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Clean Up Work Begins at ECC Corporation Site in Holden, Mass.

Release Date: 03/01/2007
Contact Information: David Deegan - 617-918-1017

(Boston, Mass. – March 1, 2007) - EPA and the Massachusetts Dept. of Environmental Protection (Mass DEP) began cleanup this week of the ECC Corporation Site located at 156 Princeton Street in Holden, Mass. The site includes a two-story brick and cinder block manufacturing building located on an approximately 17-acre property.

ECC Corporation conducted electroplating operations at the site, including manufacturing of printed circuit boards, beginning in the 1950s. The facility has been inactive and unoccupied since shutting down in 2005.

“EPA and Mass DEP are working jointly to clean up this site, to quickly and safely address concerns for nearby residents and the town’s drinking water,” said Robert W. Varney, regional administrator for EPA’s New England office. “The close coordination by both agencies will result in a comprehensive approach to cleaning up this former electroplating facility.”

“The partnership between Mass DEP and EPA will ensure that the contaminants at this site are properly contained and then removed before they can impact sensitive resources,” said Mass DEP Acting Commissioner Arleen O’Donnell. “Addressing the issues at this site is important to the Town of Holden. Once cleaned up, the site would offer a lot of potential for future brownfields redevelopment.”

Joint investigations conducted by EPA and Mass DEP at the facility revealed tanks, drums and other containers, primarily in the wastewater treatment area and the laboratory. These contain chemical products such as cyanides, acids, bases and metal solutions that were used in the electroplating process and also chemicals that were used in the treatment of wastewater generated during the manufacturing process. Approximately 7,000 gallons of such hazardous substances are present in the facility.

Over the next several weeks, EPA will take steps to secure the site, dispose of the drums and containers of chemicals, and pump out and clean the storage tanks; before transporting the materials off site for disposal at an approved facility. Follow-up activities by EPA and Mass DEP will include sampling of soils, surface water and/or ground water at the site to determine whether hazardous substances have been released from the facility. While this work is ongoing, the public is reminded not to trespass on the site or attempt to enter the building.

More information: Clean up of the ECC site (www.epaosc.net/ECC)

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