Jackson Ceramix, Inc. and Ryeland Road Arsenic sites in Jefferson and Berks counties are among them
From the Environmental Protection Agency
WASHINGTON (Feb. 10, 2023) – The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced the second wave of approximately $1 billion in funding today from President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) to start new cleanup projects at 22 Superfund sites, including the Jackson Ceramix, Inc. and Ryeland Road Arsenic sites in Jefferson and Berks counties and expedite over 100 other ongoing cleanups across the country.
Related:
EPA puts $1 billion toward Superfund site cleanup
There are thousands of contaminated sites across the country due to hazardous waste being dumped, left out in the open, or otherwise improperly managed. Superfund cleanups help transform and repurpose contaminated properties into residences, retail and office space warehouses, solar power generation, and more. In addition, these sites can support natural areas, parks, and recreation facilities, providing greenspace and safe places for families to play outside.
The Jackson Ceramix, Inc. Superfund Site, located in Falls Creek, Jefferson County, is a former china manufacturing facility that operated until 1985. Historical operations resulted in primarily lead contamination in soils, sediments, surface water, and a nearby wetland. New BIL investments will be used to clean up the Site and will include repairing the existing soil cover, thermal treatment, and removal of contaminated soils and sediments.
“We are very excited to be moving forward with the cleanup of the Jackson Ceramix Superfund site. We feel that once this project is completed it will open up this property for economic development in our community, providing a facility that will offer jobs for our extended community, and an increased tax base for our Borough,” said Chuck Case, Borough Manager, Falls Creek, Pa.
The Ryeland Road Arsenic Superfund Site, located in Heidelberg Township, formerly housed facilities that made pesticides, fungicides, paints, and varnishes, and disposed of waste. Past operations contaminated soil and groundwater with arsenic, lead, and other chemicals. New federal dollars will be used to further the cleanup efforts, which will include removing soil contamination.
The $1 billion investment announced today is the second wave of funding from the $3.5 billion allocated for Superfund cleanup work. With the first wave of funding announced in December 2021, EPA deployed more than $1 billion for cleanup activities at more than 100 sites across the country. Thanks to this historic funding, EPA started 81 new cleanup projects in 2022, including projects at 44 sites previously on the backlog. By starting four times as many construction projects as the year before, EPA is aggressively bringing more sites across the country closer to finishing cleanup.
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