NEWBURGH – The environmental remediation of the DuPont-Stauffer state Superfund site at 750 South Street in Newburgh is going to begin within the next few months, the state Department of Environmental Conservation announced. A record of decision was prepared by the DEC back in 2006 identified remediation goals of elimination or reduction of exposure to the surface and subsurface waste and contaminated soils and other identified waste fill types in the landfill areas; elimination or reduction of the potential for exposure to on-site soil vapor and groundwater; and elimination or reduction of the potential for degradation to Gidneytown Creek due to runoff from the site.
The site is on the State Registry of Inactive Hazardous Waste Disposal Sites and as a Class 2 site, represents a significant threat to public health or the environment.
DuPont purchased the property in 1911 and used nitrocellulose to coat fabrics there until the late 1950s or early 1960s when vinyl replaced it as a coating agent. Coated fabric was used primarily in the manufacture of car seats and interiors.
Stauffer Chemical purchased the property from DuPont in 1967 and continued production of coated fabrics and also produced polyvinyl chloride (PVC) sheeting until January 1979, when operations were shut down. DEC said records indicate that Stauffer stopped on-site disposal activities in 1974.
Materials found at the site include ash/cinder/soil material mixed with other inert debris including glass, wood and brick; hardened PVC sheeting, fabrics, construction and demolition debris, fabrics, and small amounts of scrap metal; paste/putty-like material mixed with fabrics; and other materials.
Stauffer Management Company, Bayer Crop Science, Inc.; and E.I. DuPont de Nemours and Company intend to begin construction at the site as early as this summer with most of the cleanup to be accomplished in 2013 with final restoration in the spring 2014.
The site is zoned for light industrial/commercial use and the owner intends to use it for limited commercial or industrial purposes.
