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EPA Begins Cleanup of PCB Contaminated Sand and Gravel in Meddybemps, ME

Release Date: 05/29/2001
Contact Information: Andrew Spejewski, EPA Press Office (617-918-1014)

BOSTON -The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency will begin this week to remove a pile of PCB contaminated sand and gravel from the Green Hill Quarry site in Meddybemps, Maine. EPA and its contractor, IT Corporation, are expected to begin work on May 30th and continue for up to three months. EPA is working closely on the cleanup with the Maine Department of Environmental Protection and the town of Baileyville, which owns the property, although it is located in Meddybemps.

Approximately 3,000 cubic yards of sand and gravel contaminated with PCBs will be removed from the site. The most contaminated portion will be taken to a secure hazardous waste disposal facility in Michigan, while soil containing only low levels of PCBs will be sent to a landfill in Maine.

"We're going to do what it takes to eliminate PCB hazards at the quarry for good," said Ira W. Leighton, acting regional administrator of EPA's New England office. "Because most of the contaminated soil has already been quarried, we won't have to do much excavation and should be finished here within three months. This is good news for Baileyville and Meddybemps."

"We appreciate all of the efforts involved in making sure this site is cleaned up. This project illustrates what can be accomplished when local, state, and federal governments work together," added Martha Kirkpatrick, commissioner at the Maine Department of Environmental Protection.

The quarry was contaminated by transformers stored on the site by the owner of Eastern Surplus and Smiths's Junkyard. The property was later purchased by the town of Baileyville for use as a quarry. In 1983, the town took sand and gravel from the quarry and used it to build a road bed in the Woodland section of Baileyville. After PCB contamination was discovered, the town removed the contaminated sand and gravel from the road bed and returned it to the quarry site, where the Maine DEP secured it and monitored it to prevent exposure.

Last year the town of Cooper discovered that a local contractor had transported PCB-contaminated sand from the Green Hill Quarry pile to property owned by the town of Cooper, where it was intended to be used by the town for winter road sanding. The town of Cooper and the Maine DEP requested EPA's help in cleaning up Cooper's sand pile and permanently removing the Green Hill Quarry pile to avoid future problems. Last fall, EPA removed 2,400 tons of sand from the Cooper pile, and the actions starting this week will complete the removal of all known contaminated soils from the quarry.