(Updated) EPA Provides Final Written Approval on Middle School Remediation Plan

The federal Environmental Protection Agency made a verbal promise in January to approve a remediation plan that would address critical PCB remediation needs and still save nearly $8 million, but when the town prepared to go to bid on April 1, officials found themselves waiting for that final written approval from EPA officials in Boston.

They will wait no longer.

The EPA on Thursday provided final approval of plans to keep exterior vapor walls in tact and the approval provided suggests the $89.725 million project approved by referendum in March can now finally go out to bid, be it two weeks later than originally planned.

In a letter to Southington Town Attorney Mark Sciota, EPA Region 1 PCB Coordinator Kimberly Tisa said that the Southington Public Schools proposal meets the criteria for an alternative sampling plan and the schools may proceed with the project.

“Based on the data to date and the proposed cleanup and removal plans, the alternative sampling, plans for both Schools appear reasonable for purposes of determining if the PCB cleanup standard has been met. EPA finds that the alternative sampling will not create an unreasonable risk of injury to public health or the environment and EPA may approve the alternative verification sampling.”

“EPA also has determined that temporary in-place storage for disposal of the vapor barrier/mastic will not present an unreasonable risk of injury to public health or the environment given its location. EPA may approve the temporary storage for disposal of the vapor barrier/mastic.”

The move comes as good news for the town and members of the Middle School Building Committee, who have fought to keep the project alive and on schedule since November, when members learned it would cost more than $9 million to remediate the schools of PCB and as much as $17 million if the EPA had not approved the alternative plan.

As part of the alternative plan approved, the town will be responsible for conducting periodic testing to assure that the PCBs do not cause any air contamination, said Jim Twichell, an environmental expert with Hygenix, Inc.

“With the wall an exterior one, we don’t anticipate and problems,” he told members of the Middle School Building Committee.

Officials said Thursday evening that although awaiting approval put the town slightly behind schedule, they now have the documentation needed to move forward in going to bid and selecting a contractor and are still on pace to begin work on June 22, the day after schools close for the summer.

For more on the approval, see the PDF provided above.

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