PA DEP to Do Environmental Clean-up of Former Pottstown Plating Facility

The state Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) is scheduled to perform an environmental cleanup on the grounds of the former Pottstown Plating facility in Pottstown, to remove hazardous materials lingering on the site, according to a DEP press release.

From 1950 to 2009 Pottstown Plating ran an electroplating facility at 215 South Washington Street, and eventually became bankrupt.

The DEP inspected the plant in 2009, after which contractors removed hazardous waste. Due to lack of funding, Pottstown Plating halted the clean-up activities in 2010. The DEP issued an order to continue the clean-up efforts but nothing has been done.

“This facility is unsecured and in disrepair. At our most recent inspection, we found clear evidence of trespassing,” said DEP Southeast Regional Director Cosmo Servidio. “DEP will remove the remaining hazardous material before any chemical release can occur.”

The DEP clean-up action will commence in late September, and is scheduled to last for several months.  Afterward, the department will then hold a public hearing.

There are drums, tanks and totes of heavy metals, and cyanides and sodium hydroxide remain, as well ashydrochloric acid onsite. A July 30 air monitoring did not find any release into the athmosphere.

DEP’s work at the Pottstown Plating site occurs under the authority of the Hazardous Sites Cleanup Act (HSCA), which is a 1988 law authorizing DEP to clean up of hazardous waste sites and obtain the costs accrued from the parties that are responsible.

For further information, visit www.dep.state.pa.us or call 484-250-5900.