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GCL TIE & TREATING

Site Description

The GCL Tie and Treating site occupies approximately 30 acres in an industrial area in southwestern Delaware County, New York. The property consisted of a sawmill and wood treating facility known as GCL Tie and Treating, and a former light manufacturing company. According to an analysis of historical photographs conducted by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and accounts by local residents, wood-preserving activities at the site date as far back as the 1940's when the Delaware and Hudson Railway Company owned the property. The site first came to the attention of the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC) in 1986, after one of the pressure tanks used at the GCL facility malfunctioned, causing an estimated 30,000-gallon release of creosote. GCL representatives excavated contaminated surface soil and placed it in a mound; no further action was undertaken at that time. Approximately 1,100 people are employed in the nearby industrial area. About 5,000 people live within 2 miles of the site and depend on groundwater as their potable water supply. The nearest residential well is within 0.5 mile of the site. A shopping plaza consisting of three fast food restaurants and several stores is located approximately 300 feet from the site. Other facilities (i.e., a hospital, public schools, senior citizen housing, and child care centers) are located within 2 miles of the site.

Site Responsibility:

This site is being addressed through federal actions.

NPL LISTING HISTORY

Proposed Date: 01/18/94
Final Listing Date: 05/31/94

Threats and Contaminants

The only remaining threat at the site is the potential exposure to groundwater contaminated with creosote constituents such as anthracene, chrysene, benzo(a)anthracene, and benzo (a)pyrene. Area residents receive drinking water from public supply wells, which are routinely tested to ensure compliance with federal and state standards. Access to the site is restricted by fencing. Threats posed by aboveground tanks and drums containing creosote wastes/sludges, and contaminated soil, have been addressed.

Cleanup Approach

The site is being addressed in two stages: immediate actions and two longterm remedial phases focusing on cleanup of site soils/sediments and site groundwater.

Response Action Status

Immediate Actions: At the request of NYSDEC, EPA initiated a removal action at the site in March 1991. Activities conducted as part of the removal action included: delineation of surface contamination, installation of a chain link fence, site stabilization, identification and disposal of containerized (e.g., tanks, drums) and noncontainerized hazardous wastes (e.g., liquids in sumps), staging of contaminated soil and wood debris for disposal, and a pilot study to determine the effectiveness of composting to bioremediate creosote-containing soils.

Entire Site: The long-term response work being conducted at this site is divided into two operable units. Operable unit 1 (OU1) deals with the contaminated soils on the portion of the site where GCL operated its facility (referred to as the GCL property); this area was also the focus of the removal activities. A remedy for this portion of the site was selected in a September 1994 Record of Decision (ROD), which called for the excavation and on-site treatment of contaminated soil via low temperature thermal desorption. The remedial design (RD) for OU1 was completed in September 1997. The contract for remedial action was awarded on March 31, 1998. On-site construction activities for OU1 began in September 1998 and will be completed in June 2000.

Operable unit 2 (OU2) deals with the soils/sediments on the remainder of the site (referred to as the non-GCL property), and also includes surface water, groundwater, and other components not covered under OU1. In March 1995, EPA selected a remedy in the OU2 ROD, calling for the extraction and on-site treatment of groundwater contaminated with organic compounds; discharge of treated groundwater to surface water, and the excavation and treatment of contaminated sediments via the thermal desorption system to be used for the GCL-property soils. Pools of DNAPL-contaminated groundwater, encountered during the OU1 soil excavation, were pumped and treated as part of the OU1 remedial action. Pre-design groundwater sampling conducted in November 1997 indicated that contamination had migrated off-site. Further sampling conducted in March 2000 defined the extent of the downgradient plume of contamination. The remedial design for OU2, based on the hydrologic and geochemical data collected during the pre-design investigation, is expected to be complete by the Fall of 2000.

Site Facts: The GCL site was selected as a pilot project for the Superfund Accelerated Cleanup Model (SACM). Under this pilot, work which had typically been performed sequentially (e.g., site assessment, National Priorities List (NPL) placement, removal action assessment) was performed in parallel. While determining if the site was eligible for the NPL, EPA performed investigations to further delineate the nature and extent of contamination at the site.

Cleanup Progress

(Removal Completed)

EPA's removal activities eliminated any potential imminent threat posed by the site. Approximately 20,000 gallons of creosote wastes/sludges were removed from the site and 4,800 cubic yards of contami nated soil and 3,000 cubic yards of wood debris were staged for on-site treatment.

(Actual Construction Underway)

On-site mobilization of the low temperature thermal desorption system, used to remediate contaminated soils and sediments, began in September 1998. Excavation and soil treatment activities were completed in May 2000. Site restoration activities (e.g., grading, seeding) are currently underway at the site and completion of OU1 is expected in June 2000. During the excavation and treatment phase of the remedial action, additional structures and sources of contamination were discovered. Average and maximum contaminant concentrations were also detected at much higher levels than those predicted in the ROD. As a result, the actual volume of contaminated soil requiring remediation was 80,000 cubic yards, twice the estimated volume predicted in the ROD. These increases resulted in a much longer schedule for remediation. Pools of DNAPL-contaminated groundwater, encountered during the OU1 soil excavation, were pumped and treated as part of the OU1 remedial action.

(Cleanup Yet To Be Performed)

The OU2 remedial design to address groundwater contamination is expected to be complete by the Fall of 2000.

Site Repository

Sidney Memorial Library, Main Street (corner of Main & River Streets), Sidney, NY 13838

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