP documents.
Although Hajna said no immediate action needs to be taken to remediate the site, school board members cited the possibility of recent on site-disturbances from off-road vehicles and the potential for leaching in their decision to call for tests for the three wells near the contamination site, barring the discovery of suitable tests already on record.
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The site, approximately 550 feet behind the middle school, allegedly contains cinder as well as asphalt and concrete millings, according state Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) press officer Lawrence Hajna. The dust from asphalt millings may contain unacceptable levels of known carcinogens, which pose a health risk through inhalation or consumption, according to DEP documents.
Although Hajna said no immediate action needs to be taken to remediate the site, school board members cited the possibility of recent on site-disturbances from off-road vehicles and the potential for leaching in their decision to call for tests for the three wells near the contamination site, barring the discovery of suitable tests already on record.
More...
Monday, August 23, 2010
The Earth Will Move: Poisoned CT Neighborhood Braces For Epic Cleanup
August 22, 2010 - Think of it as the big scrape.
An entire neighborhood, poisoned for decades by industrial waste buried beneath homes, yards, schools and playgrounds, is poised for the largest residential cleanup in state history.
Starting Monday, the top four feet of earth in 18 square blocks will be scooped up and hauled away. Clean soil will replace it and trees, lawns, bushes and shrubs will be replanted. The whole process will take up to five years and 230 houses will be affected.
For the Newhall neighborhood, it’s a $60 million do-over.
More...
An entire neighborhood, poisoned for decades by industrial waste buried beneath homes, yards, schools and playgrounds, is poised for the largest residential cleanup in state history.
Starting Monday, the top four feet of earth in 18 square blocks will be scooped up and hauled away. Clean soil will replace it and trees, lawns, bushes and shrubs will be replanted. The whole process will take up to five years and 230 houses will be affected.
For the Newhall neighborhood, it’s a $60 million do-over.
More...
Thursday, August 5, 2010
DEP Announces More Limerick, PA Well Pollution
August 5, 2010 - The state has sampled the wells of nearly 80 homes in the northeast section of the township in recent months after samples from 21 wells were found to be contaminated with dangerous chemicals.
Tuesday night, residents of that area packed the Board of Supervisors meeting to hear officials from the state Department of Environmental Protection explain how they found out about the contamination and what they intend to do about it.
The area of contamination, which the DEP has labeled the Landis Creek project, is roughly bounded by Ridge Pike to the south, Sunset Road to the west, Graterford Road to the north and Township Line Road to the east.
It is separate and distinct from a contamination problem that made headlines earlier this year in the southern portion of the township. Two local businesses — Teleflex and the former Stanley Works tool plant — are believed to be the source of that previously revealed contamination.
More...
Tuesday night, residents of that area packed the Board of Supervisors meeting to hear officials from the state Department of Environmental Protection explain how they found out about the contamination and what they intend to do about it.
The area of contamination, which the DEP has labeled the Landis Creek project, is roughly bounded by Ridge Pike to the south, Sunset Road to the west, Graterford Road to the north and Township Line Road to the east.
It is separate and distinct from a contamination problem that made headlines earlier this year in the southern portion of the township. Two local businesses — Teleflex and the former Stanley Works tool plant — are believed to be the source of that previously revealed contamination.
More...
Friday, May 14, 2010
More TCE-polluted wells found in Limerick, PA township
May 14, 2010 - More chemical contamination has been discovered in residential wells in the township, state officials confirmed Thursday.
Lynda Rebarchak, a spokeswoman for the southeast office of the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, confirmed that well tests discovered unsafe levels of the chemical trichloroethylene, or TCE.
The initial tests were conducted by the Montgomery County Health Department, which notified the DEP on April 13.
Rebarchak confirmed that unsafe TCE levels were found in eight wells near the intersections of Country Club Road in Ridge Pike and Township Line Road and Graterford Road.
"It's a brand new site," said Rebarchak. The DEP is calling it the Landis Creek site.
Currently, the state is taking its own samples and conducting tests on those samples to confirm the health department's findings, Rebarchak said.
More...
Lynda Rebarchak, a spokeswoman for the southeast office of the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, confirmed that well tests discovered unsafe levels of the chemical trichloroethylene, or TCE.
