EPA RCRA ID: MDD003100336
The Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) is the public law that creates the framework for the proper management of hazardous and non-hazardous solid waste. Corrective action is a requirement under RCRA that facilities that treat, store or dispose of hazardous wastes, or did so in the past, investigate and clean up hazardous releases into soil, groundwater, surface water and air. For more information, and for more information on RCRA-specific terms used on this page, please visit EPA’s umbrella RCRA web page or EPA’s RCRA Corrective Action page.
On this page:
- Cleanup Activities
- Facility Description
- Institutional/Engineering Controls
- Enforcement and Compliance
- Related Information and Publicly Available Electronic Records
- Contacts for this Facility
Cleanup Activities
- On December 5, 2012, F. Bowie submitted the RCRA Facility Investigation/Corrective Measures Study (RFI/CMS).
- The former F. Bowie Smith & Sons Facility (F. Bowie Smith), now owned by Birchwood Realty Co., Inc. (Birchwood), entered the Facility Lead Program on April 4, 2005. RCRA Corrective Action activities at this facility are being conducted under the direction of EPA Region 3 with assistance from the State of Maryland. The site characterization process is complete.
- On May 20, 2015, F. Bowie Smith performed groundwater sampling at the site to evaluate current conditions at the site.
- On June 28, 2016, EPA issued a Statement of Basis (SB) in which it described the information gathered during environmental investigations at the Facility and proposed a Final Remedy for the Facility.
- Consistent with the public participation provisions under RCRA, EPA solicited public comment on its proposed Final Remedy. On July 7, 2016, notice of the SB was published on the EPA website and in a local newspaper. The comment period ended on August 6, 2016.
- Since EPA did not receive any comments on the SB and EPA has determined it was not necessary to modify the proposed Final Remedy set forth in the SB, the remedy proposed in the SB is the Final Remedy selected by EPA for the Facility on August 9, 2016.
- CORRECTIVE ACTION FINAL DECISION
EPA's Final Remedy for the Facility consists of the following:- Monitored natural attenuation
- Compliance with and maintenance of land and groundwater use restrictions
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An environmental covenant was signed by F. Bowie, EPA and MDE on January 31, 2018 which subjects the property to institutional controls.
Cleanup Actions or environmental indicators characterizing the entire facility are shown below. This listing, and all the data on this page, come from EPA’s RCRAInfo and are refreshed nightly to this page. For this table, a blank in the Status column could mean the action either has not occurred or has not been reported in RCRAInfo.
Cleanup Activities Pertaining to the Entire Facility
| Action | Status | Date of Action |
|---|---|---|
| Human Exposure Under Control Human Exposure Under Control(CA725) | ||
| Groundwater Migration Under ControlGroundwater Migration Under Control (CA750) | ||
| Remedy DecisionRemedy Decision (CA400) | ||
| Remedy ConstructionRemedy Construction (CA550) | ||
| Ready for Anticipated Use Ready for Anticipated Use (CA800) | ||
| Performance Standards AttainedPerformance Standards Attained (CA900) | ||
| Corrective Action Process TerminatedCorrective Action Process Terminated (CA999) |
For definitions of the terms used, hover over or click on the term.
Cleanup Activities Pertaining to a Portion of the Facility
| Action | Area Name | Date of Action |
|---|
For definitions of the terms used, hover over or click on the term.
Facility Description
Link to a larger, interactive view of the map.
F. Bowie Smith operated a wood-treatment facility at the site from 1952 until 1985. From 1982 until 1988, the site was partially occupied by the Chesapeake Wood Company, a firm that provided wholesale and custom lumber. The Chesapeake Wood Company was not engaged in chemically treating wood, but treated wood was stored on site. A Preliminary Assessment was completed in 1988 and a Site Inspection was conducted in 1990.
Site buildings were demolished, and two geomembrane and soil caps were installed in the northwest area of the site, pursuant to an amended Consent Order between the State of Maryland and Birchwood Realty. The most recent groundwater monitoring report was submitted in December 2008.
