Source: http://www.masslive.com, March 29, 2017
By: Jim Russell
Pollution requiring clean-up at the former Belchertown State School property includes an apparent polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) “disposal site,” according to the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection.
In a letter written by Eva Tor, deputy regional director of the DEP Bureau of Waste Site Cleanup, the state said the current property owner, Belchertown Economic Development Industrial Corporation, is required to come up with a plan to begin addressing the PCB-contaminated soil within 30 days.
Selectmen released the letter dated March 17 to The Republican on Tuesday, following the newspaper’s request for the document.The DEP letter to BEDIC Chairman William Terry says the “property has been subject to a release of PCBs in excess of the applicable reportable quantity.”
Tor wrote, “Based on this information, the Department has reason to believe that the property, or a portion thereof, is a disposal site which requires a response action.
“You shall submit a report summarizing environmental assessment activities related to the contaminants withing thirty days of this letter. This deadline for the site constitutes an enforceable Interim Deadline,” Tor wrote.
She wrote that BEDIC might have claims against third parties for damages, “including claims for contribution or reimbursement for the costs of cleanup.”
The DEP letter also says BEDIC is “a party with potential liability for response action costs and damages” according to state law.
Mark Sternman, director of Governmental Relations & Communications for MassDevelopment, which manages redevelopment of the site, provided this statement to The Republican:
MassDevelopment continues to support the redevelopment efforts of BEDIC at the former Belchertown State School. Through these efforts, MassDevelopment retained the consulting firm Tighe & Bond to help manage the assessment, demolition, and cleanup efforts at the property. To date, many buildings have been successfully demolished and cleaned up. The reported matter of PCBs in soil is common for buildings constructed in the 1950s-1970s. Buildings constructed in this era commonly used PCBs as part of the exterior building materials. In this case, PCBs are present in the exterior building caulking. As part of Tighe & Bond’s demolition design efforts, soil samples were collected from the perimeter of the building, which identified low levels of PCBs associated with the weathering of exterior building caulking. As reported by Tighe & Bond’s Licensed Site Professional (LSP) Marc Richards, these low levels required reporting to MassDEP; do not pose a risk to trespassers or dog walkers on the property; and do not represent a threat to groundwater. The PCB soil impacts will be fully addressed as part of the planned building demolition. Following continued building demolition and oversight by Tighe & Bond’s LSP, the property will have no restrictions on future site reuse or redevelopment.
MassDEP Letter to BEDIC by The Republican/MassLive.com on Scribd