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Greenbytes: June 3, 2003 Edition
In this IssueGreetings from EPA New England. We hope you find this edition of Greenbytes useful and we encourage you to give us feedback. Please send an email to Paul Wintrob with your thoughts, comments or suggestions: wintrob.paul@epa.gov Another significant step has been taken towards the cleanup of PCBs in and around the Housatonic River in Pittsfield, Mass. General Electric has agreed to pay the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency a $94,380 penalty to settle an enforcement case related to improper storage of equipment containing PCBs. The case was initiated after GE notified EPA it had found that two transformers and three capacitors containing PCBs were being stored improperly in Building 9 at its 254-acre property in Pittsfield. GE also told EPA that one of the transformers had leaked PCB-containing oil. GE fixed the leak and checked the rest of the facility to make sure no other PCB-containing equipment was being stored improperly. Based on that information, EPA concluded there were seven violations of the federal Toxic Substances Control Act at 11 locations on the property. GE agreed in the settlement to create and implement a plan that addresses the PCB contamination before demolishing Building 9. The company also agreed to follow environmental regulations for handling and disposing PCB-containing equipment in the future, and to pay EPA penalties set in advance for any future violations regarding improper storage of equipment that contains PCBs. In September of last year, GE finished cleaning the first half-mile of the river, including removal of about 18,000 cubic yards of PCB-contaminated river sediments and bank soils and treatment of over 180 million gallons of water. Immediately on the heels of GE’s completion of the upstream section of river, EPA began the cleanup of the next one-and-a-half miles of the river. EPA has removed more than 21,000 cubic yards of sediments and bank soils in eight months of work. The project is expected to take four to six years. EPA is continuing its large-scale investigation of the rest of the river below the East and the West branches. The investigation includes an ecological risk assessment, a human health risk assessment and a river modeling study designed to evaluate the fate of PCBs in the river system. After extensive public comment from Massachusetts and Connecticut residents, a final decision on the cleanup of the rest of the river is expected in 2006. GE in 2000 agreed to a 400-page consent decree that serves as a blueprint for the massive PCB cleanup of the Housatonic River and Berkshire County in western Massachusetts. Web Resources:
Press Releases EPA To Review Cleanup Progress at Re-Solve, Inc. Superfund Site GE Agrees to Pay $94,380 Penalty for Improperly Storing PCB Equipment in Pittsfield EPA Completes Temporary Cleanup Measures at Nuclear Metals Superfund Site EPA Proposes $54,000 Fine Against Florence Co. for Environmental Violations EPA to Honor RI Students on May 27 for Environmental Art and Poetry National Consumer Awareness Campaign on Vermiculite Insulation Used in Some Home Attics
Events and conferences are not archived. Please refer to the Regional Calendar for upcoming events and conferences.
Asbestos - updated q&a Brownfields - what’s new Clean Water State Revolving Fund (SFR) - new page Davisville Naval Construction Battalion Center Superfund Site - five-year review report added Directions - fresh mass pike, logan, and 93 north directions to our boston office MWRA Outfall Monitoring Science Advisory Panel - updated meetings information
"In The News" is a free daily service that provides links to today's top newspaper stories about the New England environment and links to related EPA New England information. In The News Email Service: As soon as today's edition of "In The News" has been posted we will email you a listing of the day's environmental news. |
