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Heller Heat Treating

All POLREP's for this site Heller Heat Treating
Clifton, NJ - EPA Region II
POLREP #10 - Final Polrep
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On-Scene Coordinator - Cris Donofrio, OSC 9/23/2010
Emergency - Removal Action Pollution Report (POLREP) #10
Start Date: 4/24/2009 Completion Date: 1/30/2010
Pollution Report (POLREP) #10
Site Description
See POLREPs 1 and 2.

Current Activities
• Site activities resumed on 1/4/10 after a temporary shut down in observance of the traditional holiday season.  ERRS initiated the clean-out of a tank (the decon-pit tank) located in a floor pit in Building 5.   This tank was used by ERRS to contain decontamination liquids that were generated during the dismantling and decontamination of the plating lines and other facility process equipment.  

• During the clean-out of the decon-pit tank, a significant amount of chemical residues were discovered in the interstitial space between the floor pit and the tank.   It appears that chemical spillage from the plating line had been accumulating in this area during plant operations due to poor housekeeping practices.  Two additional tanks were also discovered in this pit.  The tanks also contained small amounts of chemical residues.  The floor pit is approximately 40’l x 7’w x 8’ deep.   Cleanout of the decontamination-pit tank and containment area were completed by 1/13/010.  A total of 29 x 55 gallon drums of chemical residues and non-pumpable sludge were recovered from this area.  Several confined space entries were required to complete the cleanout.  

• The final hazardous waste drum shipment was made on 1/14/2010.  A total of 29 x 55 gallon, 2 x 95 gallon and 9 x 85 gallon drums of hazardous waste were shipped for incineration to the Cycle Chem, Inc. facility in Elizabeth, NJ.  The wastes included the chemical residues from the decon pit and its containment area and the austemper salt/sludge mixture previously recovered from the floor pits in Building 4.  These wastes contained chromium, cadmium and tetrachloroethylene; the PCE was the deciding factor that required the waste to be incinerated.

• The owner of the conveyor system that was purchased at auction completed the removal of the conveyor belt from the austemper line in Building 3 as of 1/14/2010.  The conveyor system was preventing access to the waste austemper salts contained in the system’s subgrade tank.  Removal of the austemper salts from this pit was initiated on 1/14/2010 utilizing the existing on-site backhoe.  The hardened material could not be removed using this equipment; a 1,000 lbs. hoe ram was mobilized to the site on 1/19/2010 to facilitate the removal of the salts.  This effort was completed as of the morning of 1/21/2010.  The final roll-off of austemper salt was shipped for disposal on 1/18/2010 to Modern Landfill in York, PA.

• ERRS conducted a final police call throughout the site in preparation for demobilization.  Included in this effort, the asbestos contaminated room in the mezzanine of Building 1 was boarded up; warning signs were installed.  Additionally, the crew packaged equipment and materials for shipment off-site in between performance of critical tasks.  Rental equipment was decontaminated and prepared for return to the vendors.  

• All site work associated with this removal action has been completed and ERRS was officially demobilized from the site on 1/30/2010.  


Next Steps
This Removal Action has been complete.

Key Issues
• The ERRS period of performance was extended from 2/9/2009 to 3/26/2009.

• An outstanding issue which may require further resolution is a potential vapor intrusion problem that was identified by preliminary analytical results.  Vapor samples collected from sub-slab locations for assessment purposes suggest that perchloroethylene and trichloroethylene are present in the sub-slab.  This issue may require further investigation pending data validation.  Assessment activities are being conducted under separate funding and are not included as part of the Action Memorandum for this Removal Action.