· The drycleaner voluntarily investigated their site and is cooperating with the DNR and the School
The Klinke’s voluntarily investigated their site for contamination in 2008, in time to be eligible for the WI Dry Cleaner Environmental Response Fund program. The contamination they found was reported to the DNR who oversees investigation and cleanup projects. The DNR also works with responsible parties to establish a schedule for cleaning up sites. The most logical time to clean up the Klinke site was when the building was being torn down and reconstructed in 2010 and 2011, giving the Klinke’s more access to remove contaminated soil beneath the building.
·
The drycleaner has the resources available to
take the immediate actions needed to protect the school
The Klinke’s have the resources available to hire an
experienced consultant and continue their investigation and cleanup of this
site. As their sampling data showed more
extensive contamination, they were also directed to investigate potential vapor
impacts to the school. Investigating
contamination is an iterative process, in which you expand and refocus your efforts
as new data becomes available. Once vapors were found in the soils under the
school, air in the school was immediately sampled and actions were taken to
decrease those levels to ensure they were below the health-based standards.
·
Soil vapor intrusion is an emerging issue and WI
DNR and DHS are requiring more investigations
Wisconsin is one of a growing number of states that now
recognize the potential threats associated with vapors from contaminated soil
or groundwater, and as such more frequently requires soil vapor monitoring at
sites where the nature of the contamination is of concern (especially when
there are nearby residences or other occupied buildings). In the past, this pathway was not often investigated
and people were unknowingly left exposed to contamination. In fact, New York State has re-assessed
contamination sites that were closed without investigating the vapor pathway,
with very interesting results (see http://www.dec.ny.gov/regulations/51715.html).
So with that I say we’re fortunate because you also have to
consider the following:
·
Given the nature of the chemicals and the
standard drycleaning practices that were used in the 1960’s, 1970’s, 1980’s and
even into the 1990’s, almost all drycleaners operating in that timeframe have
some level of contamination. This means
there are hundreds if not thousands of drycleaners throughout the state – many
closed and abandoned – where contaminants are likely to be found.
·
While there is a program in WI to address
contamination from those drycleaners who like the Klinke’s voluntarily investigated
their sites, the fund is a reimbursement fund and a long wait-list exists for
those paybacks.
·
There is currently no federal or state program
to identify where historic drycleaning facilities have operated and
systematically assess the risks from those facilities (including soil vapor
risks).
The ultimate responsibility for cleaning up contaminated
properties in WI is the party which caused the contamination and/ or the
landowner. In many cases, the current
land owner may not have even been aware that the property once housed a
drycleaning facility and the party causing the contamination is long gone. Many landowners lack the resources to conduct
lengthy investigations and there are inadequate funds at the state, county or
city level for investigating or addressing abandoned facilities.
I am concerned that no one taking a systematic approach to identify
which of the known contaminated sites throughout the county are adjacent to
schools, daycare centers or residences nor is there adequate funding for a
systematic approach to assessing the potential impacts of soil vapors from
those sites.
So yes, this is a bad situation at the high school, but it
could be so much worse. My thanks to
the Klinke’s for working cooperatively with the DNR and collaborating with the
school to take action to prevent the vapors from getting into the school. I am confident that they will continue with
that cooperation throughout the entire investigation and cleanup process at
their site. Lastly, I note that for those who wish to understand more about contamination from drycleaning sites, the States Coalition for the Remediation of Drycleaners has a document titled “A Citizens Guide to Drycleaner Cleanup”, which can be downloaded from this site http://drycleancoalition.org/pubs.cfm.
Note: from 1997 –
2004, I was the DNR Dry Cleaner Environmental Response Team Leader, writing the
rules for the program, staffing the Governor’s Council for the Dry Cleaner
Environmental Response program and representing WI on the States Coalition for
the Remediation of Drycleaners.
