From Today's N&O
Again, I'm fine with the cleanup... shouldn't they have tested the soil before disturbing it to see if it is dangerous? Where will the soil go? Are we polluting another community?
Soil tainted, but state sees no danger to public
Samuel Spies, Staff Writer
CARRBORO - The state agency responsible for an environmental cleanup at a former dry cleaners says there is no health risk to local residents.
Soil removed from 127 Fidelity St. contains perchloroethylene, a dry cleaning solvent that may cause cancer, but the project manager says he does not think residents were exposed.
A private contractor hired by the state Division of Waste Management removed about 240 tons of dirt recently. It now sits in 12 large metal containers covered by tarps in the parking lot.
An analysis will show whether the dirt needs to be sent to a hazardous materials facility. If the contaminant levels are low, it may be taken to a lined landfill, said Al Chapman, project manager for the state's Dry-Cleaning Solvent Cleanup Act Program.
Groundwater at the site also is contaminated, Chapman said, but to what extent is unknown.
The Orange Water and Sewer Authority, which provides drinking water to the Chapel Hill-Carrboro area, doesn't have any wells in the area.
The DSCA program hired a private contractor to handle the cleanup, which cost about $100,000, Chapman said. The program is funded by a tax on dry cleaning and dry cleaning chemicals.
Neighbors' opinions differed on the cleanup operation.
"It seems to me that the analysis should have been done before," said John Allore, who lives nearby. "I would like either the company or someone from town of Carrboro to reassure me and the public that they know what they're doing, and that it's not an environmental risk to anybody in the neighborhood."
Bob Proctor, who lives in the neighboring Village Square condominiums, said he was satisfied with the outcome. "We're happy it's been cleaned up; they did a thorough job," he said.
But Proctor said the state should have acted to protect residents. "We were basically poisoned from 1990 through 1998," he said.
The owner of the property as listed in county land records, William Douglas Mitchell, did not return a phone message Wednesday seeking comment.
Town planning documents say the building was a dry cleaners for more than 20 years. Business listings indicate it was used by at least three businesses: Carolina Cleaners, Green Clean and Hangers Cleaners. Hangers Cleaners used a nontoxic process.
A phone message left at a Chapel Hill listing for Carolina Cleaners was not returned Wednesday.
The Fidelity Street building is vacant. In 2006 the property owners received a permit to convert it to offices.
(News researcher Lamara Williams-Hackett contributed to this story.)
Again, I'm fine with the cleanup... shouldn't they have tested the soil before disturbing it to see if it is dangerous? Where will the soil go? Are we polluting another community?
Soil tainted, but state sees no danger to public
Samuel Spies, Staff Writer
CARRBORO - The state agency responsible for an environmental cleanup at a former dry cleaners says there is no health risk to local residents.
Soil removed from 127 Fidelity St. contains perchloroethylene, a dry cleaning solvent that may cause cancer, but the project manager says he does not think residents were exposed.
A private contractor hired by the state Division of Waste Management removed about 240 tons of dirt recently. It now sits in 12 large metal containers covered by tarps in the parking lot.
An analysis will show whether the dirt needs to be sent to a hazardous materials facility. If the contaminant levels are low, it may be taken to a lined landfill, said Al Chapman, project manager for the state's Dry-Cleaning Solvent Cleanup Act Program.
Groundwater at the site also is contaminated, Chapman said, but to what extent is unknown.
The Orange Water and Sewer Authority, which provides drinking water to the Chapel Hill-Carrboro area, doesn't have any wells in the area.
The DSCA program hired a private contractor to handle the cleanup, which cost about $100,000, Chapman said. The program is funded by a tax on dry cleaning and dry cleaning chemicals.
Neighbors' opinions differed on the cleanup operation.
"It seems to me that the analysis should have been done before," said John Allore, who lives nearby. "I would like either the company or someone from town of Carrboro to reassure me and the public that they know what they're doing, and that it's not an environmental risk to anybody in the neighborhood."
Bob Proctor, who lives in the neighboring Village Square condominiums, said he was satisfied with the outcome. "We're happy it's been cleaned up; they did a thorough job," he said.
But Proctor said the state should have acted to protect residents. "We were basically poisoned from 1990 through 1998," he said.
The owner of the property as listed in county land records, William Douglas Mitchell, did not return a phone message Wednesday seeking comment.
Town planning documents say the building was a dry cleaners for more than 20 years. Business listings indicate it was used by at least three businesses: Carolina Cleaners, Green Clean and Hangers Cleaners. Hangers Cleaners used a nontoxic process.
A phone message left at a Chapel Hill listing for Carolina Cleaners was not returned Wednesday.
The Fidelity Street building is vacant. In 2006 the property owners received a permit to convert it to offices.
(News researcher Lamara Williams-Hackett contributed to this story.)
Labels: environment
posted by John Allore at 9:24 AM
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