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EPA Cleanup Completed at Somers Plating Site in Conn.

Release Date: 07/25/2006
Contact Information: Dave Deegan, (617) 918-1017

(Boston, Mass. – June 25, 2006) – EPA has completed the excavation of contaminated soil from the Somers Plating Site located in Somers, Conn. During the cleanup, EPA excavated soil from the site which was contaminated with metals, including cadmium and chromium.

To date, EPA has spent more than $2.5 million to excavate an estimated 8,800 tons of contaminated soil from the approximate 3.62-acre property which is located in a mixed residential / commercial section of town. The contaminated material was shipped off-site for disposal. The site includes two unoccupied one-story buildings.

To facilitate the excavation of the contaminated soils, EPA utilized a de-watering operation with a groundwater treatment system. During this process, approximately 60,300 gallons of water were pumped and treated. The contaminants are suspected to have been disposed on-site during the operation of a metal plating facility. Four known former metal hydroxide sludge lagoons associated with the plating operation were also located on-site. Once the excavation activities were completed, EPA backfilled and seeded two of the former lagoon areas and replanted wetlands vegetation in the other two lagoon areas. EPA also placed two groundwater monitoring wells on the property and has collected groundwater samples from the wells.

EPA’s contractors arrived on-site in late April to conduct restoration activities. The completion of the site restoration activities concluded this 12-month project.

More information on EPA's cleanup of the Somers Plating Site (epaosc.net/SomersPlating)

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