Corps to hold Shallow Land Disposal Area public meeting in Parks Township, PA

Published Jan. 29, 2014

WHO: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Pittsburgh District

WHAT: A meeting to inform the public of the Army Corps’ progress regarding the Parks Township Shallow Land Disposal Area clean-up project and to address questions and concerns voiced by interested parties.

WHEN: 7 pm, Wednesday, January 29, 2014

WHERE: Parks Township Volunteer Fire Department Hall, 1119 Dalmatian Drive
Vandergrift, Armstrong County, Pa. 15690

WHY: The Army Corps will be updating the public on the status of the site, the Record of Decision and the results of the recent ground water sampling.

FORMAT: The meeting format will be slightly different than past meetings. The Corps will give a presentation concerning the groundwater sampling which will be followed by a short question and answer session. After that, the Corps and our partners will have stations set up so that attendees will be able to talk one-on-one with project personnel.

BACKGROUND: The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ Pittsburgh District has been assigned to cleanup radioactive waste at the Parks Township Shallow Land Disposal Area (SLDA) site under the Formerly Utilized Sites Remedial Action Program (FUSRAP). The SLDA, encompassing 44 acres of privately owned land, is located approximately 23 miles east-northeast of Pittsburgh in Armstrong County, Pennsylvania. It is on the right bank of the Kiski River, a tributary of the Allegheny River, near the communities of Apollo and Vandergrift. Radioactive waste disposal operations were conducted between 1960 and 1970.  As part of work done under Atomic Energy Commission contracts, low-level radioactive materials were produced, primarily for fuel for nuclear powered submarines and power plants. Low-level nuclear wastes from the nearby decommissioned Apollo operation site were disposed of in a series of ten trenches comprising a total area of approximately 1.2 acres at the SLDA, placed over an area of 44 acres.  Buried radiological wastes consist of mostly uranium and some thorium associated with manufacturing by-products and from discarded protective clothing.  Non-radiological waste included pieces of equipment, building materials and trash.  Disposal operations were conducted by the firm NUMEC, Nuclear Materials and Equipment Corporation, in the early 1960’s. In 1967, ARCO purchased stock in NUMEC.  In 1971, ARCO sold the stock of NUMEC to Babcock & Wilcox which has changed to BWX Technologies.  BWX Technologies is the current owner of the Parks Township Shallow Land Disposal Area.

For media inquiries, contact the Public Affairs Office at 412-395-7500 or email: celrp-pa@usace.army.mil.


Contact
Dan Jones
412-395-7500
celrp-pa@usace.army.mil
or
Carol Davis
412-395-7500
celrp-pa@usace.army.mil

Release no. 14-016