U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Region 5 conducted a cleanup of Indiana Brass, an abandoned fire-damaged metal plating shop and foundry in Frankfort. You are invited to visit the site to see the results of the cleanup.

The open house will be 3-5 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 15, at the Indiana Brass site, 800 W. Clinton St.

Visitors should go to EPA’s Command Center trailer on Monon Street for an accompanied tour of the site.

EPA’s activities included:

·         Demolition of the structurally-unsound building

·         Recycling of construction and demolition debris

·         Excavation, treatment, and off-site disposal of contaminated soil

·         Assessment of 24 residential properties for site-related contamination

·         Air monitoring and sampling for residents’ and workers’ safety

·         Post-removal confirmatory sampling

The 85,000-square-foot building caught fire June 3.  Indiana Department of Environmental Management was among the emergency responders.  IDEM and EPA inspected the fire-damaged site in early July.  Their assessment concluded that the site was contaminated with metals including lead, cadmium, arsenic and copper and volatile organic compounds.  Cleanup began in July and is anticipated to be complete by the end of December at an estimated cost of $1.5 million.

Information about the site is available on the Web at www.epaosc.org/indianabrass.