EPA RCRA ID: PAD000001115
On this page:
- Cleanup Status
- Facility Description
- Contaminants at this Facility
- Institutional/Engineer Controls
- Enforcement and Compliance
- Related Information
- Contacts for this Facility
Cleanup Status
Note: The EPA is the lead agency for managing cleanups at this facility.
In August 2018, Union Switch and Signal Division (USSD) submitted a Notice of Intent to Remediate (NIR) the Facility to the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (PADEP) pursuant to Pennsylvania’s Land Recycling and Environmental Remediation Standards Act (Act 2) while participating in the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency EPA/PADEP One Cleanup Program (OCP). A Remedial Investigation Report (RIR) was submitted in December 2020 and subsequently approved by PADEP on March 17, 2021. A Risk Assessment and Cleanup Plan (RACP) was submitted in November 2022 and revised in September 2023 to account for potential residential uses. PADEP approved the RACP on February 1, 2024. For the purposes of the RACP and moving forward, the Facility was divided into four areas based on ownership and potential future use as follows:
- Area 1: Lot D-1: Agro Shelf: Parcel 177-L-88 and Lot D-2: GetGO: Parcel 177-L-90
- Area 2: Lot D-3: Edgewood Housing Partners: Parcel 177-L-92
- Area 3: Edgewood Station LLC: Parcels 177-L-86 and Parcel 177-R-213
- Area 4: Parkway Union Development Corporation (PUDC): Parcel 177-S-270 and landscaped areas that border the western property boundary identified as Parcels 177-L-82, 177-L-84, and 177-R-217
The EPA’s Corrective Action Program (CAP) coordinated cleanup efforts with PADEP upon USSD’s intent to remediate pursuant to Act 2 and acceptance into the OCP. EPA reviewed all reports submitted under Act 2 to determine whether the investigations, remedial actions, and final closure determinations satisfied RCRA CAP requirements.
A Statement of Basis (SB) for the proposed remedy for the Facility was issued and advertised for public comment on August 23, 2024. The public notice was advertised in the Pittsburgh Post Gazette newspaper and the SB posted on the EPA website. A detailed Cleanup History can be located in the SB. EPA determined that the Final Remedy would remain as proposed in the SB.
The EPA issued a Final Decision and Response to Comments on September 27, 2024. The Final Remedy for the Facility consists of maintenance of a cap, installation of building vapor mitigation systems where necessary, implementation of a Materials Management Plan (MMP), and the implementation of land and groundwater use restrictions. The Final Remedy requirements were executed in four Environmental Covenants that were recorded with the Allegheny County Recorder of Deeds on April 1, 2025.
Remedy for the Facility consists of maintenance of a cap, installation of building vapor mitigation systems where necessary, implementation of a Materials Management Plan (MMP), and the implementation of land and groundwater use restrictions. The Final Remedy requirements were executed in four Environmental Covenants that were recorded with the Allegheny County Recorder of Deeds on April 1, 2025.
Cleanup Actions or environmental indicators characterizing the entire facility are shown below. It is not intended as an extensive list of milestones/activities. This listing, and all the data on this page, come from EPA’s RCRAInfo and are refreshed nightly to this page. For this table and the Cleanup Activities Pertaining to a Portion of the Facility table that follows, a blank in the Status column could mean the action either has not occurred or has not been reported in RCRAInfo.
Cleanup Activities Pertaining to the Entire Facility
| Action | Status | Date of Action |
|---|---|---|
| Human Exposure Under Control Human Exposure Under Control(CA725) | ||
| Groundwater Migration Under ControlGroundwater Migration Under Control (CA750) | ||
| Remedy DecisionRemedy Decision (CA400) | ||
| Remedy ConstructionRemedy Construction (CA550) | ||
| Ready for Anticipated Use Ready for Anticipated Use (CA800) | ||
| Performance Standards AttainedPerformance Standards Attained (CA900) | ||
| Corrective Action Process TerminatedCorrective Action Process Terminated (CA999) |
For definitions of the terms used, hover over or click on the term.
Cleanup Activities Pertaining to a Portion of the Facility
| Action | Area Name | Date of Action |
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For definitions of the terms used, hover over or click on the term.
Facility Description
Link to a larger, interactive view of the map.
The Union Switch & Signal Division (USSD) facility was situated on a triangular, 40-acre property in the Boroughs of Swissvale and Edgewood in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania. The USSD site is bordered to the north by the Penn-Lincoln Highway (I-376), by Braddock Avenue to the southwest and by Conrail railroad tracks to the southeast. Beyond the railroad tracks are Edgewood Avenue and the Green Belt. Land use in the surrounding area is mainly retail and residential situated approximately one mile north of the Monongahela River. The USSD operations were located on a plateau along the western portion of the property. An area that was only used for employee parking was located in the western portion of the site approximately 60 feet below the facility.
