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Superfund Program Implements the Recovery Act

Havertown PCP

Haverford Township, Pennsylvania

Site Description
National Wood Preservers operated at the Havertown PCP site from 1947 to 1963. The company treated wood products using pentachlorophenol, also known as PCP, dissolved in diesel fuel.  The site is located in a suburb 10 miles west of Philadelphia, and occupies approximately 15 acres with no distinct boundary.  The community is mixed-residential, with homes, parks, schools, businesses and industry present. The site’s contamination is in the shallow and deep ground water on-site.  Contamination also traveled away from the site in an abandoned sewer line and contaminated the soil near a portion of that line.  Contamination also affects the soil and ground water in an open recreational area at the end of the sewer line.  The community surrounding the site uses the public water supply, and, therefore, its drinking water source is not affected by the site.

Cleanup Activities to Date
EPA added the site to the National Priorities List in 1983.  To address the site’s contamination, EPA has divided it into three parts or operable units (OUs).  The first of these parts, OU 1, consisted of an interim cleanup approach to reduce oil in the storm sewer that was discharging to a nearby stream, Naylor’s Run.  EPA also removed and disposed of tanks and drums from the facility and secured the buildings.  About 97,000 tons of liquids, 55 gallons of solids, and 60 tons of sludges – all containing hazardous wastes -- were disposed of off-site.  The second OU involved installation of an on-site pump-and-treat system, which is now being operated as an interim remedy to address ground water contamination in the shallow aquifer. The system was recently upgraded to increase the amount of water it can treat.

Recovery Act Project Activity
EPA will use the up to $5 million in Recovery Act funds allocated to this site to complete cleanup activities at the site.  The remaining cleanup activities, designated as OU 3, include work to improve the performance of the ground water treatment system, which among other actions, will involve installing an additional deep recovery well.  Other OU 3 cleanup activities include excavating the open recreational area and backfilling it with clean soil; removing a portion of the abandoned sewer line; installing three new extraction wells and up to five new monitoring wells; and implementing ecological sampling to demonstrate habitat and fish community recovery.  EPA also plans to implement institutional controls to protect the site’s cleanup.

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