NS wastewater facility to begin operations this week

More sentinel wells planned in East Palestine; deadline for cleaning program extended

EAST PALESTINE -- The wastewater facility built by Norfolk Southern (NS) to reduce the amount of hazardous waste shipped from the site of February's train derailment will begin operations this week.

Tricia Edwards, an on-scene coordinator with the Region 5 Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) said a test-run of the facility has been completed and treatment of wastewater generated will begin sometime this week.

Reports of construction on the temporary water treatment plant were confirmed by the EPA in May and explained that on-site treatment of derailment wastewater would "make it non-hazardous so that it could be potentially disposed of at more facilities and removed from the site more safely and efficiently." The agency added that on-site water management would also "reduce water trucks and storage tanks, consolidating water management into one primary area and reducing truck traffic."

Once treated the water, while still considered waste, will no longer be deemed hazardous and rendered to "drinking water standards."

To accomplish that, the facility utilizes a sophisticated process designed to remove vinyl chloride and other derailment contaminants from rainwater that has come into contact with contamination. The system uses several steps -- including sedimentation, filtration, oil-water separation, air stripping and activated carbon -- to remove suspended solids and particles, oils, volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and other remaining site contaminants. Treated wastewater samples are collected to verify the system is working as planned. The treated wastewater is then stored in large tanks and tested to verify the vinyl chloride is below the drinking water standard. Norfolk Southern will identify off-site non-hazardous disposal facilities to accept the treated wastewater.

Currently derailment wastewater is being held in two million-gallon tanks built on North Pleasant Drive until it can be shipped off site to facilities approved by the EPA to accept and treat toxic water. That itself has been an odyssey of sorts, as some facilities have refused to accept it. In March, Baltimore's Clean Harbors announced it would not treat contaminated wastewater from the derailment because of concern raised by city leaders. Baltimore council members unanimously adopted a resolution to urge the EPA to reverse the plan to bring the water to the city. In May, it was reported that Clean Harbors would treat the water but it would be shipped back to the company's Cleveland facility for disposal.

It wasn't the first time other states refused to take waste from the derailment. In March, Michigan, Oklahoma and Texas were among several states who had refused to accept contaminated soil from East Palestine. The states relented only when EPA Federal administrator Michael Regan called blocking any shipment from East Palestine under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act (CERCLA), commonly known as Superfund.

As for disposal of the treated water from the NS wastewater treatment plant, the village itself is considering taking at least some of it. East Palestine Water Superintendent Scott Wolfe made a proposal at the last village council meeting that would allow it to be piped into the East Palestine wastewater plant via a series of pumps and a hard tap-in to the village's sanitary lines by Norfolk Southern. The village government acknowledged it is seriously considering the option with a post on the village's informational Facebook page. The statement read that under the guidance of the state and federal EPA, council is considering the proposal in which the village would be paid to "accept this treated water into the village's sanitary sewer system." If the village moves forward, the wastewater would be treated twice -- first at the NS facility and then again at the municipal plant -- before being released during the regular discharge process.

In other derailment news, the EPA also announced via its latest newsletter that additional monitoring wells will be installed in East Palestine in the coming weeks.

In July, the EPA said there was a possibility more wells would be built and reported that depths of both 20 and 70 feet were being considered. There are currently 15 sentinel wells already in place around the derailment site and the five to monitor municipal wells. The EPA called the wells "the first line of defense" in protecting area drinking water. Sentinel wells are wells established between the edge of a plume and possible receptors like private and municipal drinking wells that may be adversely affected by the release to ensure that there will be time for other remedial actions to be taken if needed. The sentinel wells in East Palestine are sampled and tested weekly.

The EPA newsletter did not specify how deep the new wells will be but said the wells "are capable of sampling groundwater at different depths to look for contaminants that could have migrated to groundwater."

The EPA also announced that the deadline to sign up for the structure cleaning program, which was rolled out in August to address concerns about dust generated by the cleanup work within the 1- by 2-mile initial evacuation zone, has been extended to Sept. 14. Interested residents are encouraged to call the EPA Welcome Center line at 330-775-6517. The protocol for the structure cleaning program, which is directed by the EPA, funded by Norfolk Southern and conducted by Norfolk Southern contractors, was authored and prepared by CTEH and those plans approved by the EPA.

While the EPA reports that many residents have taken advantage of the program, others have voiced frustrations over what the program doesn't clean or clean for. The process involves no testing and is not intended to remove hazardous material but rather intended to "clean for particular matter" -- dust and other particles that may have entered homes or indoor structures due to the clean-up and remediation work. Cleaning includes a top-down approach, starting from the top floor and working down, addressing habitable spaces. Workers wet-wipe accessible horizontal hard surfaces, wet mop hard floors, vacuum floors, carpets and appropriate soft surfaces, and dry dust appropriate vertical surfaces. Cleaning teams will not move appliances, and cleaning under furniture and appliances will be done using a long-ranged cleaning tool. Cleaning teams will not open cabinets, drawers or private spaces for cleaning. Cleaning does not include washing clothing, blankets or other personally worn items or the exterior of structures. Per the recommendations of health agencies, duct cleaning is not necessary and will not be part of the cleaning under this program.

On Thursday, it was also announced that the cleaning will now involve cleaning carpets and upholstered furniture but will not include mattresses. The cleaning will be conducted in only inhabited areas of the home. Basement and attic cleaning are not included but will be considered on a per-property basis as a provision in the work plan does allow for "special circumstances."

selverd@mojonews.com