Contact Information: EPA Press Office, press@epa.gov

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), in collaboration with the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD), published a draft of the first EPA-validated laboratory analytical method to test for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in eight different environmental media, including wastewater, surface water, groundwater, and soils. This method provides certainty and consistency and advances PFAS monitoring that is essential to protecting public health.

“This new testing method advances the science and our understanding of PFAS in the environment, so we can better protect people from exposure,” said EPA Administrator Michael S. Regan. “This illustrates the progress we can make when working with federal partners in an all of government approach. I want to thank the Department of Defense for its leadership on this issue and for working with us to achieve this important milestone.”

A partnership between EPA and the Department of Defense’s Strategic Environmental Research and Development Program has produced draft Method 1633, a single-laboratory validated method to test for 40 PFAS compounds in wastewater, surface water, groundwater, soil, biosolids, sediment, landfill leachate, and fish tissue. Until now, regulated entities and environmental laboratories relied upon modified EPA methods or in-house laboratory standard operating procedures to analyze PFAS in these settings. With the support of the agency’s Council on PFAS, EPA and DoD will continue to collaborate to complete a multi-laboratory validation study of the method in 2022.

“This is one of many examples of strong EPA – DoD Collaboration on issues of national importance. Currently the Department is working with EPA, other federal agencies, academic institutions, and industry on over 130 PFAS-related research efforts, and we expect further progress in the future,” said Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Environment and Energy Resilience Richard Kidd.

This draft method can be used in various applications, including National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permits. The method will support NPDES implementation by providing a consistent PFAS method that has been tested in a wide variety of wastewaters and contains all the required quality control procedures for a Clean Water Act (CWA) method. While the method is not nationally required for CWA compliance monitoring until EPA has promulgated it through rulemaking, it is recommended now for use in individual permits.

Draft Method 1633 complements existing validated methods to test for PFAS in drinking water and non-potable water.

For more information on CWA Analytical Methods for PFAS, visit:

https://www.epa.gov/cwa-methods/cwa-analytical-methods-and-polyfluorinated-alkyl-substances-pfas.

For Frequent Questions about PFAS Methods for NPDES Permits, visit:
https://www.epa.gov/cwa-methods/frequent-questions-about-pfas-methods-npdes-permits. 

Background:
Draft Method 1633 complements existing Safe Drinking Water Act methods to test for 29 PFAS compounds in drinking water and a Resource Conservation and Recovery Act method for 24 PFAS compounds in non-potable water.

EPA publishes laboratory analytical methods (test procedures) that are used by industries, municipalities, researchers, regulatory authorities and other stakeholders to analyze the chemical, physical, and biological components of wastewater and other environmental samples. EPA regularly publishes methods for CWA compliance monitoring on its CWA Methods website. Doing so does not impose any national requirements to use the method. Only after EPA promulgates a CWA analytical method through rulemaking (at 40 CFR Part 136) does it become nationally required for use in NPDES permit applications and permits.

The work the agency is doing to provide new laboratory analytical methods reflects the work that the EPA Council on PFAS is undertaking to support federal, state, local, and Tribal efforts to protect all communities from the harmful impacts of PFAS contamination.

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Posted September 14, 2021

By Chris Martin, New England Real Estate Journal

The East Providence Waterfront Commission approved an ambitious development plan that will reclaim a brownfield, provide new housing including much needed affordable units as well as vital public access to the Seekonk River.

In Rumford along the Seekonk River and Omega Pond lies what will be East Point—a 27-acre site that will breathe new life into three long-dormant parcels. This site was last home to Ocean State Steel, which left the property in environmental ruins in 1994. The parcels have since been remediated, but what remained was a derelict eyesore on what some call one of the most beautiful stretches along the Seekonk River.

The development team behind East Point is Noble Development, led by Richard Baccari from Churchill and Banks and rounded out by Northeast Engineers on civil design, Union Studios on architectural design and Kevin Alverson on Landscape design. East Point will add 392 single and multi-family units in addition to apartments to the housing stock in East Providence.

