vvEPA
United States
Environmental Protection
Agency
Come visit us
The EPA continues to keep the
community informed and aware of
work happening at the Ten-Mile Drain
site. Ahead of the sampling activities
this spring, the EPA employees will
hold two informational sessions at
St. Clair Shores Public Library on
March 31, 2011. Representatives
from the Agency will be available to
answer residents' questions one-on-
one from 10 a.m. to noon and from
5 to 7 p.m. No formal presentation
will be given. The EPA will also
continue to keep you informed
through additional updates like this
one.
Contacts
For more information or if you have
questions or want to comment on the
Ten-Mile Drain investigation you can
contact these team members:
Megan McSeveney
EPA Community Involvement
Coordinator
Superfund Division
800-621 -8431, ext. 61972
mcseveney.megan@epa.gov
Colleen Moynihan
EPA Remedial Project Manager
Superfund Division
800-621-8431, ext. 38196
moynihan. colleen@epa.gov
Autumn Lawson
State Project Manager
Specialized Sampling Unit/
Superfund Section/Michigan
Department of Environmental Quality
517-241-2120
lawsona@michigan.gov
Sampling Project Planned
To Find PCB Source
Ten-Mile Drain Superfund Site
St. Clair Shores, Michigan
March 2011
The U. S. Environmental Protection Agency in collaboration with state,
county and local officials is planning an investigation this spring that will
look for the source of chronic PCB contamination in the Ten-Mile Drain.
The EPA and its contractors will be sampling in the utility corridors (water,
gas, sanitary sewers) that intersect the Ten-Mile drain near the Bon Brae
and Harper intersection. Sampling will provide the EPA information about
where the source may be located, confirm whether PCBs are moving along
the utility corridors and help determine how the PCBs are entering the
drain system. PCBs are short for poly chlorinated biphenyls, a group of
synthetic chemical compounds that stay a long time in the environment and
potentially cause cancer and other health problems.
Sampling begins the week of April 11 weather permitting and will continue
for five weeks. The EPA will not be sampling any residences during this
phase of the source investigation. However, you will likely see crews
wearing protective gear on the streets and possibly in front of your homes
along the street right-of-ways. Crews will be using hand drills to locate the
utility lines and then marking them up to a week before the actual sampling
begins.
Workers will collect up to 50 soil borings targeting the underground
utility corridors. The first soil boring will be installed near the Bon Brae
and Harper intersection and other samples will be collected near that
intersection along Harper and Bon Brae. Sampling locations may be
adjusted or added based on the results provided to the EPA by the on-site
mobile laboratory. Having the EPA mobile lab on the scene will provide for
a quick turnaround time of less than 24 hours for many results. That will
allow the Agency and its contractors to make quick decisions in the field to
speed up the identification of the potential PCB source.
Residents may see crews using a hydraulically powered geoprobe to take
samples. Residents will have a chance to see photos of the different types
of equipment being used and speak with officials at the open house.
The sampling team plans to work Monday through Friday from about 8
a.m. to 5 p.m. During the first week of sampling, the EPA staff will be
knocking on doors and giving residents notice and information about the
project. The EPA will hold an open-house style meeting to give residents
an opportunity to talk about the site (see left-hand box P. 1).
Removal activities and maintenance
Monitoring data collected behind the "weirs" or small dams demonstrates
PCB oil and contaminated sediment (mud) continues to infiltrate into the
Ten-Mile Drain storm sewer system. In February, the EPA removed PCB
oil from the drain. Six of the 17 weirs were cleaned with snares, absorbent
material resembling pompoms that were lowered into the drain. One
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The geoprobe or soil probing equipment will be used to collect a
continuous 2-inch-wide soil core sample from the surface to the
bottom of the utility corridor.
55-gallon drum was used to collect the snares and PCB
oil, which was taken to a licensed PCB-disposal facility.
In addition, snares were attached to weighted chains and
left in front of these six weirs, allowing incoming oil to
collect on them and support future sample collection and
maintenance by the EPA.
