The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Bipartisan Infrastructure Law will provide $15 million in funding for a groundwater cleanup project in Williston, Vermont.
The Vermont Department of Environmental Conservation (VTDEC), along with EPA oversight, will break ground, starting this summer, on a remedial effort to clean groundwater at the Commerce Street Plume Superfund Site in Williston. The main goal of this site is to meet VTDEC requirements for clean drinking water and focus on the cleanup of trichloroethylene (TCE) contamination.
The Superfund Site is located in an industrial park in Williston. Various manufacturing and electroplating operations occurred on the property, beginning in the 1960’s. The primary source of contamination on the site is an unlined lagoon at the property which was used to dispose of industrial rinse water and sludge waste from the industrial processes.
A 1982 investigation by the State of Vermont found that the company operating there was in violation of hazardous waste regulations for the disposal of chromium-contaminated wastes. These practices led to contaminated soil, sediment and groundwater with metals and industrial solvents. The site was added to the EPA’s Superfund National Priority List in 2005.
"Superfund cleanups can be a long road for communities. Fortunately, the influx of funding from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law is propelling these cleanups forward, especially in communities with environmental justice concerns," said EPA New England Regional Administrator David W. Cash in a press release. "This is once again a positive partnership between the federal government and the state. When partners can come together and do necessary work, local communities are the ones who reap the benefits."
The funding will come in the form of a Cooperative Agreement to VTDEC with oversight from the EPA to start the construction of the groundwater cleanup. The work is expected to be on various properties throughout the Williston community.
