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BREWSTER PROPERTY CLEANUP IN SEVEN WEEKS

Release Date: 11/08/1996
Contact Information: Johanna Hunter, Community Involvement, (617) 918-1041 Dean Tagliaferro, On-Scene Coordinator, (617) 223-5596

BOSTON ---The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced today that cleanup work has been completed at a local property in Brewster, Mass. The seven-week cleanup at Linda Turner's home on Main Street removed pesticide contaminated soils from under her garage and around her home left by the property's former owner, a pest control operator.

The EPA led the effort which removed 23 truck loads of contaminated soil, approximately 350 tons, at a cost of $285,000. The primary contaminants found in the soil were dieldrin and chlordane, common chemicals used for termite extermination.

"Our actions here visibly show how the EPA, by working closely with the homeowner, and state and local officials, can undertake action quickly to ensure that the health and welfare of individual families can be protected," said John P. DeVillars, EPA's New England administrator. "Mrs. Turner and her children will now be able to use their backyard without any concerns for their safety."

Mrs. Turner first discovered decaying cans of dieldrin and chlordane in 1983 when cleaning out her garage. The former property owner, the deceased Mr. Charles Adao, ran an exterminator business on the property and disposed his chemicals on the property. In 1983, Mrs. Turner was advised to wear protective clothing and place any contamination in a 55 gallon drum for disposal by the Town of Brewster.

This last year, when Mrs. Turner planned to refurbish her garage and part of her property, she was required to have the soils tested. The testing discovered unsafe levels of pesticides.

Subsequently, the EPA and the state took on the project at the request of Mrs. Turner and her local state representative, Sen. Henri Rauschenbach.

"Just when I thought I had run out of options, my calls for help resulted in the EPA coming to my home and ensuring that the cleanup was done," said Linda Turner. "When the cleanup crew arrived, everything turned positive for me and my children."

The EPA will return to Mrs. Turner's home in the spring to reseed the yard and plant shrubs.