APRIL 22, 2015
The former site of an electroplating plant in Elmira
presents a significant threat to public health and/or the environment, the
state Department of Environmental Conservation said Wednesday.
Triple Cities Metal Finishing at 920-926 Stowell St. was
added Wednesday to the state's Registry of Inactive Hazardous Waste Disposal
Sites, the DEC said.
In December, the DEC completed sample collection and
analysis and determined that historical plant operations at the site resulted
in contamination of soil, groundwater and soil vapor at levels exceeding
applicable standards.
A Remedial Investigation/Feasibility Study is needed to
define the nature and extent of contamination on and off the site, as well as
to determine the most appropriate remedy to address associated current and
potential human exposures, the DEC said.
Based upon initial evaluation, the primary contaminants of
concern include chlorinated volatile organic compounds, particularly
trichlorethene and associated products in groundwater, methylene chloride in
sub-slab soil vapor and metals, particularly cadmium and arsenic, in surface
soil and sub-slab soil beneath the building, the DEC said.
Exposure to trichlorethene is associated with several types
of cancers in humans, especially kidney, liver, cervix and lymphatic system,
according to the Environmental Protection Agency. Methylene chloride also is a
likely carcinogen to humans, the EPA said.
Drinking water in the area has not been affected because the
neighborhood is served by a municipal water system, the DEC said.
Since about 1950, the company had manufactured and finished
steel and aluminum products such as screws, bolts and fasteners. The site is
currently used for storage, the DEC said.
In October 2000, Triple Cities moved its anodizing process,
in which a protective oxide film is applied to a light metal by electroplating,
from Stowell Street to the company's facility in the Broome County Industrial
Park. The Elmira facility then became a warehouse and transportation center for
Triple Cities.
Neighborhood residents are pleased that the site is going to
be cleaned up.
Belinda Santucci said she has lived down the block from the
plant at 910 Stowell St. for 12 years, and her husband who is 60 has lived
there his whole life.
"It concerns me," Belinda Santucci said. "I
don't want to live in that kind of conditions. I try to grow a garden and be as
healthy as I can be. I don't want that in my neighborhood."
Mike Vecharino, 66, said he has lived at 100 Stowell Place
his whole life and remembers the days when the site across from his home
operated as a factory.
"I thought they already started cleaning that up years
ago," Vecharino said. "Maybe they found some more that was still
there that they didn't clean up yet."
It makes him feel better that the contamination is finally
getting cleaned up, he said.
Recompense for the cost of remediation is sought from the
legally responsible party, if that can be determined, DEC spokesman Peter
Constantakes said. That can sometimes involve a drawn-out legal battle, he
said.
"Under the state Superfund, if need be, the state can
move forward with any cleanup, and then basically fight to get reimbursed for
it from the responsible parties," Constantakes said. "That's
generally the way it works. We don't want to hold things up if there's a
dispute."
The property is owned by Gerzo Reise of Elmira, according to
the Chemung County Real Property Tax Service. However, contact information
could not be immediately established for that name.
According to the DEC, anyone entering the former plant site
could contact contaminants in the soil by walking there, digging or otherwise
disturbing the soil. Volatile organic compounds in the groundwater may move
into air spaces within the soil that may move into overlying buildings and
affect indoor air quality.
This process, similar to the movement of radon gas from the
subsurface into the indoor air of buildings, is referred to as soil vapor
intrusion, the DEC said. A potential exists for the inhalation of site
contaminants due to soil vapor intrusion in the on-site buildings and in any
buildings that may be developed on-site in the future.
Further evaluation is needed to determine whether soil vapor
intrusion is a concern for any off-site buildings, according to the DEC.
Meanwhile, toxic waste has also been an issue at a former
Triple Cities Metal Finishing facility in Broome County. The DEC submitted a
$189,000 plan in March to cap and further clean a pool of trichloroethylene and
other material discovered 16 years ago at the Town of Fenton site.
Under the plan, the DEC expects to remove the most
significant area of soil contamination and prevent further exposure with other
controls, such as site stabilization and a cover system to allow continued use
of the facility as a commercial site. Additionally, piping and tanks will be
removed as part of the remedy.
The environmental investigation in the neighborhood followed
the discovery of a cluster of childhood cancers in the late 1990s. Scientists
did not link the illnesses with pollution, although trichloroethylene levels in
or under many area homes were high enough to require action based on guidelines
set by the state Department of Health.
Exhaust devices to limit and prevent exposure to toxic fumes
from the underground contamination is expected to continue to be maintained.
More than 100 of the systems were installed in the neighborhood by 2007.
Source: http://www.stargazette.com