IN
THIS ISSUE:
Sites
in Corrina, ME and Lowell, MA Recognized at Redevelopment Conference
Two Superfund redevelopment projects in New England that
won national awards were recently recognized at a redevelopment
conference at Gillette Stadium in Foxboro. The all-day conference,
co-sponsored by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
and the Kraft Group, owners of the New England Patriots,
was designed to inform developers and local officials about
opportunities to redevelop contaminated properties in New
England.
The Eastland Woolen Mill site in Corrina and the Silresim
site in Lowell were both recognized at the conference entitled, “Improve
Your Field Position: Contaminated to Commercially Viable.” More
than 300 people attended the conference.
The Eastland Woolen Mill site was recognized as winner of
a 2004 Build America Award, presented by the Association
of General Contractors. The site, which was honored in the
environmental remediation category, is being redeveloped
as a senior center and ultimately a residential and commercial
enterprise zone with green space and a riverfront walk.
The team redeveloping the Silresim Superfund site as the
Tanner Street Initiative won the 2004 Analysis and Planning
Award of Merit from the American Society of Landscape Architects.
A group dedicated to expanding the knowledge and promoting
the value of landscape architecture administers the award.
This Silresim design team, funded through an EPA grant, includes
the city of Lowell’s Division of Planning and Development
and StoSS landscape architects of Boston.
The conference was designed to help developers, local officials
and federal/state agencies share information and to encourage
partnerships that will result in more properties being reused.
For more information about these sites, visit http://www.epa.gov/ne/pr/2004/aug/040802.html or
contact Peyton Fleming, EPA Press Office (617-918-1008).
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Former Dodd/Beals Fire Fighting Academy Site to be Remediated The University
of Nevada, Reno submitted a remedial action plan to the
Nevada Division of Environmental Protection addressing
the planned cleanup of the former Dodd/Beals Fire Fighting
Academy located in Stead, NV.
The former Dodd/Beals Fire Fighting Academy was located
on 77 acres of land donated to the University of Nevada,
Reno by the Stead Air Force Base and operated from the
early 1970s until the mid-1990s.
Of the 77 acres, approximately 42 acres were used for
administrative buildings and fire fighting training. As
part of the training, mock facilities were set afire using
diesel fuel, with some gasoline as an igniter. The fires
were extinguished with water and foam. The mocks were placed
on concrete pads so the water utilized could be captured,
conveyed to retention ponds, and recirculated. As a result
of historic site activities, soil and groundwater have
been impacted with petroleum hydrocarbons. Assessments
have been completed which clearly define the extent and
makeup of the contaminated areas. Soil and groundwater
contamination is mainly due to leaching from the retention
ponds and some overspray from the concrete mock pads. Soil
contaminants found are predominantly diesel range hydrocarbons
with some lighter gasoline additives. Contaminants discovered
in the groundwater include benzene and MTBE.
A risk-based cleanup approach has been proposed for the
site. This approach takes into consideration a number of
factors including the mobility and toxicity of the contaminants,
the proposed use of the site, and the physical properties
of the soil and groundwater. The groundwater and some soils
will be treated by a method known as air sparging/vapor
extraction, which is effective at eliminating lighter compounds
such as benzene. It is these lighter compounds that pose
the greatest threat to human health. Soils exceeding the
risk-based criteria for petroleum hydrocarbons will be
excavated and treated.
To learn more about this project, please contact Scott
Smale at the Nevada Division of Environmental Protection
(775) 687-9384 or visit http://ndep.nv.gov/bca/dbealindex.htm.
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Missouri Brownfields/Voluntary Cleanup Program Oversees Successful
Cleanups
The Missouri Department of Natural Resources has issued
Certificates of Completion for several new Brownfields/Voluntary
Cleanup Program (B/VCP) sites. The completed sites include:
Neosho Historic Office Building, Neosho, MO - Located at
210 N. Washington St., the Neosho Historic Office Building,
constructed in 1898, is a former warehouse that has been
renovated for use as office space. In July 2002 the developer
entered the site into the B/VCP as part of the renovation
project. Site assessments revealed lead paint contamination,
herbicides and pesticides on interior building surfaces,
and limited asbestos-containing pipe insulation in the building.
The pipe insulation was removed. Remediation of building
interiors included blasting and lead-paint abatement performed
in accordance with the department-approved work plan.
