915 Cleveland Avenue Brownfield Cleanup Program Site
Fact Sheet - February 2009
Report on Environmental Investigation and Cleanup Activities Available for Review
A 10,000 gallon underground storage tank is removed
from the 915 Cleveland Avenue Site
Introduction
The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC) requests public comment on a report, called the Remedial Investigation / Remedial Alternative (RI/RA) Report, on environmental investigation and cleanup activities at the 915 Cleveland Avenue site (the Site) in Niagara Falls. The Site is a portion of an area that is being redeveloped as the Niagara Falls Municipal Complex. Cleanup work on the site was conducted by LCS Inc. under New York State's Brownfield Cleanup Program (BCP). The goal of the BCP is to enhance private-sector cleanup of brownfields. Brownfields typically are former industrial properties where redevelopment or reuse may be complicated by the presence or potential presence of contamination.
Public Comments on the RI / RA Report
Excavated area at the rear of the 915 Cleveland Ave Site
LCS Inc. submitted the draft RI / RA report to the NYSDEC. It is available for public review at the locations listed at the end of this fact sheet, as well as the NYSDEC Region 9 Remediation Project Information website. NYSDEC will accept public comments on the report for 45 days, from February 19 to April 6, 2009. Comments may be submitted to the NYSDEC project manager at the address provided in this fact sheet.
Site Background
The Site is located south of Cleveland Avenue and east of Main Street in a predominantly commercial and residential area of Niagara Falls, New York. It is located 0.2 miles from the Niagara River. The Site has been used for commercial purposes, including an auto repair/service facility and dry cleaning facilities. Previous releases of dry cleaning agents and petroleum have impacted the Site.
Description of Investigation and Cleanup Activities
Previous investigations indicated that the Site's soil and groundwater were impacted with volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and metals from previous site operations. The RI / RA Report documents the environmental investigation and cleanup work completed at the Site as of November 2008. Investigation activities detailed in the report included:
- Conducting a magnetometer survey to detect the presence of underground storage tanks (USTs);
- Installing groundwater monitoring wells;
- Sampling, analyzing, and evaluating soil and groundwater; and
- Completing a site survey for environmental easement purposes. An environmental easement is a legal tool that places restrictions on how a property may be reused so that public health is protected.
Four underground storage tanks removed in January 2008
The 2008 investigation confirmed that contaminants of concern at the Site consisted of solvent-based VOCs, petroleum compounds, and to a lesser extent, heavy metals. These contaminants were present in subsurface soil and groundwater.
In order to expedite construction activities on the larger Municipal Complex property, LCS completed soil and underground tank removals in 2007 and 2008 as an Interim Remedial Measure (IRM). An IRM is a cleanup action that may be conducted without extensive investigation in order to address an obvious environmental problem and reduce risk to public health and the environment. The IRM measures, discussed in the RI / RA Report, included:
- Excavating and on-site staging of non-impacted surface soil;
- Excavating solvent- and metals-impacted soil;
- Removing and properly disposing four USTs;
- Sampling the sidewalls and bottom of the excavation to ensure that contaminant concentrations were at or below standards protective of public health and the environment;
- Transporting and disposing impacted soils at a registered waste disposal facility;
- Placing non-impacted soils and gravel in the excavation areas; and
- Installing a sub-slab soil vapor venting system within the Municipal Complex building to address any residual VOC contamination that may remain trapped in the soil or rock on site.
For more information about the investigation and cleanup activities, visit the locations or website listed below to view the full RI / RA report.
What Is the Next Step?
Since the RI / RA report concludes that the IRM successfully addressed contamination at the site and that additional cleanup work is not necessary, NYSDEC will accept public comment on the report until April 6, 2009. After the comment period concludes and NYSDEC approves the final RA / RA Report, a final engineering report will be completed to document the IRM activities. NYSDEC will notify the public about future site developments through fact sheets similar to this one.
Contacts for Questions About the Site
Project related questions:
Rick Kennedy
Hodgson Russ, LLP
140 Pearl Street, Suite 100
Buffalo, NY 14202
(716) 848-1407
Environment related questions:
Jeffrey Konsella
NYSDEC
270 Michigan Avenue
Buffalo, NY 14203
(716) 851-7220
derweb@gw.dec.state.ny.us
Health related questions:
Nathan Freeman
NYSDOH
547 River Street
Troy, NY 12180
(518) 402-7870
ntf01@health.state.ny.us
Locations to View Public Documents
Public understanding and involvement are important to the success of New York Brownfields programs. To keep you informed, the NYSDEC has established the following locations where you can view project documents:
Niagara Falls Public Library
1425 Main Street
Niagara Falls, NY 14305
Phone: 716-286-4911
Library Hours:
Monday/Wednesday - 9 a.m.- 9 p.m.
Thursday/Saturday - 9 a.m.- 5 p.m.
NYSDEC's Buffalo Office
270 Michigan Avenue
Buffalo, N.Y. 14203
(716) 851-7220
(please call for appointment)
You may also view project documents at the Region 9 Environmental Remediation Project Information page. Look for the 915 Cleveland Avenue entry under the Niagara County heading.
