U.S. Environmental Protection Agency officials announced Tuesday that contaminated soil will be excavated on the Ellenville Scrap Iron and Metal Superfund site in Ellenville, N.Y., and moved to the landfill on the property. The landfill will then be securely capped to prevent contaminants from leaching out of the landfill into the ground water.
The excavation of the soil, which is contaminated with hazardous chemicals and metals, is the first part of a site cleanup plan EPA officials selected in September 2010. Any of the excavated soil or materials that are hazardous will be shipped off-site for proper disposal. EPA officials will hold a public information session today at 6 p.m. at the Ellenville Government Center.
Officials will perform the work at the Ellenville site in partnership with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation. The EPA is paying for the cleanup, which is expected to cost about $8 million, and the conservation group is contributing 10% of the funding.
EPA officials will excavate contaminated soil from six different areas at the site, consolidate the soil on the landfill portion of the site and then securely cap the landfill. They will also install a series of additional wells to monitor ground water around the site to make sure it remains free of contaminants.
Source: EPA