The initial tests were conducted by the Montgomery County Health Department, which notified the DEP on April 13.
Rebarchak confirmed that unsafe TCE levels were found in eight wells near the intersections of Country Club Road in Ridge Pike and Township Line Road and Graterford Road.
"It's a brand new site," said Rebarchak. The DEP is calling it the Landis Creek site.
Currently, the state is taking its own samples and conducting tests on those samples to confirm the health department's findings, Rebarchak said.
More...
Tuesday, April 27, 2010
56 years after contamination, officials offer free inspections of NJ residents' home sites, as well as free blood tests for chromium
April 27, 2010- With the removal of chromium-laced soil scheduled to begin next month at a site on Garfield Avenue in Jersey City, city officials are urging residents to participate in a blood-testing program. The Chromium Cleanup Partnership held a meeting last week for residents who live near 900 Garfield Ave. at the Mary McLeod Bethune Life Center on Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Drive.
The partnership, headed by court-appointed site administrator Mike McCabe, consists of representatives from the state Department of Environmental Protection, Jersey City and PPG Industries, the company responsible for overseeing the remediation of 20 chromium-contaminated sites in Hudson County.
More...
The partnership, headed by court-appointed site administrator Mike McCabe, consists of representatives from the state Department of Environmental Protection, Jersey City and PPG Industries, the company responsible for overseeing the remediation of 20 chromium-contaminated sites in Hudson County.
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Tuesday, March 30, 2010
Toxic plumes spreading into Limerick PA groundwater
March 30, 2010- Twin underground plumes of potentially carcinogenic chemicals from two industrial sites are merging and mingling with the groundwater beneath 47 homes, fouling their wells and posing health hazards for the residents there, state officials have confirmed.
The source of the contamination is believed to be the Teleflex Inc. plant on South Limerick Road and the former Stanley Tool Works on Lewis Road, said Lynda Rebarchak, spokeswoman for the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection.
More...
The source of the contamination is believed to be the Teleflex Inc. plant on South Limerick Road and the former Stanley Tool Works on Lewis Road, said Lynda Rebarchak, spokeswoman for the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection.
More...
Tuesday, March 2, 2010
Raytheon Estimates 78 Years for Florida Pollution Cleanup
March 2, 2010- Homeowners surrounding the now-shuttered Raytheon defense plant may not live long enough to see their neighborhood rid of the industrial pollution that's been creeping under parks, playgrounds and homes for decades.
In a new report, Raytheon's environmental consultant Arcadis says it will take as long as 78 years to cleanup the last of an underground mess that the Florida Department of Environmental Protection has known about since 1991.
Neighbors were already angry when the company said last year it would take more than 25 years to clean up the toxic waste plume that has polluted dozes of irrigation wells in their neighborhood.
More...
In a new report, Raytheon's environmental consultant Arcadis says it will take as long as 78 years to cleanup the last of an underground mess that the Florida Department of Environmental Protection has known about since 1991.
Neighbors were already angry when the company said last year it would take more than 25 years to clean up the toxic waste plume that has polluted dozes of irrigation wells in their neighborhood.
More...
Monday, March 1, 2010
Seeping Waste Troubles NM. Mobile Home Park
March 1, 2010- Seeping sewage, tons of trash and exposed electrical wires are just some of the problems at a makeshift mobile home park in San Juan County. The Sheriff’s Department is familiar with the area, it’s known as the Canyon, and they receive calls for service at the property often.
Friday, a team of agencies including the Environment Department, the Sheriff’s Office and representatives from the electric and gas companies went out to the canyon to talk to the property owner. “While driving inside the canyon area itself we discovered a lot of leaking sewage," Environment Department Enforcement Officer Benny Kline said. “The quantity of solid waste that we've determined to be buried there is of great concern because it's like a small landfill.”
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Friday, a team of agencies including the Environment Department, the Sheriff’s Office and representatives from the electric and gas companies went out to the canyon to talk to the property owner. “While driving inside the canyon area itself we discovered a lot of leaking sewage," Environment Department Enforcement Officer Benny Kline said. “The quantity of solid waste that we've determined to be buried there is of great concern because it's like a small landfill.”
More...
