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Public Meeting Concerning the Nuclear Metals Superfund Site in Concord, Mass.

Release Date: 05/08/2008
Contact Information: Paula Ballentine, (617) 918-1027

(Boston, Mass. – May 08, 2008) – On Thursday May 15, EPA will hold an informational meeting at 7 PM in the Harvey Wheeler Community Center, 1276 Main Street, Concord, MA to discuss EPA’s proposal for addressing contaminated facility buildings located at the Nuclear Metals Superfund Site (also known as the Starmet Site). EPA is proposing to demolish the facility buildings in order to prevent the release of hazardous substances, such as depleted uranium and beryllium. As part of the meeting, EPA will explain how the public can submit comments to EPA regarding the proposed demolition as well as other options considered by EPA to address the contaminated buildings.

EPA’s proposal to demolish the facility buildings at the Site is based on an Engineering Evaluation/Cost Analysis (EE/CA) study, which found contamination on the buildings’ rooftops, interior walls, and floors, and on machinery and heavy equipment located inside the buildings. A summary of EPA’s proposal is found in an EPA Fact Sheet, issued on May 2, 2008.

While Starmet, the current owner of the Site, is licensed by the Mass. Dept. of Public Health’s Radiation Control Program to possess radioactive materials, it no longer manufactures products with radioactive materials. Starmet manufactured depleted uranium tipped munitions for the U.S. Army at the Site from the 1970s until 1999.

The Nuclear Metals Inc. site, located at 2222 Main Street in Concord, MA, was added to the Superfund National Priority List in June 2001. The EPA list is made up of the country’s most serious hazardous waste sites identified for possible long-term cleanup.

EPA is currently performing a “time-critical removal action” at the Site to remove containers of flammable and hazardous substances from the facility buildings that present a risk of fire or explosion. EPA is also currently overseeing performance of a Remedial Investigation/Feasibility Study at the Site, which will evaluate the nature and extent of contamination at the Site, the risks posed by the contamination, and consider cleanup options to address any risks found at the Site.

More Information: EPA information on Starmet / Nuclear Metals, Inc. Superfund Site: https://yosemite.epa.gov/r1/npl_pad.nsf/f52fa5c31fa8f5c885256adc0050b631/7B6349F1A22FFDF3852569E5006CA840?OpenDocument