Progress, delays at Wilmington cleanup site

DAPL pools is superfluous." Martha Stevenson, president of the Wilmington Environmental Restoration Committee, said, ""Olin is arguing that NDMA (a toxic chemical in the DAPL) has migrated so far into the bedrock, there is nothing we can do about it and we don’t even plan to  try." Stevenson said, We must continue to support EPA to force Olin into cleanup."Although saying, "nothing gets cleaned up to zero," DiLorenzo added, "EPA advocates the removal of the DAPL and that drinking wanter can be restored.""I expect EPA to be an advocate for Wilmington," said Selectman Kevin Caira, who had expressed concern over the results of groundwater data.Drinking water statusCurrently 20 wells are sampled quarterly to determine the presence of nitrosodimethylamine, or NDMA, a toxic and carcinogenic chemical, that was identified in 2009.DiLorenzo said the chemical is especially mobile in water. With the exception of wells on Cook Street and a couple others not tied into the public water system, most wells have a "low concentration" of NDMA, according to DiLorenzo. Because two wells on Cook Avenue show consistent presence of NDMA, Olin provides bottled water. "There are no (federal) drinking water standards for NDMA," said DiLorenzo.Suzanne Sullivan of the Wilmington Environmental Restoration Committee said California is the only state that has created a standard for NDMA in drinking water: 10 nanogram per liter. Most states use that as a guideline.More issuesNew England Transrail’s simultaneous effort to construct a regional trans-loading (trucks-to-rail) facility at the Olin site—a move the town vehemently opposes—make the situation more complex. In 2015, EPA concluded that the Surface Transportation Board, a federal entity that could OK (or not) NET’s proposal, did not need to wait to being the review process. DiLorenzo said those working on Olin Superfund project "try to be neutral" regarding specific reuse of superfund sites."Conceptually EPA wants to reuse the sites," said DiLorenzo, who acknowledged that there are cases where Superfund sites were reused before cleanup was completed. Nevertheless, DiLorenzo "continues to review NET’s proposal to ensure proposed development is ‘safe’ for future property users and won’t interfere with the cleanup." He added that other representatives from EPA would have a "loud" voice regarding the NET proposal but that it would not necessarily be that of the Superfund project managers. "We have to stay tuned in on supporting EPA on Transrail," said Stevenson. "Superfund doesn’t have jurisdiction—they can’t do much."In the airIn other business, Town Manager Jeffrey Hull accepted the blame for complaints levied by Laurel Avenue resident David Norton regarding a contractor who was tearing down a nearby house with asbestos siding. Norton reported that neighbors were not notified about the project, the house was not tented and that an asbestus "dust plume" filled the air. "Everybody knew the h... (Wicked Local Wilmington)