Lumen Bearing Co., located at 197 Lathrop Street, Buffalo, New York, was the Site of former foundry/smelter operations. The Site was verbally discussed with representatives from the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC) in 2013 after a nationwide study of former lead foundry/smelters in the United States were identified by William P. Eckel in a doctoral dissertation for George Mason University and was based on entries in historical trade publications. The research was summarized in the article “Discovering Unrecognized Lead-Smelting Sites by Historical Methods” (Eckel, et al., 2001), which was published in the American Journal of Public Health.
Based on EPA’s review of additional historical documents including city directories, aerial photographs, and Sanborn® (Sanborn) fire insurance maps, as well as an evaluation of current circumstances, EPA initiated an investigation at the Site in October and November 2014. EPA collected soil samples from the property and analyzed them for Target Analyte List (TAL) parameters plus tin (Sn). Four samples were collected from within the property, two of the samples were collected from locations within the footprint of the former building. Lead concentrations ranged from 34 parts per million (ppm) to 7,800 ppm in the top inch of soil, and concentrations as high as 20,000 ppm were found in the six inch to eighteen inch interval of soil at three locations, two of which were from the former building footprint area. On April 14, 2015 EPA conducted a second sampling event to better characterize surface soil on the property. A total of 46 locations were identified based on a 50’ x 50’ grid of the site. Soil samples were collected at the 0 to one inch interval and one inch to six inch interval of soil for XRF analysis. The samples collected from the top inch of soil contained lead in concentrations that ranged from 13ppm to 5,032ppm and in the one to six inch interval lead concentrations ranged from 11ppm to 4,061ppm. The lead contamination is believed to have been the result of the facilities historic smelting operations.
