The Site is a defunct tissue paper manufacturer aka paper converting) located in a rural area of Greenwich, NY, 20 miles east of Saratoga Springs, NY.
The company became defunct 2 years ago, had filed for liquidation bankruptcy, and the owner walked away from the property. The plant was purchased by St. Regis Investments, LLC, a company based in California. The original intent was to reopen the plant, but due to economic considerations the plant will be demolished and sold for residential development.
The Site occupies 27 acres in a rural/residential area, and is perched on the edge of a cliff over the Battenkill River. It has one large brick and wood, multi-level manufacturing consisting of a warehouse, two hydroelectric power plants, manufacturing areas, a lab, offices, and repair shops. There is a boiler house and an associated 20,000 gallon AST for waste oil. There are a number of small out-buildings used for vehicle and misc. equipment storage.
Security guard service was in-place from 8AM to 6PM, seven days a week, but was discontinued. The facility has limited access via a dirt road, however, the property is unfenced and the buildings are unlocked and unsecured.
Initially, this was an RP-lead removal action without an enforcement document. However, at a point in the removal activities the RP informed EPA that he did not have the funds to continue the removal action, and asked that EPA take over. After deliberating on the turn of events, and with a written site referral from the NYSDEC, EPA agreed to complete the removal action.
In connection with this proposed activity, the OSC and members of the US Coast Guard Atlantic Strike Team visited the Site on September 6, 2005 to conduct field sampling/testing on 10 drums of unknown chemicals staged at the Site. Test results revealed the presence of corrosive waste chemicals and flammable waste chemicals.
ERRS crew mobilized to the Site on 12/12/05 to begin set-up of removal action infrastructure. Command Post and crew trailers energized, but phone and Internet service not yet connected.
ERRS crew has retrieved 7 previously inaccessible 55-gallon drums from around the Site and staged them on the interior heated loading dock. Seven additional 330-gallon chemical totes have been noted, and plans are underway to relocate them to the loading dock area to be thawed.
EPA START technical contractor is in the process of sending a public notice to two local newspapers of general circulation in the area announcing the availability of the Administrative Record in the Greenwich Public Library. OSC has sent written notification of the initiation of the removal action to the Greenwich Town Supervisor, with a copy to the Middle Falls Fire Chief.
OSC has marked drums of usable chemicals that will be set aside for the new owner to use. This will reduce the volume of chemicals that will be shipped off-site for disposal, and conserve sound commercial chemical products.
ERRS will mobilize a chemist to the Site on 1/2/06 to begin haz-cating unknowns and establishing distinct compatible waste streams. Composite samples for lab analysis will be taken from each waste stream. After sampling is completed, chemist will begin lab-packing chemical containers in laboratory.
Establish phone and Internet connections, identify unknown chemicals, consolidate all loose chemical containers into staging area.
Key issues are full activation of Command Post; retrieval of loose chemical containers; working in extreme cold weather, including difficulty thawing frozen chemical containers.
|