Boydun Corporation, St. Louis, MO - A potential property
transaction prompted the owner, Boydun Corporation, to enroll
the three-acre site, known as the former Shaughnessy Kniep
Hawe Paper Co., in the B/VCP to investigate potential contamination
associated with an abandoned railroad spur and closed underground
storage tank. Environmental assessments identified a limited
area along the railroad spur where surface soil was contaminated
with arsenic and mercury above target levels. The owner excavated
and disposed of ten 55-gallon drums of contaminated soil
under a department-approved plan. The property is now safe
for unrestricted use.
Triumph Foods, St. Joseph, MO - Triumph Foods cleaned up
56 acres located on Packers Avenue. Once a busy meatpacking
district, various parcels on the site were owned by a warehousing
firm, meat packing plants, and railroads. Cleanup consisted
of removing petroleum-contaminated soil from several surface
spill areas. Construction is underway on the new Triumph
Foods facility, a $130 million, 600,000-square-foot plant
and corporate headquarters. Triumph Foods is a newly formed,
vertically integrated pork-processing company owned by hog
producers. The facility, to be completed by fall 2005, will
employ approximately 1,000 workers within two years.
For more information, call the Department of Natural Resources’ Hazardous
Waste Program at 1-800-361-4827 or (573) 751-3176.
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Soil Cleanup Begins at Valley Wood Superfund Site U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency officials recently began
overseeing the cleanup of contaminated soil at the Valley
Wood Preserving Superfund site in Turlock, CA. The former
wood-treating facility is a Superfund site on the EPA’s
National Priorities List, a list of hazardous waste sites
potentially posing the greatest long-term threat to public
health and environment.
Located at 2237 S. Golden State Blvd., the 14-acre Valley
Wood Preserving, Inc. site was in operation from 1973 until
the county revoked the company’s license in 1979. The
wood preserving process involved pressure-treating lumber
with an aqueous chromated copper arsenate (CCA) solution.
The areas around the treatment cylinders and storage tanks
were unpaved during the first two years of operation. Paved
areas were added from 1975 to 1978 as the plant increased
production. In 1979, the California Regional Water Quality
Control Board (CRWQCB) identified toxic wood-treating chemicals
in an on-site storage pond, monitoring wells, and on- and
off-site soils. Approximately 34,000 people live within 3
miles of the site. The city of Turlock municipal wells, which
draw water from an aquifer underlying the site, serve 26,200
people within 3 miles of the site.
Contractors for Valley Wood Preserving will excavate soil
contaminated with arsenic and hexavalent chromium and replace
it with clean soil meeting federal cleanup standards. Excavated
soil will be trucked to the Kettleman Hills hazardous waste
landfill for disposal. The project should be completed within
four to six weeks.
For more information about this site, click
here.
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Lewiston Initiates Community Investment with Bates Mill
Redevelopment
Redevelopment of a former textile mill site transformed
a vital section of the city’s neglected downtown area
into a multi-use business park while preserving history and
stimulating investment. Initial reuse has already created
more than 1,200 jobs and generated $50,000 in annual property
taxes.
With activity dating back to the mid-1850s, the Bates Mill
was once Maine’s largest employer, encompassing 11
buildings (approximately 1.2 million sq. ft.) on a 10-acre
parcel. As the once-booming textile industry declined in
the northeast, investment left the area. The area’s
poverty rate rose to nearly 50 percent and unemployment rates
to 16 percent. After a steady 30-year decline, the city acquired
the abandoned mill site in 1992.
An EPA Brownfields Demonstration Pilot grant awarded in
1998 funded assessments of the site, revealing metals, PCBs,
volatile organic compounds, and mixed petroleum products.
A portion of the site warranted cleanup through EPA’s
Emergency Response and Removal program. EPA awarded Lewiston
additional monies and a Brownfields Cleanup Revolving Loan
Fund Pilot in 2000. EPA’s investment in the site spurred
interest from federal, local, and private stakeholders. In
total, the city leveraged nearly $40 million to cleanup and
redevelop the historic Bates Mill site.
A variety of businesses now occupy space at the new business
park, providing 1,200 jobs for local residents. Redevelopment
of the Bates Mill site initiated revitalization throughout
the community. Adjacent Lisbon Street, Lewiston’s main
shopping area, is following a similar multi-use redevelopment
plan. Through its strategic planning process, Lewiston exemplifies
how smart planning can alter a city’s image, increase
investment and jobs, preserve history, and protect the environment.
For contact information and photos of the site, visit http://www.epa.gov/brownfields/success/lewiston_me.pdf
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