I i L1brar EPA l eg1o IN JSTRIAL WASTE SURVEY MARC AL PAPER MILLS INC. SOUTH HADLEY, MASSACHUSETTS JUNE 8, 1972 ------- IND(JSTRIRL WASTE SURV MARC AL PAPER MILLS, INC. SOUTH HADLEY, MASSACHUSETTS JUNE 8, 1972 On June 8, 1972, at the request of the United States Attorney for Massachusetts, Richard Boyton, Environmental Protection Agency’s Region I, Technical Operations Section an 1 Donald Porteous, Technical Studies Section, accompanied Philip Ripper, Massachusetts Division of Water Pollution Control (MDWPC) on an unannounced visit to Marcal Paper Nili in South Hadley, Massachusetts. The basic purpose of the visit was to sample Marcal effluent and its effect on Stony Brook for possible en- forcement action under the 1699 Refuse Act. (see figure 1 and table I) Marcal Paper Mills, Inc . At approximately 0830 hours the sampling crew met with Larry Messier, plant manager. Mr. Ripper informed Mr. Messier that the visit was a state function and EPA personnel were accompanying him. EPA personnel informed Mr. Messier that the sampling was for possible en- forcement action. The plant uses i o paper machine lines • Line #1 employs treat- ment of the white water waste while, at the time of sampling, line #2 had no such system in use. EPA personnel sampled the effluent from lines #1 and #2, (MPO1 and MPO2 respectively), and the combined effluent just prior to discharge to Stony Brook (NPO3). Thiring sampling the heights of flow at the company’s 60° V-notch weir was rioted as inches or approximately O.13S million gaflons per day (NGD). Stony Brook Stony Brook starts in Granby and flows through parts of Chicopee, ------- Ludlow and South Hadley before discharging to the Connecticut River. The Marcal Paper Mill in South Hadley discharges to Stony Brook about two miles above the confluence with the Connecticut River. Stony Brook was sampled above (NPOL4) and below (MPOS) this discharge. Due to the back water from the high flows in the Connecticut River, the tracer dye released at the plant did not reach the confluence during a two hour period. Sampling Procedures Sample collection and analyses were according to standard EPA procedures. The EPA chain of custody syste2n was used for identification and handling of the samples. The sampling crew made field readings for pH and temperature. The pol.ychlorinated biphenyls (PCB) sample was sealed and shipped to Bay St. Louis, Mississippi for analysis. The EPA Region I Laboratory at Needhain, Massachusetts perfoz, ed the remaining analyses. A pre-.numbered field data card was filled out for each station to record p11, temperature, weather conditions, sampling locations, and analyses to be perfon1led. Results and Conclusions The results of the sampling analyses are summarized in Table 2. The effluent from machine line #2 contained a high concentration of suspended solids (725.5 mg/i) and 5-day biochemical oxygen demand (BOD 5 ) (approximately 330 mg/i). The effluent from machine line #1, which receives treatment, contained much lower concentrations of suspended solids (1 .33 mg/i) and BOD 5 (12.5 mg/i). The combined waste flow from the two lines contained relatively high concentrations of suspended solids and BOD 5 due to the untreated discharge from machine line #2. This combined waste contained approximately 360 pounds per da -2— ------- of suspended solids and approximately 270 pounds per day of BODS. Stony Brook showed a marked increase in both suspended solids arid B0D as it passed the Narcal plant. Suspended solids discharged from a paper mill of this type include wood fibres plus miscellaneous particulate matter washed into the discharge during norma]. operation. In the brook, the suspended solids interfere with the normal light penetration and consequently photo- synthesis activity. Some of the suspended solids settle out covering the bottom with a layer of sludge affecting benthic organismsc and eliminating potential food supplies for fish. In addition the organic solids which settle out decompose causing an oxygen demand on the overlying waters. The oxygen demand of the waste indicates the potential of the waste for reducing the dissolved oxygen (Do) content of the receiving water. Adequate DO levels are necessary to support fish and other clean water organisms. POB can cause skin disease8, cancer or birth deformities by entering the food chain in unacceptable quantities. EPA suggested guidelines for stream concentration of PCB’s is 0.01 parts per billion (PPB). The undiluted combined effluent from Marcal contained 0.lS PPB of PCB t s or 15 to 1 dilution of the effluent is necessary to meet the recommended guideline. —3— ------- TABLE 1 STATION DESCRIPTION RIVER STATION MILE LATITUDE LONGITUDE STATION DESCRIPTION o P It o t MPO1 2.5 1 2 114 53 72 314 149 Effluent from paper line #1 after treatment but before combining with the effluent from line #2. MPO2 2.5 1 2 15 53 72 314 149 Effluent from paper line #2 but before combining with the effluent from line #1. MPO3 2.5 142 15 53 72 314 149 Combined effluent from lines #1 & #2 just prior to discharge to Stony Brook MP 0 1 4 2.5 142 15 514 72 314 149 Stony Brook immediately upstream of the combined discharge + . MPOS 2.5 1 2 15 52 72 314 149 Stony Brook immediately downstream of the combined discharge. ------- SAMPLE ANALYSES ABBREVIATIONS AND UNITS OF MEASURE Turbidity Dissolved Oxygen s-day biochemical oxygen demand,in- cubated at 20°C Total Solids Total Suspended solids Inorganic suspended solids Total inorganic solids Polychioririated biphenyls Letters preceding a reported value denote the following: J - estimated as, value not accurate Description Sample temperature Analyses Reported Temperature pH Turbidity DO BOD s-day Measured In Degrees centigrade (°c) Standard units (su) Jackson candle turbidity units (JTU) Milligrams per liter (mg/i) mg/i mg/i mg/i mg/i parts per billion (ppb) Total Total Fixed Total PCB Residue nonfilterable residue Nonfilterable residue fixed residue -s- ------- TABLE 2 SUMMARY OF RESULTS MkRCAL PAPER COMPANY SOUTH HADLEY, MASS. 0930 0935 0920 0950 1010 6.6 280 6.2 100. 6.6 3 6.8 6 7.1 RESIDUES (mg/i) Total Total Total Fixed Fixed Mflt. Nflt. 320 259.5 1.33 0.07 961j.l 251.1 725.5 56.2 556.2 233.3 325.L 29.5 106.5 65.2 3.8 1.0 115.0 66.9 9.1 7.6 STA. # DATE E Hrs. LAB.CODE // DEPTH Ft. TEMP. °C DO BOD 5 TURBIDITY FIELD Probe pH MPO1 MPO2 Mi’03 MPOL MPO S 72/06/08 72/06/08 72/06/08 72/06/08 72/06/08 29L 1 L O - 12.5 29L L 1 - J330 29)4 2 — J2t O 29)4 3 0.5 16.5 9.6 1.1& 29LthL 1.0 17.0 9.8 5.2 PCB 0.15 ------- MAr p L CoMp ’ So tk f-Lo4(ey, cLckQGeTt S MPO3 IM POS FiGo E i ------- |