On September 25, 2012, the EPA announced that the W.R. Grace & Co / Wayne Interim Storage site in Wayne Township, New Jersey has been officially cleaned up and removed from the Superfund list. 

The site was originally polluted with thorium and other rare earth metals which pose serious risk to the public’s health.  Multiple studies show that the inhalation of thorium dust is a direct cause of lung and pancreas cancer. 

Since the site has been removed from the Superfund list, the area no longer poses a risk to the public or the environment.  The site was managed by the U.S. Department of Energy from 1984 to 1997 before the management was transferred to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. 

The contaminated area sat on six acres at 868 Black Oak Ridge Road in Wayne, New Jersey.  The property was initially owned by Rare Earths, Inc. between the years of 1948 and 1957, during which the company extracted thorium and other rare earth metals from monazite ore. 

The facility was bought by W.R. Grace & Co. Inc. in 1957, and the company continued to extract the minerals from the monazite ore until 1971.  The EPA reports that radioactive waste and other contaminated rubble was stored in 16 burial pits around the site. 

After the property was transferred to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, they excavated approximately 135,000 cubic yards of contaminated rubble and soil.  The processing building was also decontaminated and demolished. 

EPA Regional Administrator, Judith A. Enck, stated, “Monitoring has found that the cleanup conducted at this site has removed a significant risk that was posed to this community.”

New York District Commander Col. Paul E. Owen stated, “It took several years of hard work, including the safe removal and disposal of approximately 135,000 cubic yards of contaminated material, and I’m proud to be celebrating the fruits of that labor—the de-listing of this site.”

Source: Environmental Protection Agency

On September 26, 2012, the US Environmental Protection Agency announced how it handled a fire that consumed a 50,000 ton pile of plastic, glass, and glass in the Hillcrest Industries facility.  The EPA worked alongside the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation and firefighters in Wyoming County and the Village of Attica. 

The EPA has been applying a fire suppression agent called F-500 to the pile of rubble over the last couple of days.  The fire suppression agent is supposed to cover the debris and smother the fire by cutting off oxygen.  However, the EPA noticed the suppression agent was not working properly, so they consulted with fire suppression experts. 

The experts determined that the EPA needed to separate the pile into smaller segments and put out the fire in the smaller sections.  The pile was originally 40 feet high and covered an entire acre.  The EPA states that because the smaller segments will be extinguished with water and possibly foam, local residents may notice a large amount of smoke, steam, and even notice an odor. 

The EPA is going to bring in heavy equipment to split up the pile.  A system is also being built to collect water runoff, and the EPA will also bring in air conditioning equipment that will use water foggers to control the level of smoke and aid in putting out the fire.  The EPA plans to begin breaking up the pile on Saturday, September 29, 2012. 

Judith A. Enck, the EPA Regional Administrator, states, “The number one priority for the EPA is to put the fire out.  By breaking the piles apart, we can expose the fire and extinguish it in smaller, more manageable sections…[and] I want to assure the community near the site that we are doing everything possible to put this fire out quickly and eliminate any smoke or pollution from being released into the air.”

Source: Environmental Protection Agency

On September 26, 2012, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced that CityServiceValcon, LLC and Thomas West Fuels, Lubricants & Chemicals, LLC were fined for violating National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants under the Clean Air Act.

The EPA reports that the companies failed to practice proper management of unloading gasoline at the Nez Perce Express in Lewiston as well as the TP Gas Station and Convenience Store on the Fort Hall Indian Reservation.  The illegal unloading into storage tanks occurred between January of 2011 and January of 2012. 

The EPA is forcing CityServiceValcon, LLC to pay a $48,000 fine.  Thomas West Fuels, Lubricants & Chemicals, LLC is required to pay a $45,600 fine. 

The EPA also announced that Nez Perce Express and TP Gas Station and Convenience Store failed to install required vapor recovery systems.  Since these systems were never installed, about 10 tons of vaporous volatile organic compounds leaked at Nez Perce Express and about 5 tons leaked at the TP Gas Station and Convenience Store. 

The EPA states that the gasoline vapors can result in “ground leave ozone,” which is a pollutant in the air that leads to health problems like asthma, decreased lung capacity, and susceptibility to pneumonia and bronchitis.  The EPA required both convenience stores to install new vapor recovery systems, and the gas stations have since installed the equipment. 