…

For the entire article, see

https://nerej.com/ocean-state-steel-s-brownfield-site-to-be-redeveloped-into-east-point-by-chris-martin

By Ashley Onyon, Amsterdam Recorder (NY)

The couple that holds a purchase option agreement for the former Nathan’s Waste and Paper Stock Co. on the South Side has submitted a Brownfield Cleanup Program application to the state Department of Environmental Conservation.

The Common Council in April approved a six-month purchase option agreement for 111 Erie Terrace with Mary and Michael Keegan of Schenectady. The contract provides the husband and wife the exclusive right to purchase the property for $250 by exercising their option.

The deal was sought by city officials and the Keegans to provide the couple time to investigate the environmental condition of the brownfield site. The roughly two acre property was operated as Nathan’s Waste and Paper Stock, a junkyard, from 1971 to 1993. A pair of partially collapsed buildings currently stand at the site that has remained vacant since the closure of the junkyard.

…

For the entire article, see

https://www.recordernews.com/news/local-news/191926

Posted August 5, 2021

Buffalo News (NY)

Mensch Capital Partners, the private group that has owned the Westwood Country Club property in Amherst for the past decade, is ready to start work on an environmental cleanup of the former golf course.

The state Department of Environmental Conservation is seeking public comment on a proposal that Mensch submitted under the Brownfield Cleanup Program. Previous investigations found metals in the soil, so the purpose of the new study is to determine the type and extent of any contamination in the soil, surface water or ground water of the 170-acre site.

Work will include installing and sampling soil borings, test pits and groundwater wells; testing surface water and sediments; and completing a radiation survey to see if anything is producing higher radiation levels.

…

For the entire article, see

https://buffalonews.com/business/local/brownfield-cleanup-study-proposed-for-westwood-golf-course/article_1f3bc146-eb01-11eb-a4b7-4f500c7f3a40.html

Posted August 1, 2021

We talked about PFAS during the 2021 NSCW Hot Topics Panel and will try to keep updated data on the BCONE website for our members who are interested.

ITRC’s PFAS Team is pleased to announce the release of the updated PFAS-1 Technical and Regulatory Guidance Document. This update includes a brand new section on Surface Water Quality and significant revisions for Ecological Risk Assessment. Other sections of the document have also been selected for additional content, including information in Chemistry and Terminology, Best Management Practices for Firefighting Foams, Phase Partitioning, PFAS Uptake into Plants, Ecological Toxicology, and Site Characterization.

ACCESS THE UPDATED GUIDANCE DOCUMENT

The 400+ page document also includes case studies and stakeholder perspectives, discusses technical challenges in addressing PFAS, and provides additional references to relevant scientific literature. The ITRC PFAS team is continuing their work to develop more extensive updates and new content that will be published later this year.

Posted July 20, 2021

By Katie Blackley, WESA Public Radio (Pittsburgh, PA)

An “industrial wasteland.” That’s how Pittsburgh’s riverfronts were once described. More than 30 years ago, city officials and developers tried to imagine a greener, healthier future for the land along the Monongahela, Allegheny and Ohio rivers.

In many ways, they’ve succeeded — today, the Three Rivers Heritage trail spans 33 miles, with multiple planned extensions. The trails attract cyclists, runners and families, and are home to thousands of native plants and animals.

But the road to creating a clean, nature getaway from the city’s bustling urban communities was hard.

…

For the entire story, see

https://www.wesa.fm/development-transportation/2021-07-13/brownfields-to-green-destinations-the-history-of-pittsburghs-riverfront-trails

Posted July 19, 2021

Redevelopment project received $500,000 through Better Buffalo Fund

Niagara Frontier Publications (NY)

Gov. Andrew Cuomo on Thursday announced completion of a $7 million project to redevelop a brownfield into affordable housing and retail space in a revitalizing part of north Buffalo. Supported by the Better Buffalo Fund and located in the heart of the Hertel Avenue Business District, the five-story mixed-use building includes ground-floor retail space, residential apartments on the upper floors, and underground parking.

