The Bradford Township Police Department contacted OSC Zenone via telecoms requesting EPA assistance in determining if suspect asbestos-containing material at an old abandoned oil production facility posed at threat to public health, welfare and/or the environment. Bradford Township Police expressed concerns that the remotely located property was an attractive nuisance, with teenagers/young adults using the property for recreational purposes. On September 27, 2010, accompanying the Bradford Township Police to the old abandoned oil production facility, the OSC initiated a removal site investigation. The OSC observed that the buildings contained suspect asbestos containing materials (pipe lagging and block insulation). There are three (3) buildings on the site. The first building, designated Building 1 by the OSC is a cinder block building, which contains the majority of the suspect asbestos-containing material (pipe lagging and block insulation), both boxed and loose. Building 1 also contains a poly-lined cardboard drum leaking a greenish-colored liquid material and some tires just waiting to burn. Building 2 is a metal building that contains some loose suspect asbestos-containing material (pipe lagging and block insulation). Building 3 is a brick building that doesn't appear to contain any suspect asbestos-containing material (pipe lagging or block insulation). Suspect asbestos-containing material (pipe lagging and block insulation) was also observed to be dumped on the ground and in a small roll-off container outside of the buildings. It appears that unknown individuals (probably teenagers/young adults) have been using these buildings for "recreational" purposes. The OSC took photos which depict the unsecured buildings have been used for recreation (paint-ball, ATV/4-wheeling, bon-fires/camp-fires, and malt brewed beverage consumption), along with general vandalism. The OSC also took photos and wrote down information from the boxes of material in Building 1. The OSC asked Bradford Twp Police to report the incident to the NRC. On Tuesday September 28, 2010, in follow-up to the windshield assessment, the OSC researched information from the labels on the boxes observed in Building 1, and is approximately 99.9% certain the pipe lagging and block insulation are "vintage" asbestos material. The majority of the material in Building 1 is still in the original boxes, and the majority of the material outside of the boxes is relatively intact. The material in Building 2 is not as intact as that in Building 1. The material dumped on the ground and in the roll-off is relatively intact. The identity of the property owner is unknown at this time; however, it is speculated that the property may now be owned by the County and/or a financial institution. The OSC will continue to coordinate removal activities with Bradford Twp Police, who offered to restrict access to the Site pending additional federal removal response actions. The OSC has also communicated with the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (“PADEP”), and will continue to keep PADEP in the loop as well. The OSC plans to return to the site in the near future to collect samples to confirm the presence of asbestos, once the landowner is identified and legal access can be attained. The OSC will also continue efforts to identify Potentially Responsible Parties, serve Notice of Federal Interest, issue Order(s) and/or otherwise conduct the cleanup as may be necessary.
