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BoRit Asbestos Site Added to Superfund List

Release Date: 04/08/2009
Contact Information: Roy Seneca [email protected] (215) 814-5567

PHILADELPHIA (April 8, 2009) -- The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency today announced the addition of the BoRit Asbestos Site in Ambler, Pa. to the Superfund National Priorities List (NPL).

The national priorities list is a national list of sites where hazardous contaminants could impact public health and/or the environment. NPL sites undergo a thorough investigation to determine the full nature and extent of contamination. EPA or the parties responsible for the contamination then address whatever risks the sites pose to human health and the environment.

The BoRit site was proposed for NPL listing in Sept. 2008, which was followed by a 60-day comment period. The final decision on the listing comes after EPA evaluated and responded to all the public comments in writing.

The BoRit asbestos site was used to dispose of asbestos-containing material from the early 1900s to the late 1980s that came from a nearby asbestos-manufacturing plant. The site is divided into three parcels: an asbestos waste pile, a reservoir owned by Wissahickon Waterfowl Prserve and a former park/playground owned by Whitpain Township.

The waste pile covers approximately two acres of the six-acre parcel, and is about 20 feet above the ground surface. The berm of the 15-acre reservoir was constructed of asbestos shingles, millboard and soil. Asbestos product waste, such as piping and tiles, is visible surrounding the reservoir and stream banks. The third disposal area, which covers about 11 acres, was a depression that was filled and leveled, and eventually used as a park/playground. In the mid-1980s, the area was fenced due to asbestos contamination.

The site is on the NPL because the nearby residential population could potentially be exposed to airborne asbestos and to asbestos contamination along Tannery Run, Rose Valley Creek and the Wissahickon Creek. For Federal Register notices and supporting documents for this and other sites, please visit https://www.epa.gov/superfund/sites/npl/current.htm.