EPA to hold hybrid public hearing on January 10 in Woodstock, Conn.
January 3, 2024
Contact Information
Mikayla Rumph (rumph.mikayla@epa.gov)
(617) 918-1016
WOODSTOCK, CONN. (Jan. 3, 2024) – The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency will be holding a hybrid public hearing on the amended Proposed Plan for the cleanup of the Linemaster Switch Corp. Superfund Site in Woodstock, Conn on January 10, 2024.
Public Hearing: January 10, 2024, 7:00 p.m. until all comments are heard.
In-person: Woodstock Middle School Cafeteria, 147B Route 169, Woodstock, CT 06281
Virtually: epa.gov/superfund/linemaster.
During the public hearing, EPA will be accepting oral comments on the preferred remedial alternative identified in the Proposed Plan. No new information will be presented at the hearing. The Proposed Plan presents EPA's proposed changes to the current (ongoing) remedy for the site.
In a 1993 Record of Decision, EPA selected a cleanup plan for the entire site. This remedy required the construction and operation of a groundwater and soil vapor extraction system within the "source area," as well as the extraction and treatment of contaminated groundwater outside the source area (i.e., downgradient areas). Despite 25 years of active site remediation, and evidence that the concentration of contaminants is declining, significant impacts to the soil and groundwater remain. As a result, EPA is proposing to amend the 1993 Record of Decision. The proposed revised remedy includes additional treatment of contaminated soil, as well as modifying the existing groundwater extraction and treatment system. The proposed amended remedy is estimated to cost approximately $11.4 million and is estimated to take approximately one to two years to design and implement.
EPA will be accepting public comments on the Proposed Plan until midnight January 12, 2024. EPA will formally respond to all comments, both written and oral, received during the comment period in a responsiveness summary which will be part of the formal record. EPA will then release its Amended Record of Decision.
More Information on the Public Comment Opportunity:
EPA's Proposed Plan for Linemaster Site, its Administrative Record File, as well as other site related documents and other technical documents related to the site, are available for review online at EPA's webpage: epa.gov/superfund/linemaster.
The Woodstock Town Hall can be used as an access point for EPA's Linemaster Switch Corp. Superfund Site webpage.
EPA's Records Center is located within EPA's regional office at 5 Post Office Square in Boston, Mass. EPA's Records Center is open Monday through Friday, 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. To make an appointment to view the records at EPA's regional office, please call at (617) 918-1440.
If you would like a copy of the Proposed Plan mailed to you, contact Charlotte Gray at gray.charlotte@epa.gov or (617) 918-1243.
Submit your comments during the 30-day public comment period on the Proposed Plan no later than midnight January 12, 2024 by mail, hand delivery/courier, or email to:
John Bryant, Remedial Project Manager
Linemaster Switch Corp. Superfund Site
U.S. EPA New England
5 Post Office Square, Suite 100
Mail Code: 7-MI
Boston, MA 02109
Email: Bryant.John@epa.gov
Phone: (617) 918-1375
The public hearing on January 10, 2024 is another opportunity for the public to comment on the proposed amended remedy. All verbal comments will be recorded and become part of the official record.
If you have questions on the comment period, please contact:
Charlotte Gray, EPA Community Involvement Coordinator, by email at Gray.Charlotte@epa.gov or by phone at (617) 918-1243.
Background
The 92-acre Linemaster Switch Corp. Superfund Site houses a former manufacturing facility in Woodstock, Conn. that produced electrical and pneumatic foot switches and wiring harnesses. As part of the manufacturing operations, several chemicals were used at the site including trichloroethene (TCE). Due to the remaining contamination from the previous manufacturing operations, the site was placed on the Superfund National Priorities List in February of 1990. A cleanup plan for the site was selected in a 1993 Record of Decision. Since then, cleanup activities have included the installation of soil and groundwater treatment systems.
More information
Linemaster Switch Corp. Superfund Site Profile Page
