Havertown Superfund

Havertown PCP Superfund site
Geography
Township	Haverford Township
County	Delaware County
State	Pennsylvania
Information
CERCLIS ID	PAD002338010
Contaminants	PCP, arsenic, dioxins, VOCs, and petroleum hydrocarbons
Progress
Proposed	12/30/1982
Listed	09/08/1983
Superfund sites

Havertown Superfund refers to the polluted groundwater site in Havertown, Pennsylvania. While its designation as a Superfund cleanup site did not occur until the early 1990s, the site's environmental hazards had been identified as early as 1973.

History

In 1947, Natural Wood Preservers established a wood treatment plant at the intersection of Eagle Road and West Hillcrest Avenue in Havertown, Pennsylvania. During its operation in the treatment of the wood, hazardous chemicals (including oil, dioxins, and pentachlorophenol) were created as waste products. Natural Wood Preservers disposed of these waste products, untreated, into an on-site well. These chemicals fed directly into Naylor's Run Creek and eventually into the Delaware River, for which the creek is a tributary.

This disposal of hazardous waste continued for a minimum of several decades during the company's ownership of the site, which ended in 1991. During the company's 44-year ownership, both local and federal government bodies attempted to force Natural Wood Preservers to stop their dumping and clean up the existing pollution.

Governmental intervention

In 1973, State authorities started legal procedures to require Natural Wood Preservers and other surrounding private companies to clean up the wastes that contaminated the area. This litigation ended seven years later in a ruling that Natural Wood Preservers was required to clean the site.

In 1976, amidst the continuing litigation, the Environmental Protection Agency took emergency action at the site by drilling wells and pumping pentachlorophenol to the surface for treatment. During this time, the owners were uncooperative with the EPA which led to its addition to the National Priorities List for clean up.

In 1987, the EPA installed a fence to restrict access to the site and sponge-like barriers to restrict the wastes from entering Naylor's Run Creek.

In 1991, Natural Wood Preservers no longer retained ownership of the site. The responsibility of cleaning up the site was given to state and federal agencies.

Clean-up

The EPA estimates that, in 1992 alone, 97,000 tons of liquids, 55 gallons of solids and 60 tons of sludge, all contaminated by hazardous wastes, were removed from the site. The cleaning continued with the removal of dozens of contaminated containers and the demolition of the wood treatment building.

The cleanup is ongoing, with the major installation of a synthetic cap to isolate much of the contaminated soil in 1996. The most recent advancements occurred in 2006 when the EPA installed additional extraction wells on the site.

See also

• List of Superfund sites in Pennsylvania