Contaminants of concern at the site, in both soil and groundwater, are pentachlorophenol, creosote-derived constituents (mainly naphthalene), arsenic, and chromium.
Institutional and Engineering Controls at this Facility
Institutional Controls for the facility include:
• Groundwater at the Facility shall not be used for any purpose other than the operation, maintenance, and monitoring activities required by MDE and/or EPA.
• No new wells shall be installed on Facility property.
• A vapor intrusion control system, the design of which shall be approved advance by EPA, shall be installed in each current and new structure constructed at the facility unless it is demonstrated to EPA that vapor intrusion does not pose a threat to human health and EPA provides prior written approval.
• On an annual basis and whenever requested by EPA, the then current property owner shall submit to EPA and MDE a written certification stating whether or not the groundwater and land use restrictions are in place and being complied with.
• The Facility shall be restricted to commercial and/or industrial purposes and shall not be used for residential purposes unless the then current landowner demonstrates to EPA that such use will not pose a threat to human health or the environment or adversely affect or interfere with the selected remedy and the Facility obtains prior written approval from EPA for such use.
• The Facility shall not be used in any way that will adversely affect or interfere with the integrity and protectiveness of the capped areas unless the then current landowner demonstrates to MDE and EPA that such use will not pose a threat to human health or the environment, and MDE and EPA provide prior written approval for such disturbance. The then current landowner will also develop and implement a Cap Management Plan. The Cap Management Plan shall be submitted for EPA and MDE review and approval and, at a minimum, must include: the procedures to maintain the cap over the contaminated soil; a schedule for inspections to be performed as part of cap maintenance, no less frequent than once a year; and physical maintenance requirements of the capped areas to prevent degradation of the cap and unacceptable exposure to the underlying soil.
Institutional and Engineering Controls help ensure human exposure and groundwater migration are under control at a cleanup facility. Where control types have been reported by states and EPA in EPA’s RCRAInfo, they are shown below. Not all control types are needed at all facilities, and some facilities do not require any controls. Where there are blanks, the control types may not be needed, may not be in place, or may not be reported in RCRAInfo.
Are Controls in Place at this Facility?
|
Control(s) Type |
Control(s) in Place? |
Areas Subject to Control(s) |
|
|---|---|---|---|
|
Institutional ControlsNon-engineering controls used to restrict land use or land access in order to protect people and the environment from exposure to hazardous substances remaining in the site/or facility. (CA 772) |
Informational DevicesInformational Devices (ID) |
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Governmental Controls (GC) |
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Enforcement and Permit Tools (EP) |
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| Proprietary ControlsProprietary Controls (PR) | |||
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Engineering ControlsEngineering measures designed to minimize the potential for human exposure to contamination by either limiting direct contact with contaminated areas or controlling migration of contaminants. (CA 770) |
Groundwater ControlGroundwater Control (GW) |
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Non-Groundwater |
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For definitions of the terms used, hover over or click on the term.
Enforcement and Compliance at this Facility
EPA’s Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance (OECA) provides detailed historical information about enforcement and compliance activities at each RCRA Corrective Action Site in their Enforcement and Compliance Historical Online (ECHO) system.
RCRA Enforcement and Compliance Reports from ECHO
Related Information and Publicly Available Electronic Records
For more information about this facility, see these other EPA links:
- RCRA information in EPA’s Envirofacts database
- Information about this facility submitted to EPA under different environmental programs as reported in EPA’s Facility Registry Services
- Alternative Names for this facility as reported by EPA programs in EPA’s Facility Registry Services
- Cleanups in My Community provides an interactive map to see EPA cleanups in context with additional data, and lists for downloading data
- Search RCRA Corrective Action Sites provides a search feature for Corrective Action Sites
Documents, Photos and Graphics
Contacts for this Facility
EPA Region implements and enforces the RCRA Corrective Action program for and federally recognized tribes.
For further information on this corrective action site, use the Contact Information for Corrective Action Hazardous Waste Clean Ups listings that are accessible through Corrective Action Programs around the Nation.