"Tests of wells were wrong on benzene"

By Christopher Ruvo, Intelligencer, August 20, 2010:

The state DEP said the tests mistakenly showed increased the levels of the chemical. A second round of testing showed acceptable levels in the water.
Laboratory tests by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection appear to have shown a false level of benzene present in water wells in Plumstead following a June 29 fire at an industrial building, officials said Thursday.

Upon discovering the tests artificially increased levels of benzene in wells suspected of contamination, another round of testing was ordered, showing that most wells have an acceptable level of the chemical compound.

Whether wells were ever contaminated with benzene or whether the pollution is dispersing from the wells - and possibly infiltrating others elsewhere - is still not certain. DEP couldn't say Thursday.

Results are not back on nine of the 30 wells that have been sampled.

But DEP Spokeswoman Deborah Fries said the verdict is in on 21 wells and none of those have benzene levels above the drinking water standard of 5 parts per billion.

"The most important thing to make a point of is that benzene in these wells should not be a concern," said Fries. She noted, however, that the two ponds near the fire-destroyed building were contaminated with benzene.

The benzene news came as environmental officials also announced that an owner of the fire-destroyed building at 5189 Stump Road has not complied with an order to drain two contaminated ponds near the fire site and submit a plan for removing sediment and cleaning up potentially polluted soil.

DEP has hired Tetra Tech, a company with headquarters in Pasadena, Calif., to investigate the fire site and clean up any contaminants in the ponds and soil.

Some Plumstead residents, who have criticized officials for what they say was a slow response to the contamination scare, were suspicious of DEP's benzene findings and anxious for answers about what's going on with water in their township.

"I find it very fishy," said . . . a Stump Road resident. "It's odd because they're supposed to be the experts."

. . . [Another resident] whose water has tested positive for antimony and benzene, said DEP's explanation about benzene is "concerning."

"My feeling is something is really wrong with my water as a direct result of the fire. Anyone who disagrees with that can come over and have a drink and tell me what they think," . . . [he] said.

Fries said DEP is still waiting for test results that will give a full picture of what pollutants might be in the wells. She said more revealing test results could be available as early as today.

A natural part of crude oil, gas and cigarette smoke, benzene has been linked to leukemia and other health problems. Antimony, which is sometimes used as a fire retardant, is a metal that can cause vomiting and diarrhea if ingested.

Residents believe their wells were contaminated by the runoff water from the firefighting effort and subsequent rains that carried chemicals from the industrial building.

DEP branded building owner Dennis K. Rice the "responsible party" for the contamination.

Fries said she believed Rice was still complying with a DEP request to supply bottled water to residents with suspected tainted water. Still, Fries said Rice has not complied with an Aug. 5 order to submit a soil/sediment clean-up plan and to drain the contaminated ponds.

"I can't speak to the legal issues, but my understanding is his lack of compliance is due to his relationship with his insurer," said Fries. "It doesn't preclude that he might be in compliance again in the future."

Still, DEP has hired Tetra Tech to remove the water from the ponds and sample the removed water and sediment from the ponds' bottoms.

Tetra Tech, whose work is being funded with taxpayer dollars via the Hazardous Sites Cleanup Act, will also take soil samples from around the ponds.

Next week, the company will monitor air quality near the fire site on Stump Road.

DEP tests have showed the suspected contamination appears to have traveled in an easterly direction. Pollutants were found a little more than a half mile from the site, officials have said.

Residents who live outside what DEP believes is the affected area can have their wells tested privately by a DEP-accredited laboratory, the state said. Officials recommended having the following tests performed in addition to bacteriological testing:

? Volatiles in drinking water, ask for Method 524.2

? Semi-volatiles in drinking water, ask for Method 525.2

? Metals in drinking water, ask for Method 200.7, 200.8 and ask specifically for any other metals of interest not listed in those test methods.

The fire that erupted June 29 at the industrial building was fought by hundreds of firefighters from Pennsylvania and New Jersey. Flare-ups continued over the course of a week, and an estimated 3 million gallons of water were used in the firefighting effort.

Officially the cause of the fire was ruled undetermined, though there were indications it began with an electrical issue.

Officials have said the building contained mainly chemicals used as food preservatives, in addition to heating oil. Antimony was occasionally stored in the building, but a DEP official has said Rice told them it had been removed five days before the fire.