PA Environment Digest Blog: DEP To Host Sept. 12 Public Meeting On Bishop Tube Hazardous Site Cleanup Plan In Chester County

Thursday, August 31, 2023

DEP To Host Sept. 12 Public Meeting On Bishop Tube Hazardous Site Cleanup Plan In Chester County

On August 31, the Department of Environmental Protection announced it will hold an in-person public meeting on September 12 to discuss the Bishop Tube Hazardous Site Cleanup Plan for the site located in East Whiteland Township, Chester County.

The meeting will be held between 6:30 and 8:30 p.m. in the auditorium of the General Wayne Elementary School located at 20 Devon Road, Malvern, PA 19355.

The DEP will present its remediation plan and a panel of experts will answer the public’s questions.

In September 2022, DEP filed a remediation plan that addresses Trichloroethene (TCE), its breakdown products, per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), certain heavy metals, and other contaminants in soil, groundwater and surface water.

The plan also provided for a public water connection to a private homeowner in June 2023.

The site will be remediated in accordance with the Act 2 Land Recycling Program, which aims to return contaminated properties back to productive use while preserving farmland and other natural resources.

DEP selected a combination of on-site chemical injections, soil mixing, engineering practices, institutional controls, and long-term monitoring to address the soil, groundwater, and surface water contamination.

The injection of chemical reducing agents creates a chemical reaction that destroys harmful contaminants and produces harmless byproducts.

These remedial response actions will be conducted in place, without having to excavate soil or pump out groundwater for aboveground cleanup.

Several industrial businesses manufactured stainless steel tubes at the 13.7-acre Bishop Tube HSCA site from the 1950s to 1999.

TCE is considered the primary site-related contaminant of concern because its concentrations within soil, groundwater, and surface water are generally higher than other chlorinated solvents at the site and it poses the most substantial threat to human health and the environment.

TCE is a commercial-grade solvent that was commonly used as a degreasing agent for manufactured metal parts. Besides being a known carcinogen, prolonged exposure to TCE can result in serious neurological, cardiac, reproductive, and developmental health problems.

For more information, visit DEP’s Bishop Tube Site webpage.

The Hazardous Sites Cleanup Act was signed into law in 1988 to provide DEP the funding and authority to address hazardous substances and contaminants in the environment.

To date, the program has conducted nearly 900 actions in communities across Pennsylvania, cleaning up groundwater, capping or removing contaminated soil, and ensuring thousands of people have access to safe drinking water.

For more information on the program, visit DEP’s Hazardous Sites Cleanup Program webpage.

For more information on environmental programs in Pennsylvania, visit DEP’s website, Click Here to sign up for DEP’s newsletter, sign up for DEP Connects events, sign up for DEP’s eNotice, visit DEP’s Blog, Like DEP on Facebook, Follow DEP on Twitter and visit DEP’s YouTube Channel.