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Environmental Cleanup Continues at Somers Plating Site in Conn

Release Date: 04/27/2006
Contact Information: Dave Deegan - (617) 918-1017

(Boston, Mass. - April 27, 2006) - EPA has begun work to restore the Somers Plating Site located in Somers, Conn.

Last fall, as part of a $4.11 million cleanup, EPA excavated approximately 8,800 tons of contaminated soil from the property and transported it off-site for disposal at a permitted facility. EPA also installed two groundwater monitoring wells.

Spring activities include:

- loaming and seeding two former lagoon areas;
- making any needed repairs to the driveway and access road;
- loaming and replanting wetland vegetation in two additional lagoon areas; and,
- collecting groundwater samples from on-site groundwater monitoring wells.

Earlier site investigations detected metals contamination, including cadmium and chromium, in surface soil samples collected from the property. 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 are located on-site. The property was also used at one time as a gasoline service station. The approximate 3.62-acre site includes two unoccupied one-story buildings. The site is located in a mixed residential/commercial section of town.

Cleanup crews arrived on site in late April to begin restoration activities, which are expected to take less than three weeks to complete, weather permitting. Additional information on the project is available at http://www.epaosc.net/somers.