Hazardous Waste Cleanup: Berkley Products Company Incorporated in Akron, Pennsylvania
On this page:
- Cleanup Status
- Site Description
- Contaminants at this Facility
- Institutional/Engineer Controls
- Land Reuse
- Site Responsibility
Cleanup Status
The full-scale implementation of chemical oxidation via sodium persulfate injection into groundwater beneath the facility was performed in April 2018, based on the conclusions and recommendations from the 2014 pilot-scale study. The post-injection groundwater sampling event in June 2018, generally demonstrated favorable contaminant concentration reductions in injected and nearby wells. A second injection event is being planned for 2019 that should further reduce contaminant concentrations and their extent beneath and downgradient of the facility. Another groundwater sampling event is also planned for December 2018, to determine if any rebound of contaminant concentrations has occurred since the initial full-scale injection event, as well as to help plan the spatial extent and other logistics of the upcoming second injection event.
Cleanup Background
Environmental investigations at the facility began in 1989 in response to specific spills. By the early 2000s, two site-wide investigations were performed that included the installation of additional monitoring wells and the sampling and analysis of groundwater and soil gas. Based on the results from these investigations and a Health Consultation performed by the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry in 2006, vapor mitigation systems were installed in residences that could potentially be impacted by vapors emanating from contaminated groundwater that had migrated offsite beneath the homes.
In 2009, a Comprehensive Site Characterization was performed that provided remedial recommendations for the facility. Through an analysis of remedial alternatives which included stakeholder input, a remedy was chosen that includes removal of contaminated soil in several potential source areas, which was completed in 2013, and treatment of groundwater contamination via chemical oxidation on-site and bioaugmentation/bioremediation off-site.
Site Description
Interactive map of Berkley Products Company Incorporated, Akron, PA
View larger mapThe Berkley Products Inc. facility is located on 405 S. 7th Street in Akron, West Earl Township, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. Residential properties lie east and west of the facility, while residential and commercial properties lie north and south. The facility began producing custom-manufactured coatings products in 1955. In 1974, the facility started to reclaim wash solvents generated onsite and later expanded to recovery of spent solvents from offsite customers. The recovery of solvents for offsite customers reportedly ceased in 1990. Waste solvents currently generated at the facility are those primarily found in conventional paint products and include non-chlorinated volatile organic compounds (VOCs) such as toluene, xylene, and methyl isobutyl ketone. These wastes are stored onsite for less than 90 days before being transported offsite or recycled onsite.
Contaminants at this Facility
Primary contaminants at the facility include chlorinated VOCs, benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, xylenes, and total trimethylbenzenes. Groundwater, indoor air, and subsurface soil are the media that have been contaminated; however, exposures to these media have either been mitigated or shown not to be of concern.
Institutional and Engineering Controls at this Facility
As part of the final remedy, institutional controls prohibiting groundwater use and limiting land use to non-residential purposes will likely be required.
Land Reuse Information at this Facility
Berkley Products continues to use the facility to produce custom-manufactured coatings.
Site Responsibility at this Facility
Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) Corrective Action activities at this facility have been conducted under the direction of EPA Region 3.