submitted by EPA
As part of its on-going work in Hoosick Falls, NY, in May 2016, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) sampled soil at a number of residential properties near the Saint-Gobain McCaffrey Street facility to determine if soil in the area has been impacted by past operations at the facility. [private]Soil samples were also collected from the swampy, wooded area southeast of the McCaffrey Street facility, and the football field and picnic area at the end of Waterworks Road.
Based on an assessment of data collected to date, PFOA levels found in soil do not necessitate any additional sampling or cleanup work in any of the areas sampled at this time. The levels of PFOA and related compounds from the May 2016 sampling are similar to those detected by EPA at the Waterworks Road ball fields and park and the Hoosick Falls Athletic Field, which were also found to be well below the EPA’s site-specific action level for PFOA in soil.
Based on the data, EPA:
• Does not plan any further actions at either the residential properties or the other areas sampled, including the swampy, wooded area southeast of the McCaffrey Street facility, or the football field and picnic area at the end of Waterworks Road;
• Does not see a need for any closure or restriction of the football field or picnic area, which were thoroughly sampled;
• Does not see a need for any restrictions to be placed on the normal use of the residential properties. Therefore, additional investigation of the soil is not needed in any of the areas sampled at this time; and
• Considers the soil at the football field and the residential properties to be acceptable for recreational and everyday use.
Soil Sampling Results Levels of PFOA and the related compound perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) ranged from non-detect to 0.0277 parts per million (ppm) combined, as compared with the EPA’s site-specific action level of 1 ppm for the combined level of PFOA and PFOS in soil. This site-specific action level for soil was developed to be consistent with the Agency’s assessment of the latest peer-reviewed science on health effects for PFOA which was used to establish the recently-issued lifetime drinking water health advisory of 70 parts per trillion (ppt).
Many of the contaminants that EPA looked for were not detected, and others were found at levels well below EPA action levels. Two naturally-occurring metals, cobalt and manganese, were found at three residential properties at elevated levels below 12 inches. The cobalt and manganese do not appear to be related to the facility and EPA does not believe they present a health concern.
Soil sample results for the swampy area southeast of the McCaffrey Street facility and the football field and picnic area at the end of Waterworks Road are available on EPA’s Hoosick Falls webpage, accessible through the Village of Hoosick Falls web site.The results from EPA’s previous soil sampling events are also posted on the same webpage. The results of the residential sampling are being provided directly to the property owners.
Soil samples were collected from 21 locations at 14 residential properties and two other parcels on Carey Avenue between Waterworks Road and the west end of Carey Avenue. EPA also sampled soil from five locations south of the facility, and eight locations on the football field and picnic area at the end of Waterworks Road. Most samples were 3-12 inches below the ground surface but some sampled a deeper location also.
Soil samples were analyzed for a wide range of contaminants including PFOA and related chemicals, as well as volatile and semi-volatile organic compounds, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and metals.[/private]