United States Environmental Protection Agency
Region III
POLLUTION REPORT

Subject: 

The Precision National Plating Site is located at 198 Ackerly Road, Clarks Summit, Pennsylvania, which is approximately 10 miles north of Scranton, Pennsylvania.  The property measures 46 acres, approximately five (5) acres of which were used for site operations and the remainder of which are undeveloped and largely wooded.  A 45,000 square foot operations building was the principal structure on the site.

The site began operation as a chromium electroplating facility for locomotive crankshafts in 1956.  This operation continued when Precision bought the facility in 1971.  Precision operated an industrial component reconditioning facility on site from 1971 until 1999.

Site operations ceased in April 1999.  With PADEP and USEPA oversight, the former plating building was demolished in the Fall of 2000.

EPA approved the Remedial Action Plan (RAP), submitted on behalf of Precision National Plating by the Retec Group in September of 2005.  The RAP details plans to use calcium polysulfide to reduce the hexavalent chromium in the soils and groundwater to trivalent chromium.  

A pilot study was conducted from June 12th to June 20th 2006 to determine the radius of influence of calcium polysulfide injected at each injection site.

A public meeting was held on Wednesday, July 19th at the Waverly Community House to discuss upcoming remediation work and the air monitoring plan with residents.  

A. On Tuesday July 25th, full scale injections continued on top of the former building foundation.  Currently, full scale injections will be ongoing until the top of the foundation is complete.

B. Air monitoring is being conducted for hydrogen sulfide every hour around the perimeter of the site and two times a day on Arch Ave.   Precision National is continuously recording hydrogen sulfide values between the lagoon and the homes on Arch Ave.

C. LFR/Reardon has began injection operations in the lagoon area on August 14, 2006 .  These operations are have stopped due to odor situation on August 15, 2006.

D. On August 15, 2006 around 2100 a resident notified local emergency responders of a strong rotten egg smell in the area of Arch Ave. The resident complained of eye and skin irritation.  Local emergency responders evacuated the area and deconned the residents upwind from the site.  EPA OSC Dennis was notified of the situation around 2300 that night.  EPA and START responded with PADEP and the PRP contractor LFR to the site.   EPA was onscene at 0000 and was given a briefing by PADEP and Lackawanna County EMA.  Shortly thereafter EPA and PADEP conducted air monitoring in and around the site and found only 6 ppb of hydrogen sulfide at the lagoon.  There were no readings detected on Arch Ave or the perimeter.  Local responders did not get any readings during there air monitoring either.  Residents were allowed back into their homes around 0130 by EMA.  

E. On August 16, 2006 EPA shut down the injection operations by the PRP contractor.  It was determined the odor was coming from the lagoon where calcium polysulfide had collected during the injections in the lagoon.  EPA asked LFR to remove all liquid form the lagoon and place in a storage container onsite.  START conducted air monitoring thru midnight on August 16 and 17, 2006 and found no elevated readings on Arch Ave.

F. LFR completed the removal of the liquid from the lagoon on August 17, 2006.  Liquid is being stored in a frac tank onsite until further analysis can be done.  EPA ordered all injections to stop until further notice.  

G. To date LFR/Reardon has 894 completed  injection points on top of the foundation and the Vault area of the former plating facility.  These injection points have an approximate total 73,000 gallons of calcium polysulfide solution injected.

EPA will meet with Precision to discuss what measures must be taken before work can resume.

EPA will attend a Glenburn Township Meeting on Monday, August 21 to discuss the events of
August 15, 2006.

START will collect surface water and sediment samples from Ackerly Creek on August 24 to analyze for hexavalent and total chromium.