The U.S. Department of Energy, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and the new York State Department of Environmental Conservation have finalized the Record of Decision (ROD) for Brookhaven's Sewage Treatment plant.
The ROD agreement allows the Laboratory to move forward with the specified cleanup remedies for the Lab's sewage treatment plant area. This agreement follows extensive community involvement by the Department and the Laboratory since 1994 to obtain input on the recommended cleanup approaches.
The ROD also contains a responsiveness Summary, which documents community comments on the cleanup plan, the Department's responses to those comments, and changes made as a result of them.
Selected Remedies
Sand filter beds, and sludge-drying beds: This portion of the
cleanup involves excavation and off-site disposal of radiologically and
chemically contaminated sand and soil. Follow-up sampling will be
conducted to ensure that cleanup goals have been met.
Sewer lines: These retired sewer lines contain sludge contaminated with chemicals and radionuclides. The sewer lines were previously capped at both ends, eliminating any potential exposure for Brookhaven workers or the public. This segment of the cleanup involves removing any remaining sludge through ten manholes along the sewer lines. Institutional controls will be put in place to ensure any future construction in the area will not disturb these sewer lines.
Eastern off-site tritium plume / groundwater monitoring: Groundwater containing low levels of tritium and a chemical solvent will naturally degrade and decay. This process will be monitored to assure public safety. The highest levels of tritium in this area, sampled in 2000, were one-tenth of the drinking water standard. The chemical solvent was found at levels from two to four times the drinking water standard. Area homes and businesses were offered connection to public water in 1997 to prevent the potential for future exposure.
Imhoff tank: The ROD also adopts as a "final action" the 1995 cleanup of this tank, used to process solid sewage waste. Contaminated sludge was removed, treated, and disposed of off site. The remaining concrete structure was demolished, backfilled with clean soil, and capped with concrete.
Next steps
The next step in the process is the detailed planning and design of the
remedies. Once this design phase is complete, the cleanup will proceed
under the guidance of the Department of Energy, and with oversight by the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency and the New York State Department of
Environmental Conservation.
More information
The ROD is available for review at Longwood Public Library,
Mastics-Moriches-Shirley Library, the BNL Research Library, and the EPA Region
II Library. It is also on-line at http://www.bnl.gov/erd/docs.