E.P.A. Suggests Clarksburg, W.Va. Hazardous Waste Location to Superfund’s National Priorities List

PHILADELPHIA (April 6, 2016) - Today the E.P.A. announced that 5 hazardous waste sites are being added to the National Priorities List (NPL). The Agency also has suggested that 8 other hazardous waste sites be added to the NPL. One of the sites now being suggested is North 25^th Street Glass and Zinc in Clarksburg, W.Va. Contamination from past industrial practices at this Harrison Co. location could pose public health and environmental risks.

The National Priorities List (NPL) is the list of hazardous waste sites in the U.S. eligible for remedial action financed under the federal Superfund program. The NPL is intended to guide the E.P.A. in determining which sites warrant further investigation and cleanup.

"The North 25^th Street Glass and Zinc location poses a number of serious environmental and public health risks," said E.P.A. Regional Administrator Shawn M. Garvin. "EPA encourages residents who are potentially affected by this location to participate fully during the upcoming public review period."

From 1899 through 1989, glass was manufactured at North 25^th Street Glass and Zinc, and from 1911 to 1924, zinc ore was processed creating a legacy of hazardous waste. Lead, arsenic and zinc are in soils on the property, and in the ground water and sediments in the nearby West Fork River.

The location is currently owned by Harrison Warehouse Services Company, Incorporated and is being used as a storage area for recycled paper for a pulp facility, and an automobile repair service. A large, zinc slag pile on-site contains lead, is accessible to the public, and is eroding into the West Fork River. The location is also accessible by bike from a rails-to-trails bike path.

In 2010, the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection (WVDEP) requested EPA's assistance. E.P.A. stabilized the area and capped it with an asphalt cover as a temporary measure to address immediate environmental threats. WVDEP supports the suggested NPL listing of this site.

The public is invited to review on the suggested addition of the location to the NPL during a 60-day review period from April seven to June 6, 2016. Starting on April 7, comments can be submitted through: www.regulations.gov

For more information on this suggested location in West Virginia: https://cumulis.epa.gov/supercpad/cursites/csitinfo.cfm?id=0306876

There is a local repository for location information in the Clarksburg Harrison Public Library , 404 W Pike St, Clarksburg, West Virginia 26301 (304) 627-2236

For Federal Register notices and supporting documents for the final and suggested sites:

http://www.epa.gov/superfund/current-npl-updates-new-proposed-npl-sites-and-new-npl-sites

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