"Our efforts to build back a better New York depend on projects that bring new opportunity to residents and businesses alike," Cuomo said. "This project, like many others supported through targeted investments from the Better Buffalo Fund, is helping to transform a once-vacant site into a vibrant mixed-use space that will bring new vitality to an area of the city that is on the rise."

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For the entire release, see

https://www.wnypapers.com/news/article/current/2021/07/08/147285/completion-of-7-million-mixed-use-development-in-buffalo

Posted July 12, 2021

By Vincent Gallo, Northern New York Newspapers

The St. Regis Mohawk Tribe is moving forward with its Brownfield program after a brief hiatus, in order to focus on the demolition of abandoned homes and structures located on tribal land.

The program is picking up once more, after halting production in 2019. Several Tribal programs at the time, collaborated to tear down and remove three of 25 total structures in the community that were deemed unsafe. One was located at Raquette Point while the other two were on Route 37.

The Tribe had planned to resume work last year, before the COVID-19 pandemic. Efforts have since resumed and the Tribe has removed two additional abandoned homes, officials said.

“The Brownfield program was put on hold in March 2020, due to the pandemic when most Tribal staff were furloughed,” SRMT Director of Communications Brendan White said Friday. “Only very limited essential service staff continued working. The Tribe slowly recalled workers with most returning between June and September.”

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For the entire article, see

https://www.nny360.com/news/stlawrencecounty/st-regis-mohawk-tribe-resumes-brownfield-demolition-initiative-after-halt-through-pandemic/article_7e5ee565-67db-52c1-bd93-86d54e844c45.html

Posted June 29, 2021

Rhode Island energy officials say a program that encourages solar developers to build on contaminated properties has been 'very successful.’ 

By Mary Serreze, Richmond Patch (RI) 

The state's Office of Energy Resources (OER) announced today that it is renewing its incentive program to encourage solar developers to build their arrays on brownfields. 

Brownfields are former industrial or commercial sites where future use is affected by environmental contamination. Such locations can be ideal for renewable energy projects, the OER said in a news release. The agency has committed an additional $1 million in state Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) proceeds to the program, adding to the $2 million allocated between 2019 and 2020. 

"Accelerating our state's adoption of clean energy resources through the utilization of previously-disturbed sites is vital to achieving our greenhouse gas emissions reduction mandates while preserving Rhode Island's natural environment," stated Energy Commissioner Nicholas S. Ucci. 

Ucci declared that the state's program to expand solar arrays on brownfields was "very successful in its first two years." He said the program helps the state reduce carbon emissions, creates jobs, and helps cities and towns make good use of contaminated properties. 

…

For the entire article, see

https://patch.com/rhode-island/richmond-ri/state-touts-incentives-build-solar-farms-brownfields

Posted June 14, 2021

by Stephen T. Watson, Buffalo News (NY)

For a century, critics say, the Tonawanda Coke plant released toxins that spread into the air and water throughout the surrounding neighborhoods.

It should take just 15 seconds to bring down the plant’s most visible features – three towering smokestacks – in a controlled implosion shortly after sunrise Saturday. 

It’ll come as a milestone in the transformation of the sprawling brownfield site.

“Our state was built on these industries. And they are perfectly suited for the industry of tomorrow,” said developer Jon M. Williams as he drove a Buffalo News reporter and photographer on a recent tour of the property. “You’ve got water. You’ve got power. You’ve got transportation. And you’ve got scale.”

…

For the entire article, see

https://buffalonews.com/news/local/demolition-of-smokestacks-a-milestone-in-tonawanda-coke-cleanup-but-much-more-work-to-be/article_96a9d8ca-c014-11eb-a8af-7786b2daed77.html

Posted June 10, 2021