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.
Removal activities have resumed as of January 3, 2006.
ERRS crew has collected more than 800 small containers of chemicals from various locations around the Site. A total of 72 55-gallon drums have been staged also.
ERRS has mobed chemist to the Site and he has started lab-packing containers in the laboratory. ERRS has begun to disconnect pumps and feed lines from chemical totes in process area and started moving them to a centralized staging area in a warehouse section of the main building.
An intruder entered the premises during the holiday crew demobe and apparantly, among other things, stole an electric motor belonging to the mill owner. This was reported to the attorney for the owner, along with a request that the owner initiate Site security during weekends when no one is at the mill. Attorney advised OSC that he would contact his client in that regard.
Public notice of this EPA Superfund removal action published in two newspapers of local circulation.
OSC has committed the remaining $65,000 of mitigation funds to ERRS, bringing the total of funds committed to the authorized ceiling of $200,000.
ERRS chemist will continue to lab-pack chemical containers in laboratory. When this is completed he will begin haz-cating drums of unknowns staged in loading dock area and begin to group drums into compatible waste streams.
ERRS will continue to relocate chemical totes to staging area. OSC will begin contacting suppliers to arrange for them to retreive their totes at no cost to the government.
Site costs are becoming higher than originally anticipated by OSC, and a ceiling increase for a yet to be determined amount may be submitted by the OSC.
See Planned Removal Actions above.
Key issues remain cold weather conditions at the Site, including high amounts of snowfall which hampers movement around the Site. Another key issue is removal funding, which may be inadequate to complete the removal action, and additional funds may be requested.
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