Ed Kowalski, the Director of the Office of Compliance and Enforcement in the EPA’s Seattle Office, stated, “Gas tank trucks and gas stations must both comply with EPA’s hazardous air pollutant regulations when the tank trucks are delivering gasoline to the stations.  Gas trucks and gas stations must have the require vapor controls to prevent harmful vapors from being released.”

Source: Environmental Protection Agency

On September 27, 2012, the US Environmental Protection Agency approved a final plan to decontaminate ground water at the White Chemical Corporation Superfund site located in Newark, New Jersey.  The finalized plan comes after a 60 day period that let the public make comments. 

The White Chemical Corporation industrial site is located at 660 Frelinghuysen Avenue in Newark and covers about 4.4 acres.  In the 1930s and onward, parts of the site were used by numerous businesses for multiple industrial activities like the manufacturing of acid chlorides and fire retardants.  From 1983 to 1990, the White Chemical Corporation owned and operated the facility, but after the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection cited the company for several violations, the company abandoned the property. 

The EPA reports that thousands of drums containing hazardous chemicals were left behind.  Many of these drums began to leak and exposed the groundwater to volatile organic compounds which can cause damage to human health and the environment.  The site was added to the Superfund list in 1991.  

After removing the drums and contaminated soil, the EPA formulated a third phase of the cleanup to address the groundwater.  After study, the EPA found that the groundwater could not be pumped out because of certain rock formations under the site. 

The EPA then decided on a process call bioremediation.  The process requires chemicals to be injected into the ground water to then break down the compounds.  After the chemicals are injected into the groundwater, the EPA will collective samples to make sure the process was successful.  Additionally, the EPA is recommending that several monitoring wells be placed on the site to monitor the water in the future.  The groundwater cannot be used as a source of drinking water in the future. 

Source: Environmental Protection Agency

On September 27, 2012, the US Environmental Protection Agency announced that it is providing about $125,000 in “citizen science” grants to five community groups in New York City.  The grants will help the organizations gather information about air and water pollution in their communities.

Recipients of the citizen science grant:

Bronx River Alliance

The Bronx River Alliance will receive $25,000 from the EPA to help improve the River Stewards Volunteer Monitoring Program.  The grant will allow up to 70 adults and students to use specific procedures in monitoring the water along the Bronx River at 5 different locations.  The citizen scientists can also analyze data from the last 5 to 10 years. 

Cypress Hills Local Development Corporation

The Cypress Hills Locals Development Corporation will receive $25,000 in order to train local students.  The participants in the program will monitor indoor air pollutants for 24 weeks in Cypress Hills and East New York. 

El Puente de Williamsburg, Inc.

El Puente will receive $25,000 in order to train younger populations in Williamsburg, Brooklyn on how to collect water quality data.  After the data is collected, the finds are shared at presentations and workshops for the public as well as in printed articles. 

New York Harbor Foundation

The New York Harbor Foundation will receive $25,000 to help educate New York City high school students and have them monitor air and water quality in New York Harbor.  The collected data will then be posted online. 

Sustainable South Bronx

Sustainable South Bronx will receive $24,000 to educate and encourage high school students and local residents to monitor air quality by using “AirCasting” smart phone technology.  The technology allows users to access real-time information on air quality such as carbon monoxide levels and then share the information on a “wiki” map. 

Judith A. Enck, the EPA Regional Administrator, stated, “People care deeply about clean air and clean water in their communities.  This funding will help inform local residents about the environmental conditions in their own backyards.”

Source: Environmental Protection Agency

On September 27, 2012, the US Environmental Protection Agency stated that 11 Great Lakes Restoration Projects will receive grants to improve water quality and reduce certain nutrients that directly contribute to harmful blooms of algae in the lakes and surrounding watersheds. 

The grants are listed below:

1. The Ohio Environmental Protection Agency will receive $780,745 for the Lucas County Stormwater Demonstration Project.  The project seeks improve stormwater management and install “green infrastructure” at nine different locations. 

2. The Michigan Department of Environmental Quality will receive $350,000 for nutrient reduction in the Lake Erie basin and river basin.  The project aims to reduce nitrogen and phosphorus runoff from agricultural by 30 to 50 percent. 

3. The Nature Conservancy will receive $414,765 for nutrient reduction in the south Findlay area and the Upper Blanchard watershed. 

