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DEC says part of former GM site in Massena no longer contaminated, seeks comment on proposal to 'delist' the property

Posted 1/27/16

Updated 5:51 p.m. Jan. 27 MASSENA -- The Department of Environmental Conservation says a piece of the former GM site “no longer poses a threat to public health or the environment.” They are …

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DEC says part of former GM site in Massena no longer contaminated, seeks comment on proposal to 'delist' the property

Posted

Updated 5:51 p.m. Jan. 27

MASSENA -- The Department of Environmental Conservation says a piece of the former GM site “no longer poses a threat to public health or the environment.”

They are taking public comment through Feb. 26 on a proposal to take the mineral processing area off of its Registry of Inactive Hazardous Waste Disposal Sites. It is a small portion at the south end of the property adjacent to state Route 37.

They say the Revitalizing Auto Communities Environmental Response trust, which acquired the property from the automaker after it went bankrupt, removed soil riddled with polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB) in September 2014.

“Soils containing [PCB] were excavated and properly disposed of off-site through a series of interim remedial measures,” DEC writes in its notice of “delisting” the site.

In January 2014, RACER officials announced they removed 250 percent more contaminated soil than anticipated from the entire property, which also included the minerals processing area. They budgeted for 121,000 and took out more than 335,000 tons.

DEC says they stopped groundwater monitoring at the site after finding no contamination in tests conducted in 2001, 2003 and 2005.

Anyone wishing to make public comment can email peter.ouderkirk@dec.ny.gov or call 785-2523.

Comments through regular mail can be sent to:

Peter Ouderkirk, Project Manager

NYS Department of Environmental Conservation-Region 6, Division of Environmental Remediation

317 Washington St., Watertown, NY 13601