Currently, the EPA is working on a plan to periodically
remove and properly dispose of the PCB oil and affected
sediment that has accumulated behind the weirs, install
absorbent material to further inhibit the movement of
the contamination, and continue to monitor the level
of contamination caught in the weirs. This short-term
approach will manage the current pollution within the
Ten-Mile Drain while the EPA continues through the
remedial process and a final long-term cleanup plan is
selected. The EPA will bring a proposed cleanup plan to
the public later this year and let people comment on it.
About the Ten-Mile Drain site
In September 2010, the Ten-Mile Drain site was placed
on the National Priorities List. The NPL is a roster of the
nation's hazardous waste sites eligible for investigation
and cleanup under the EPA's Superfund program.
The site is located near the intersection of Bon Brae
Street and Harper Avenue in St. Clair Shores, Macomb
County, Michigan. It includes a portion of the Ten-
Mile drain storm sewer system, which consists of the
concrete sewer pipes and soil surrounding the pipes in
an underground storm utility corridor. PCB pollution has
moved and contaminated the sediment in and around the
drain, and is present in two local canals where the drain
system discharges.
Frequently asked health questions
Why are the workers wearing protective gear?
Am I at risk?
It is unlikely that you would be at risk from the same
type of possible exposure as workers. You may notice
crews using special gear such as body suits, gloves, and
breathing masks while taking samples during this latest
investigation. Workers whose job requires them to work
in close contact with possible contaminants are required
to wear personal protective equipment. Everyone's
protection is very important to the EPA. Each cleanup
site has to have a specific health and safety plan to
protect the safety of both workers and residents.
Will I be exposed to PCBs during the EPA's sampling
event?
The workers will be taking subsurface samples in the
underground utility corridors. The depth of these samples
will be about 8 to 15 feet below the surface so it is very
unlikely residents or passersby will be exposed. Workers
will take a 2-inch diameter core of soil, leaving behind
a small hole. The workers will then refill the hole with
clean soil. As another safety precaution, waste soil that is
not put into a sample container or used to refill the hole
will be removed from the sampling site.
Want updates?
EPA continually updates the mailing list to get
information out to residents. If you are not on the
mailing list and want to be, contact the EPA Community
Involvement Coordinator Megan McSeveney (see
front-page box). Interested people can also learn
about the situation by reading official documents that
can be reviewed at the repositories listed on the back
page or visit the website www.epa.gov/region5/sites/
tenmiledrain.
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Form a CAG?
Another option available to people seeking more
information about the Ten-Mile Drain site would be to
form a Community Advisory Group. A CAG provides a
setting in which community members can get up-to-date
information about the status of cleanup activities as well
as discuss their views and concerns about the cleanup
progress with the EPA, state regulatory agencies and
other officials. A CAG is also a public forum in which
all affected and interested parties can have a voice and
actively participate in the process. If a group of residents
is interested in forming a CAG, contact the EPA's Megan
McSeveney for more information. You can also visit the
EPA's CAG website at www.epa.gov/superfund/tools/
cag/index.htm.
About RGBs
PCBs or polychlorinated biphenyls are a group of
chemicals originally used in industrial processes and
products such as coolants and lubricants.
In 1977 PCB production was banned in the United
States, but PCB mixtures remain in old electrical
equipment and other items. There is also substantial
PCB contamination of landfills and rivers.
PCBs can pose potential health risks through eating
contaminated food, soil or water, through direct
contact, or through breathing PCB-contaminated air or
particles. The EPA considers PCBs as possible cancer-
causing chemicals.
EPA will bring its mobile laboratory to the Ten-Mile Drain sampling project. The lab is fully equipped and will provide quick results
on soil samples, sometimes in less than 24 hours.
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Ten-Mile Drain Superfund Site
Sampling Project Planned to Find PCB Source
Come visit us
The EPA continues to keep the community informed and aware of work happening at the Ten-Mile Drain site.
Ahead of the sampling activities this spring, the EPA employees will hold two informational sessions at St.
Clair Shores Public Library on March 31,2011. Representatives from the Agency will be available to answer
residents' questions one-on-one from 10 a.m. to noon and from 5 to 7 p.m. No formal presentation will be
given. The EPA will also continue to keep you informed through additional updates like this one.
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