From 1880 until 1987, USSD produced various electrical and mechanical components used in railroad signaling and control systems. According to information presented in the Preliminary Assessment Report, the triangular-shaped site consisted of 13 buildings including a metal plating facility, a water treatment facility and a spray booth building. A hazardous waste storage pad was located west of Building #56.
USSD operated as an independent company until it became a subsidiary of Westinghouse Air Brake (WABCO, becoming WABCO Holdings, Inc., acquired by ZF Group on May 29, 2020) in 1917. In 1968, American Standard purchased the entire operation and reorganized USSD as a separate division. On December 31, 1987, the USSD facility was officially closed and ownership was transferred to the Oxford Development Company. The property was purchased by Parkway Union Development Corporation (PUDC) in January 1988 and the site was redeveloped. Most of the USSD buildings were removed and the former facility was located where the Towne Centre Office Building and Edgewood Towne Centre shopping complex now stand.
Contaminants at this Facility
EPA has determined that residual contamination that exists that is subject to Corrective Action and warrants the institutional controls and engineering controls established include 1,1-dichloroethene, trichloroethene, and lead.
Institutional and Engineering Controls at this Facility
An Institutional Control recorded as an enforceable environmental covenant subjects the Facility to the following activity and use limitations:
- The ground, water at the Facility shall not be used for any purpose other than to conduct required monitoring activities, unless it is demonstrated to the EPA and PADEP, that such use will not pose a threat to human health and/or the environment.
- Contractors performing development or redevelopment activities at the Facility property that could disturb subsurface strata and soil will operate in accordance with a span Materials Management Plan to protect on-site workers from potential exposures during subsurface activities.
Engineering control requirements include:
- Future residential use buildings/structures will incorporate a passive vapor barrier unless it can be demonstrated to the EPA and PADEP that soil gas concentrations will not pose a threat to human health and/or the environment and the EPA and PADEP provides prior written approval. Future penetrations of the floor or vapor barrier of any such buildings or structures will be repaired with materials of similar permeability in accordance with an EPA and PADEP approved Post Remediation Care Plan (PRCP).
- If residential development occurs, surface caps in Area 3 will be inspected and maintained, in accordance with an EPA and PADEP approved PRCP.
Institutional and Engineering Controls help ensure human exposure and groundwater migration are under control at a cleanup facility. Where control types have been reported by states and EPA in EPA’s RCRAInfo, they are shown below. Not all control types are needed at all facilities, and some facilities do not require any controls. Where there are blanks, the control types may not be needed, may not be in place, or may not be reported in RCRAInfo.
Are Controls in Place at this Facility?
|
Control(s) Type |
Control(s) in Place? |
Areas Subject to Control(s) |
Documents available on-line: |
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|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Institutional ControlsNon-engineering controls used to restrict land use or land access in order to protect people and the environment from exposure to hazardous substances remaining in the site/or facility. (CA 772) |
Informational DevicesInformational Devices (ID) |
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Governmental Controls (GC) |
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Enforcement and Permit Tools (EP) |
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| Proprietary ControlsProprietary Controls (PR) | ||||
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Engineering ControlsEngineering measures designed to minimize the potential for human exposure to contamination by either limiting direct contact with contaminated areas or controlling migration of contaminants. (CA 770) |
Groundwater ControlGroundwater Control (GW) |
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Non-Groundwater |
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For definitions of the terms used, hover over or click on the term.
Enforcement and Compliance at this Facility
EPA’s Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance (OECA) provides detailed historical information about enforcement and compliance activities at each RCRA Corrective Action Site in their Enforcement and Compliance Historical Online (ECHO) system.
RCRA Enforcement and Compliance Reports from ECHO
Related Information
For more information about this facility, see these other EPA links:
- RCRA information in EPA’s Envirofacts database
- Information about this facility submitted to EPA under different environmental programs as reported in EPA’s Facility Registry Services
- Alternative Names for this facility as reported by EPA programs in EPA’s Facility Registry Services
- Cleanups in My Community provides an interactive map to see EPA cleanups in context with additional data, and lists for downloading data
- Search RCRA Corrective Action Sites provides a search feature for Corrective Action Sites
Documents, Photos and Graphics
Contacts for this Facility
EPA Region implements and enforces the RCRA Corrective Action program for and federally recognized tribes.
For further information on this corrective action site, use the Contact Information for Corrective Action Hazardous Waste Clean Ups listings that are accessible through Corrective Action Programs around the Nation.