The following press release was published by the US EPA on Nov. 5. It is reproduced in full below.
New York – Today, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced an extension of the comment period on the proposal to add the Meeker Avenue Plume to the National Priorities List.
"EPA is committed to providing ample time so that the community can participate and provide their comments on the proposal," said Acting Regional Administrator Walter Mugdan. "EPA will translate documents supporting the proposed listing to allow the Polish and Spanish-speaking communities access to the information they need to provide their full input."
On September 9, 2021, EPA announced its proposal to add the Meeker Avenue Plume to the NPL with a 60-day comment period scheduled to close on November 8. With today's extension, the comment period will now close on December 8.
EPA is proposing to list this site after close consultation with the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC), which discovered a plume at the Meeker Avenue site during the investigation and cleanup of a nearby petroleum groundwater contamination area. This part of Brooklyn housed historical petroleum refining and storage operations along the banks of Newtown Creek. Chlorinated volatile organic compounds (CVOCs) were found in subsurface soil and groundwater outside the historic petroleum spill area, prompting NYSDEC to conduct several environmental investigations.
NYSDEC's previous and ongoing investigations found contaminants of CVOCs, including tetrachloroethylene (PCE) and trichloroethylene (TCE), in the subsurface and indoor air of occupied residential and commercial structures above the groundwater contaminant plume. Indoor air contamination from vapor intrusion presents a potential health risk. NYSDEC has taken measures to mitigate exposures by installing sub-slab depressurization systems, which direct hazardous vapors in the soil to the exterior of the building. NYSDEC continues to conduct additional investigations to identify sources of contamination and continues to offer sub-slab and indoor air sampling to property owners within the boundary of the Meeker Avenue site. The State of New York supports the inclusion of the site on the Superfund NPL.
For information about Superfund and the NPL, please visit: https://www.epa.gov/superfund
To submit comments on this proposal, please visit: https://www.regulations.gov/docket/EPA-HQ-OLEM-2021-0461/document
Follow EPA Region 2 on Twitter at http://twitter.com/eparegion2 and visit our Facebook page, http://facebook.com/eparegion2
Source: US EPA
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