Tuesday, February 23, 2010
Brooksville FL Residents' Fight Against a Landfill in Their Neighborhood
February 23, 2010- Paige Cool and Alison Walter are putting up a great fight against a landfill planned for their rural neighborhood east of Brooksville. The letter of opposition they sent to the state Department of Environmental Protection is well written and footnoted like a doctoral dissertation.
I learned that construction and demolition debris landfills such as the one planned for their neighborhood are not as harmless as commonly believed and can contaminate the groundwater with arsenic and other toxins.
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I learned that construction and demolition debris landfills such as the one planned for their neighborhood are not as harmless as commonly believed and can contaminate the groundwater with arsenic and other toxins.
More...
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
Pompton Lakes NJ Residents Can Choose From 280 Contractors to Remove DuPont Contamination From Homes
February 10, 2010- The state has issued a list of approved vendors and a price limit for Pompton Lakes residents who want to hire their own contractors rather than rely on the company chosen by DuPont to install venting systems to remove toxic vapors from their homes.
The DEP has provided a list of more than 280 approved contractors.
The design, installation and post-mitigation reporting should not exceed $6,950, while operation and maintenance costs the first year should not exceed $1,800, the DEP said.
State and federal health officials have been pushing residents in homes atop a plume of groundwater contaminated by the former DuPont plant to have vapor mitigation systems installed to reduce their exposure to the toxic fumes, which can work their way up into basements from the groundwater below.
More...
The DEP has provided a list of more than 280 approved contractors.
The design, installation and post-mitigation reporting should not exceed $6,950, while operation and maintenance costs the first year should not exceed $1,800, the DEP said.
State and federal health officials have been pushing residents in homes atop a plume of groundwater contaminated by the former DuPont plant to have vapor mitigation systems installed to reduce their exposure to the toxic fumes, which can work their way up into basements from the groundwater below.
More...
Monday, December 21, 2009
Natural Gas Companies Fined for Hydrochloric Acid Spill in PA
December 21, 2009- The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) has fined Chesapeake Appalachia LLC and Schlumberger Technology Corp. $15,557 each for a 295-gallon hydrochloric acid spill at a natural gas drilling site in northern Pennsylvania.
Chesapeake staff notified the DEP on February 9, 2009 that a 21,000-gallon tank containing 36 percent hydrochloric acid was leaking at the company’s Chancellor well site in Asylum Township, Bradford County. A DEP inspector investigated the report and found that the tank had two leaks and was losing about 7.5 gallons of hydrochloric acid per hour.
More...
Chesapeake staff notified the DEP on February 9, 2009 that a 21,000-gallon tank containing 36 percent hydrochloric acid was leaking at the company’s Chancellor well site in Asylum Township, Bradford County. A DEP inspector investigated the report and found that the tank had two leaks and was losing about 7.5 gallons of hydrochloric acid per hour.
More...
Monday, August 31, 2009
DEP Wants More Tests at Dorm in Wilkes-Barre, PA
August 31, 2009- The state Department of Environmental Protection Wednesday ordered the drilling of four holes through the foundation slab at the Gateway Corners building – a new King’s College dormitory – so soil and groundwater testing can be conducted.
DEP has been concerned about the sewer backups and vapor intrusion for months. The vapors could come from the soil beneath the building, which is built on the site of the former Mary MacIntosh dry cleaning company. Underground storage tanks that held petroleum products and dry cleaning fluids were removed from the site.
More...
DEP has been concerned about the sewer backups and vapor intrusion for months. The vapors could come from the soil beneath the building, which is built on the site of the former Mary MacIntosh dry cleaning company. Underground storage tanks that held petroleum products and dry cleaning fluids were removed from the site.
More...
Monday, August 24, 2009
DuPont Sends Notices to Middlesex County, NJ Neighbors Detailing Cleanup Work
August 24, 2009- About 3,000 property owners in Sayreville and Old Bridge will receive a notice in the mail about an on-going off-site remediation project to remove contaminates found in the groundwater in their communities.
"We're notifying residents as part of the new rules set by the state DEP (Department of Environmental Protection)," said Tim Ireland, a spokesman for DuPont Imaging Technologies. "The project has been going on for years and local officials, the DEP and even some residents have known about it. We just want residents to know that, as far as we are aware, there is no health risk here.
More...
