EPA Revises Contaminant Standard for Champion Site

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has modified the cleanup regulations in place at the former Champion Spark Plug factory in Hellertown, according to a document posted on the Hellertown Borough website and a story published in the Express-Times July 2.

The factory is located at 1770 Main St. (Route 412), at the far northern end of the borough.

Spark plugs were manufactured there from the early 1930s until 1982, and Champion has been a federal Superfund site since 1987, according to .

Groundwater and soil in the area was contaminated by chemicals that were disposed of in lagoons.

Environmental remediation began in 1991, according to the Express-Times story, and progress has been slow since then, as is typical at Superfund sites.

The revised contaminant standards announced by the EPA are more realisitc and in line with the state's established maximum contaminant levels for drinking water, although they are not expected to affect the scope or method of the cleanup, the article indicates.

Active onsite remediation at the Champion site is expected to continue until at least 2016, according to the EPA, and full remediation is not expected in the near future, according to EPA spokesman Roy Seneca, who was interviewed for the story.

last year focused on and included discussions about the future of three vacant landmark properties, including the privately-owned Champion site, and an old chromium factory on Front Street.

Documents related to the EPA's revised contaminant standard for the Champion site can be viewed at , 685 Main St., during regular business hours (Monday through Friday, 8am to 4:30pm).