The W.R. Grace Site is located in Wilder, Campbell County, Kentucky. W.R. Grace ("Grace") owned and operated a vermiculite ore processing facility at 112 North St. from 1960 until the mid-1990's. Residues from the processing operation were disposed of on the Grace property and an adjoining tract as fill material. The vermiculite ore and the residues contain actinolite and tremolite asbestos fibers.
In April 2003, EPA initiated a time critical removal action at the site, at the request of the Kentucky Department for Environmental Protection (KYDEP). The scope of work involves removal and off-site disposal of up to 40,000 tons of asbestos-contaminated soil, and the decontamination of two buildings formerly used in the vermiculite manufacturing operations.
January 26 to January 31, 2004
ERRS continued decontamination of Building #1. Dry decontamination of office spaces was completed on 1/24/04. ERRS continued wet decon in the warehouse area, continuing along upper roof portion then moving to sidewalls and floors. All water was collected in holding tanks for treatment prior to disposal. Personnel and perimeter air sampling continued. Air monitoring for carbon monoxide (CO) continued due to heaters, pressure washers and other equipment running inside warehouse area.
February 2 to February 8, 2004
Railroad crew on-site to re-install railroad spur behind Building #1. ERRS excavated a visually contaminated runoff area between Building #1 and the rail spur and otherwise prepared the spur area for re-installment of the rail. ERRS continued wet decontamination of Building #1. Cold weather caused some delay due to freezing of pipes. ERRS continued to use pressure washers to remove residual asbestos from side walls and floors in Building #1. All water generated during this process was pumped to holding tanks. Air monitoring for CO, daily perimeter and personnel sampling continued.
February 9 to February 11, 2004
Subcontractor continued installation of railroad spur behind building #1. ERRS completed
decontamination of Building #1. On 2/10/04, ERRS started encapsulation of area above office space (mezzanine area) with asbestos encapsulating product. This is being done to capture any rogue dust/fibers. ERRS also began part of the site restoration by drying out soils, regrading, and backfilling previously excavated areas. START and ERRS prepared to collect confirmation wipe and Microvac samples from inside decontaminated buildings.
Water from decontamination operations will be treated, sampled and discharged. Clearance air samples will be collected, as well as confirmation samples from inside the decontaminated buildings. A total of 14 wipe samples for ASTM D-6480-99, 13 microvac samples for ASTM 5755, and 17 air samples for TEM will be collected.
1. Sub-freezing weather conditions are periodically affecting site operations. Work output slows considerably and equipment breakdowns occur under these conditions.
2. Use of internal combustion engines for manlifts and propane heaters inside the buildings are causing an increase in carbon monoxide (CO) levels. Air-purifying respirators designed to filter asbestos fibers provide no protection for CO. Concentrations are being monitored daily to determine if time-weighted averages (TWA) for asbestos are beiong exceeded. To date, no exceedances have been recorded.
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