Hazardous Waste Cleanup: American Motive Power Incorporated in Dansville, New York
On this page:
- Cleanup Status
- Site Description
- Contaminants at this Facility
- Site Responsibility
Cleanup Status
The inactive landfill was closed under a 1972 NYSDEC consent order. Former facility, Foster Wheeler Energy Corp. began a remedial investigation of the site in May 1997 and completed it in October 1998. Based on the results of the remedial investigation and an evaluation of potential public health and environmental exposures, the site contaminants no longer pose a significant threat to human health or the environment.
Based on soil samples taken directly from the landfill and corroborated by groundwater data, hazardous wastes reportedly disposed in the landfill prior to 1972 were not found at significant levels. Paint wastes reportedly disposed in the landfill either did not contain high concentrations of hazardous constituents when they were generated or the concentrations have diminished over the past 25 years as a result of natural attenuation processes.
Residual amounts of hazardous wastes appear to be adequately entombed and immobilized beneath the vegetated landfill cover. In addition, no significant organic residues from past Super Strypp spills were identified. Although isolated detections of some hazardous constituents were found, none were highly elevated or indicative of a source area requiring remediation. Therefore, no remedial action was proposed and the Foster Wheeler facility was deleted from the NYSDEC registry of inactive hazardous waste sites in 1999.
In 2003 Foster Wheeler closed its facility. The company also informed NYSDEC that it planned to transfer its property to another owner. As part of the transfer process, a facility assessment under the federal Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) was conducted at the site. It was determined that an additional investigation should be conducted at the site. This work was almost completed, except one area of concern (AOC), when the property was transferred to the new owner, Dansville Properties in 2005. This AOC required remediation that was identified in the January 2008 work plan.
The property owner, Dansville Properties, carried out the last remaining remedial work in February 2008. The remediation was complete and a report was submitted in September 2008. Based on this report NYSDEC determined that the remediation of the last AOC is complete and therefore all closure activities required by NYSDEC are complete.
Based on the above, the facility was released from its prior status as a RCRA-regulated facility as of December 18, 2008.
Site Description
The American Motive Power, Inc. is located at 9431 Foster Wheeler Road, Town of North Dansville in Livingston County in New York. The facility was a metal fabrication plant where a variety of industrial processes occurred over the years from 1927 through 2003.
Dansville Properties purchased the property and hired LaBella Associates, a contractor, to complete a site assessment and perform corrective action at the facility. The current owner is Bombardier Mass Transit and the current operator is American Motive Power, Inc. The property consists of multiple buildings and is zoned for commercial and industrial use.
Contaminants at this Facility
Environmental concerns at the site included an inactive landfill and areas where hazardous substances have spilled. The low levels of Polychlorinated Biphenyls and some volatile organic compounds were found in two area of concern.
Site Responsibility at this Facility
The site corrective action has been performed under New York State Department of Environmental Conservation statutory authority.
The facility had interim status to store hazardous waste under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act. In 1989 the facility clean closed its storage units. No permit was required. The Foster Wheeler Energy kept working as a generator-only facility until it closed in 2003.