PITTSBURGH, PA — The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) and Arxada, LLC recently reached a proposed consent decree to recover costs from the remediation of the former Pool Doctor-Beaver Alkali Products site in Rochester, Beaver County. Arxada has agreed to pay $1.3 million to settle DEP’s claims that its predecessor, Lonza, Inc., disposed of approximately 140 tons of hazardous hydantoin at the site under the guise of a sale.
“This investigation, and the subsequent cleanup that DEP led, is an example of our commitment to getting things done for Pennsylvanians and holding polluters accountable,” said DEP Acting Secretary Jessica Shirley. “I applaud the dedicated staff who have tirelessly worked to not only remediate an environmental, health and safety hazard, but also followed every lead to ensure that those who profited off of this recklessness are held to account.”
DEP initiated the site cleanup in 2019, addressing the improper storage and disposal of hazardous chemicals both within and outside site buildings. The cleanup, which concluded in June 2020, was conducted under the Hazardous Sites Cleanup Act (HSCA) to expedite the process due to the potential danger posed by the chemicals.
The site contained hundreds of drums and containers of unknown liquids and solids stored in dilapidated buildings, linked to previous chemical businesses and a laboratory. Although the site was not regulated by DEP, the agency responded to mitigate the public health and environmental risks posed by the potential release of hazardous substances.
Additional hazardous chemicals, structural issues within the larger onsite building, and costs associated with security, testing, transport, and disposal elevated the total remediation cost to over $2.4 million. DEP’s investigation revealed that the site had been used as an illegal dumping ground, prompting further action to hold responsible parties accountable. In May 2023, DEP filed a federal lawsuit against five defendants, including Arxada, to recover the cleanup costs. While the settlement addresses DEP’s claims against Arxada, efforts to recover costs from the other defendants continue.
The consent decree is available on DEP’s community information page for the site. DEP will accept written comments on the decree through October 16, 2024, directed to Paul Vogel, Manager, Hazardous Sites Cleanup, at DEP’s Pittsburgh office at 400 Waterfront Drive, Pittsburgh, PA 15222 or by emailing the Department at RA-EPSW-HSCA@pa.gov.
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