"We're notifying residents as part of the new rules set by the state DEP (Department of Environmental Protection)," said Tim Ireland, a spokesman for DuPont Imaging Technologies. "The project has been going on for years and local officials, the DEP and even some residents have known about it. We just want residents to know that, as far as we are aware, there is no health risk here.
More...
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
Contaminated Soil Causes High Cancer Rates in Somerville, MA Neighborhood
June 10, 2009 - Horace Cetoude has been living on Allen Street for 22 years and eating vegetables that he has been growing in his backyard. So he was shocked to learn about the high incidence of cancer and contaminated soil in his neighborhood at a meeting on Monday night.
City and state officials confirmed there is arsenic, lead and other metal contamination in the area. Tests found that four out of six properties near Kiley Barrel -- according to the state environmental guidelines -- pose a cancer risk higher than the acceptable limits, with the primary cause being arsenic, said Joanne Fagan from the state Department of Environmental Protection.
More...
City and state officials confirmed there is arsenic, lead and other metal contamination in the area. Tests found that four out of six properties near Kiley Barrel -- according to the state environmental guidelines -- pose a cancer risk higher than the acceptable limits, with the primary cause being arsenic, said Joanne Fagan from the state Department of Environmental Protection.
More...
Tuesday, May 26, 2009
Judge Blocks CT Excavation at Superfund Site
May 26, 2009- A Superior Court judge today blocked a man from doing excavation work on land that is part of the Raymark Industries Superfund site in Stratford.
State Attorney General Richard Blumenthal sought the emergency court order on behalf of the state Department of Environmental Protection after the man -- identified by Blumenthal as Joseph Marcell -- refused to obey a DEP-issued order telling Marcell to stop excavating "highly contaminated soil" that was once part of the former automotive-brake factory, Blumenthal said.
More...
State Attorney General Richard Blumenthal sought the emergency court order on behalf of the state Department of Environmental Protection after the man -- identified by Blumenthal as Joseph Marcell -- refused to obey a DEP-issued order telling Marcell to stop excavating "highly contaminated soil" that was once part of the former automotive-brake factory, Blumenthal said.
More...
Thursday, April 30, 2009
Toxic Plume Spreading Under Florida Neighborhood
April 30, 2009 - Raytheon wants to zap the toxic plume spreading under the Azalea neighborhood with a combination of hot electrodes and chemical doses designed to neutralize the pollution, according to its latest plan filed this week with state environmental regulators.
There are 10 contaminants in the toxic underground plume, but the predominant ones are a pair of cancer-causing chemicals called 1,4-dioxane and trichloroethene. Workers discovered the contamination in 1991 during construction of the Pinellas Trail, which runs next to the Raytheon property. The pollution originated from a drum storage area on the site, which had belonged to a company called E-Systems.
More...
There are 10 contaminants in the toxic underground plume, but the predominant ones are a pair of cancer-causing chemicals called 1,4-dioxane and trichloroethene. Workers discovered the contamination in 1991 during construction of the Pinellas Trail, which runs next to the Raytheon property. The pollution originated from a drum storage area on the site, which had belonged to a company called E-Systems.
More...
Friday, April 3, 2009
CT Development Site Investigated for "Eco-Terror"
April 2, 2009- Soil test results on the possible contamination at the site of a proposed wood-burning power plant off Mill Brook Road in Plainfield should be completed today or Friday, a Department of Environmental Protection spokesman said.
The DEP, FBI and police began investigating the site Tuesday, spurred by a letter claiming to be sent by Earth First, an environmental advocacy group, saying it had contaminated the property. The letter was sent to PRE Vice President Daniel J. Donovan and copied to The Norwich Bulletin.
The letter stated that more than 1, 200 pounds of contaminants had been dumped at the Mill Brook Road site, at Donovan’s home and at the home of project proponent J. Scott Guilmartin.
More..
The DEP, FBI and police began investigating the site Tuesday, spurred by a letter claiming to be sent by Earth First, an environmental advocacy group, saying it had contaminated the property. The letter was sent to PRE Vice President Daniel J. Donovan and copied to The Norwich Bulletin.
The letter stated that more than 1, 200 pounds of contaminants had been dumped at the Mill Brook Road site, at Donovan’s home and at the home of project proponent J. Scott Guilmartin.
More..
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