EPA RCRA ID: PAD075504795
On this page:
- Cleanup Status
- Facility Description
- Contaminants at this Facility
- Institutional/Engineer Controls
- Enforcement and Compliance
- Related Information
- Contacts for this Facility
Cleanup Status
Note: The EPA is the lead agency for managing cleanups at this facility.
On 9/22/2017, EPA determined that contamination in groundwater and human exposures risk from contaminants were under control.
Underground storage tanks (USTs) containing No. 6 fuel oil, toluene and possibly other solvents were found to be leaking at the Facility in 1986. Approximately 1,700 cubic yards of contaminated soils associated with the leaking USTs were initially stockpiled in five separate piles before being deposited into a specially constructed lined bioremediation containment cell adjacent at the Facility. The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (PADEP) approved of the cleanup within the bioremediation cell in November 1992 after Greene Tweed demonstrated the remaining soils met the PADEP-required total petroleum hydrocarbon (TPH) and toluene cleanup levels.
In order to demonstrate soils within the bioremediation cell are in compliance with EPA’s current residential risk levels for contaminants in addition to TPH and toluene, EPA collected additional soil samples from the cell in May 2018. All contaminants detected were found to be within EPA’s allowable risk range for residential direct contact. However, tetrachloroethylene (PCE), a chlorinated solvent, was found in 5 of the 7 samples within the bioremediation cell at concentrations above PADEP’s Statewide Health Standard (SHS) Soil Vapor Intrusion Screening Value of 0.43 mg/kg. This indicates that the vapor intrusion pathway may be of concern if an inhabitable building is constructed above the former bioremediation cell without appropriate vapor mitigation controls.
On August 9, 2023 EPA issued its Statement of Basis for the proposed cleanup remedy at the Facility in which the Agency proposed the implementation of institutional controls (ICs) to prohibit construction of any inhabitable structures directly above the bioremediation cell unless it can be demonstrated that such structures will not be adversely impacted above the Agency’s risk based indoor air concentrations via the vapor intrusion pathway. EPA is providing a thirty (30) day public comment period to solicit comments on the proposed remedy. The public comment period will end on September 8, 2023.
Cleanup Actions or environmental indicators characterizing the entire facility are shown below. It is not intended as an extensive list of milestones/activities. This listing, and all the data on this page, come from EPA’s RCRAInfo and are refreshed nightly to this page. For this table and the Cleanup Activities Pertaining to a Portion of the Facility table that follows, 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.
The Greene Tweed and Company (Greene Tweed) facility began operations at its North Wales location in 1943 as a manufacturer of gasket, packing, and sealing devices. The 3.5 acre property contained two buildings during Greene Tweed's period of operations, which ended in 1987. A third building was constructed at the facility after Greene Tweed sold the property shortly after its operations were discontinued.
The only manufacturing process that generated hazardous waste at the facility was a coating tower operation. The coating process consisted of submerging a 40-inch wide belt of square woven cotton cloth into a rubber cement tank to completely coat the cloth. At the end of a production order, the rubber cement remaining in the tank was disposed. Additional waste was generated during cleanup of the coating equipment, using toluene and possibly other solvents.
The site currently houses a variety of small businesses including LIP Auto Collision, Shannon Enterprises and ATCherry LLC. Since Greene Tweed and Company left the Facility property in 1987, none of the subsequent businesses on the property has operated as a RCRA Treatment, Storage or Disposal (TSD) facility.
Contaminants at this Facility
Contaminants of concern are fuel oil , toluene, and tetrachloroethylene (PCE)
Institutional and Engineering Controls at this Facility
The proposed remedy in the Statement of Basis calls for the implementation of institutional controls (ICs) to prohibit construction of any inhabitable structures directly above the bioremediation cell unless it can be demonstrated that such structures will not be adversely impacted above the Agency’s risk based indoor air concentrations via the vapor intrusion pathway.
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) |
Documents available on-line: |
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|---|---|---|---|---|
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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
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.