EAST WHITELAND TOWNSHIP, PA — On Tuesday, September 12, 2023, the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) will host an in-person public meeting to discuss the Bishop Tube Hazardous Site Cleanup Act (HSCA) site in East Whiteland Township, Chester County and implementation of the response action. The meeting will be held between 6:30 PM and 8:30 PM in the auditorium of the General Wayne Elementary School located at 20 Devon Road, Malvern, PA 19355. The DEP will present its remediation plan and a panel of experts will answer the public’s questions.
In September 2022, DEP filed a remediation plan that addresses Trichloroethene (TCE), its breakdown products, per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), certain heavy metals, and other contaminants in soil, groundwater and surface water. The plan also provided for a public water connection to a private homeowner in June 2023. The site will be remediated in accordance with Pennsylvania’s Land Recycling Program, which aims to return contaminated properties back to productive use while preserving farmland and other natural resources.
DEP selected a combination of on-site chemical injections, soil mixing, engineering practices, institutional controls, and long-term monitoring to address the soil, groundwater, and surface water contamination. The injection of chemical-reducing agents creates a chemical reaction that destroys harmful contaminants and produces harmless byproducts. These remedial response actions will be conducted in place, without having to excavate soil or pump out groundwater for aboveground cleanup.
Several industrial businesses manufactured stainless steel tubes at the 13.7-acre Bishop Tube HSCA site from the 1950s to 1999. TCE is considered the primary site-related contaminant of concern because its concentrations within soil, groundwater, and surface water are generally higher than other chlorinated solvents at the site and it poses the most substantial threat to human health and the environment. TCE is a commercial-grade solvent that was commonly used as a degreasing agent for manufactured metal parts. Besides being a known carcinogen, prolonged exposure to TCE can result in serious neurological, cardiac, reproductive, and developmental health problems. For more information on the Bishop Tube site, please visit: www.dep.pa.gov/bishoptube.
The Hazardous Sites Cleanup Act was signed into law in 1988 to provide DEP the funding and authority to address hazardous substances and contaminants in the environment. To date, the program has conducted nearly 900 actions in communities across Pennsylvania, cleaning up groundwater, capping or removing contaminated soil, and ensuring thousands of people have access to safe drinking water.
For more information on the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, visit its website.
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