Public Comment Invited on Ward PCB Cleanup Plan Through October 4

9/13/2007

The public is invited to comment on the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) proposed plan to cleanup Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) downstream of the Ward Transformer site. Public comments will be accepted through October 4, 2007.

"I strongly encourage citizens to review the EPA plan and comment before the October deadline" said Wake Commissioner's Chair Tony Gurley. "It's important to fully understand the long-term implications of the contamination and how the proposed cleanup plan addresses these ongoing concerns."

The EPA Proposed Plan Summary can be accessed at www.wakegov.com under Featured Topics. Hard copies of the plan are available at Lake Crabtree County Park, North Regional Library (7009 Harps Mill Road, Raleigh, N.C. 27605) and by calling the EPA Records Center at (404) 562-8946.

Wake County staff will update the Board of Commissioners on the Ward Transformer Superfund Site and the EPA's proposed plan for remediation their regular board meeting on Monday, September 17, 2007.

Ward was a transformer recycling facility that contaminated soils with PCBs, and subsequently surface water and stream sediments downstream. The contamination occurred between 1964 and 1977, and Ward Transformer was implicated in illegal roadside spraying of PCB laden waste in 1978.

The Ward site was proposed for the EPA’s Superfund National Priority List in 2002 and listed in April 2003. In December 2003, the N.C. Department of Health and Human Services issued a fish consumption advisory for Little Brier Creek and Brier Creek Reservoir because of elevated levels of PCBs in sediment and fish samples. Sampling downstream dictated that advisories also be issued for Brier Creek, Lake Crabtree, and Crabtree Creek to its confluence with the Neuse River. The Ward facility ceased operations in December 2005.

Wake County has adopted a catch-and-release-only policy for Lake Crabtree and Crabtree Creek just upstream and downstream of the lake. More information about fishing restrictions at Lake Crabtree and Brier Creek is available at www.wakegov.com/parks/lakecrabtree/fishing.htm or by calling Lake Crabtree County Park at (919) 460-3390.

State fish consumption advisories remain in effect for Brier Creek, Brier Creek Reservoir, Lake Crabtree and Crabtree Creek, from just above Lake Crabtree to its confluence with the Neuse River.

RELATED LINKS:

Download the EPA's Proposed Plan (.pdf)

Information on proposed cleanup and how to make public comments: http://www.uncsbrp.org/

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