Hazardous Waste Cleanup: Stimpson Company Incorporated in Bayport, New York
On this page:
- Cleanup Status
- Site Description
- Contaminants at this Facility
- Site Responsibility
Cleanup Status
The following activities were done under the approved facility closure plan:
- Decontamination and removal of non-permanent equipment and structures like tanks, filters and piping ducts.
- Decontamination of permanent structures, such as building floors and containment structures, was done by using high-pressure steam and detergent when stains or permanent structures could not be removed by pressure-steaming alone.
Based on the soil sampling that was done as part of the RCRA closure, four areas were identified as needing remedial actions: (1) the metal finishing area, (2) the former underground settling tanks, (3) the two recharge basins, and (4) the sanitary system‘s leaching pools.
- Metal finishing area: Four areas underneath the metal finishing area floor showed high concentrations of copper and zinc. As a result, 28 cubic yards of soil were removed. NYSDEC recommended no further action after resulting concentrations were below the NYSDEC recommended soil cleanup objectives in all the end point samples data.
- Former underground settling tank: Close to 11 cubic yards of soil were taken from under the settling tank to remove high concentrations of copper and zinc. The tank’s manhole cover and frames were removed and the settling tank was backfilled with clean soil.
- Recharge basin: During 1996 and 1997, 1,000 cubic yards of contaminated soils had been removed from the recharge basin. Then during RCRA closure, around 200 additional cubic yards of soil were removed because they had high concentrations of copper and zinc. Also, the pipes that connected the wastewater system to the recharge basins were permanently sealed and abandoned in place. As a result soil and groundwater samples in the recharge basins didn’t need any more actions.
- Remediation of sanitary system‘s leaching pools: High concentrations of oil and metals were found in the sludge. Because of this, every leaching pool was pumped out and dug up.
Groundwater has been monitored every three months since 1982 and it has been looked at as part of RCRA closure. The groundwater depth is at around 25 below the ground surface and it flows locally in a southeasterly direction. The last round of groundwater samples showed that groundwater quality has not deteriorated due to past contamination at the site.
Site Description
The Stimpson property, which is about 21 acres in area, is bounded by undeveloped industrial-zone land to the west and the south, commercial and industrial property to the north, and Sylvan Avenue to the east.
The facility operated for over 25 years, until June 2003. Stimpson made metal fastening products such as eyelets, grommets, washers, rivets and snap fasteners, and the machines used to install the fasteners. In June 2003, Stimpson stopped making these products. Stimpson made all its products in its 200,000-square-foot facility. Stimpson also used a waste water treatment system to clean its tumbling rinse water.
Contaminants at this Facility
Metals (copper and zinc), cyanide and oil had contaminated this facility. They have since been removed, and the facility has been clean closed. There are no contaminant threats remaining due to operations of the Stimpson facility.
Responsibility at this Facility
All closure activities were done in accordance with the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC)-approved closure plan.
This facility had interim status to store hazardous waste under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA). In 1985, EPA approved the facility’s request to withdraw its application for a final permit under RCRA. Stimpson kept working as a generator-only facility until it closed in June 2003. However, the facility had to be looked at and cleaned under RCRA’s corrective action program because it originally had been an interim status facility.