4. The University of Toledo will receive $472,491 for reduction of nutrients, sediments, and bacteria in the Maumee Bay State Park. 

5. The Ohio Environmental Protection Agency will receive $527,152 for the Powell Creak Nutrient Reduction Project.  Project will replace bad septic systems, plant over 3,600 acres of crops, install 20 acres of wetlands, and more. 

6. Ohio State University will receive $193,923 for a nutrient management plan in the Blanchard watershed. 

7.  The Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development will receive $265,980 to reduce the amount of sediment and nutrients that enter the Western Lake Erie Basin. 

8. The Grand Traverse Bay Watershed Initiative will receive $499,741 to reduce the amount of stormwater that flows into the Kids Creek. 

9. The Michigan Department of Environmental Quality will receive $995,204 to reduce phosphorus and E. Coli in the Kawkawlin River. 

10. The Muskegon River Watershed Assembly will receive $798,282 for restoration projects in the Riparian areas of the Muskegon River Watershed. 

11. Michigan State University will receive $189,376 for reducing phosphorus from farming runoff. 

Source: Environmental Protection Agency

On September 28, 2012, the US Environmental Protection Agency announced a plan to clean up lead at the Raritan Bay Slag site in Old Bridge and Sayreville, New Jersey.  The EPA states that there are three different sections of the Raritan Bay Slag site that contain lead slag from metal smelting. 

The first lead slag was produced when a seawall and jetty were built on the southern shore in Old Bridge and Sayreville.  The first section is consists of the Laurence Harbor seawall next to the Old Bridge Waterfront Park in the Laurence Harbor.  The second section is in the western jetty in Sayreville and continues form the Cheesequake Creek in Raritan Bay.  The third section is in Margaret’s Creek, and there are areas containing slag and battery casing in this section as well. 

The EPA is proposing to dig and dredge the Laurence Harbor seawall and western jetty areas.  The contaminated soil and waste will be removed and placed in licensed facilities.  The slag and battery casings will be removed from the Margaret’s Creek section.  The excavated areas in all sections will be filled with clean fill.

According to the EPA, lead can lead to the following in children: I.Q. deficiencies, reading and writing problems, lowered attention spans, behavioral problems, and hyperactivity.  Lead can endanger healthy adults as well and even cause reproductive harm. 

The EPA has scheduled a public meeting for October 17, 2012.  The meeting will explain the proposed plan in detail and encourage the public to comment.  The meeting will occur at the George Bush Senior Center located at 1 Old Bridge Plaza, Old Bridge, NJ 08857. 

Judith A.  Enck, the EPA Regional Administrator, states: “The goal of this is to clean up this site so that everyone, especially the children of this community, will be able to safely enjoy the beach.”

Source: Environmental Protection Agency

On September 28, 2012, the US Environmental Protection Agency released air quality information about the Hillcrest Industries fire currently being managed in Attica, New York.  The Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry also analyzed data. 

The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation asked the EPA to take samples starting on September 13, 2012 in 10 different locations after a huge fire formed at Hillcrest Industries.  Out of 68 volatile organic compounds tested, 31 were detected.  Although many of the compounds were well below the dangerous levels, there were still high levels of some dangerous chemicals. 

The EPA finds that there are “elevated” amounts of benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, and styrene on the top of the pile.  When the EPA tested two sites off of the site, they found that benzene levels in the air were increasing, indicating that the pollutants are now traveling away from the site into the surrounding community.

EPA Regional Administrator Judith A. Enck states that “While the numbers we use in determining health risk are conservative, there is no doubt that benzene is bad for people and this data underscores the need to put this fore out as quickly as possible, which is what the EPA is now working to do.” 

The EPA has begun to set up equipment that will lower the amount of dust and smoke leaving the site.  Also, the EPA has set up more air monitors to test the air once work begins to start breaking up the pile (covering almost a whole acre) to put out the fire. 

The EPA warns that even though equipment is being used to suppress the smoke and dust, residents should still keep their windows closed.  Children, the elderly, and those with respiratory conditions should avoid going outside. 

Source: Environmental Protection Agency

On September 28, 2012, the US Environmental Protection Agency stated that Frederick W. Hertrich, III and Charles Ernesto, Hertrich’s project manager, were ordered to pay a $100,000 fine jointly after violating the Clean Water Act.  The violation occurred in Federalsburg, Maryland in Caroline County.