United States	Region 5
Environmental Protection 77 W. Jackson Blvd.
Agency	Chicago, Illinois 60604
Illinois, Indiana,
Michigan, Minnesota,
Ohio, Wisconsin
&EPA
For more information
To learn more about Vc may's
cleanup activities, you may review
site documents at the Yellow
Springs Community Library
located at 415 Xenia Ave. in Yellow
Springs, Ohio.
For additional information, please visit
EPA's Web site at www.epa.gov/
region5/sites/vernay or contact:
Bri Bill
Community Involvement Coordinator
Office of Public Affairs
EPA
77 W. Jackson Blvd. (P-19J)
Chicago, IL 60604
(312)353-6646
(800) 621-8431 Ext. 36646
bill.briana@epa.gov
Trish Polston
Project Coordinator
Waste, Pesticides and Toxics Division
EPA
77 W. Jackson Blvd. (DW-8J)
Chicago, IL 60604
(312)886-8093
(800) 621-8431 Ext. 68093
polston patricia@epa.gov
Cleanup Study Begins
Work part of legal agreement with EPA
Vernay Laboratories Inc.
Yellow Springs, Ohio	June 2003
In September 2002, Vernay Laboratories Inc. signed a legal agreement with
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Hie agreement requires Vernay to
study and clean up contamination on and around the facility in Yellow Springs,
Ohio. EPA calls this process "corrective action."
Federal law requires that facilities begin corrective action any time there is a
suspected release of chemicals into the environment as a result of past
activities. This law is known as the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act
or RCRA. Corrective action removes contaminants from the environment,
contains them or reduces their potential hazard to people and the environment.
As part of the agreement with EPA,
Vernay will study the type, amount and
location of chemicals in the property's
soil and area ground water. Ground
water is the water that has collected
underground in the spaces between dirt
and rocks.
Vernay will also research the best option
for removing or containing the contami-
nants. The steps through the corrective
action process are on the timeline on
page 2. In addition, Vernay agreed to
perform the following activities:
•	Maintain site files at the library for
the public to review*
•	Communicate with EPA often to
ensure work is performed
successfully;
•	Meet with EPA at least twice a year to discuss site activities;
•	Provide a final report to document all the work performed, including a
plan for any ongoing site monitoring or maintenance, if necessary; and
•	Provide EPA written reports quarterly that summarize work performed,
data collected, problems encountered and project schedule.
This summary explains the activities that Vernay has performed to date. It
also provides information on how you can stay updated about the work.
different depths below the surface.

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November 2002
Winter 2002 - 2003
Phase one of the
RCRA facility
investigation to
study site ground
water, soil and
sediment
Timeline of Vernay's corrective action activities
Following are dates for key activities Vernay agreed to conduct as part of the legal agreement with EPA.
Completed activities are noted with a ^.
Submit a current conditions report, which describes the property and any known
contamination. S
Begin a quarterly ground water monitoring program to collect and test samples of
water from area monitoring wells. S
Review data collected about the ground water — called a capture zone analysis — and
decide where to install another pumping well to slow movement of contaminated
ground water. S
Begin researching the option of treating contaminated soil in place without having to
dig it up and move it off site. S
Install a second ground water pumping well on the property. S
Submit first quarterly report about the types and amounts of chemicals found in
ground water samples. S Vernay will submit quarterly reports about the ground water
during the entire corrective action process.
Begin treating contaminated soils in place (if Vernay and EPA decide this is the best
option for cleaning the soil).
Install more wells on and off the property to study the ground water and the water in
the sewer that collects runoff water from storms.
Submit a report — called a ground water monitoring technical memorandum — that
sums up results from the quarterly ground water testing program.
Submit the phase one facility investigation report, which describes all the results from
testing the ground water and storm sewer water. The report will help EPA and Vernay
decide if more wells are needed to study ground water farther away from the site.
Begin a study of contamination in ground water deeper under the site, if necessary.
This would be done as part of a phase two RCRA facility investigation.
Submit the environmental indicator report for human health to show Vernay has
removed health risks to people.
Submit the phase two facility investigation report, providing details about the extent of
all site contamination.
Submit the environmental indicator report for ground water, which shows
contaminated ground water has stopped moving away from the site.
Propose an option for cleaning up any remaining contamination on the property and in
the ground water. This is called the final corrective measures proposal.
June 2003
June 2004
April 2003
February 2003
December 2003
September 2003
Phase two of the
RCRA facility
investigation
Summer 2005
December 2004
Winter 2004 - 2005
~
EPA holds a comment period and public meeting for the
public to comment on cleanup options.
Vernay begins cleanup.
2

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Vernay prepares initial site report
Vernay prepared and submitted an
initial report to EPA in November
2002. The document, called a current
conditions report, describes the facility
and the surrounding area. It also
provides information about soil and
ground water contamination gathered
from previous site studies and tests,
including data that EPA collected
during a study of the site in 2001.
Soil
During its study of the site, EPA
found contaminants in soil next to and
beneath many of the facility's
buildings and structures. Many of the
contaminants found were volatile
organic compounds (chemicals that
evaporate easily in air) and types of
petroleum products.
Based on the amounts of contami-
nants in the soil samples, EPA
identified possible source areas where
chemicals could have leaked into the
ground in the past. Some no longer
exist. Know ing the location of
possible source areas helps Vernay
and EPA identify possible problem
areas to investigate. These areas
include:
« Sewer lines and floor drains that
collected waste liquids from
Vernay's operations;
•	A former storage area for drums
of chemical waste;
•	Areas where Vernay is thought to
have used chemicals to control
dust and weeds in the 1950s and
1960s;
•	Loading docks where Vernay
stored wastes;
« A basin used to collect water
from rain storms;
•	A former system beneath the
facility used to collect sail i tan
waste;
Vernay's contractors install a second pumping well on the property to pump ground
water to the surface for treatment to remove contaminants.
A system of pipes used to
transport oil to and from machines
on the property;
Fill material left on the property
after a road construction project;
An area where Vernay cleaned
metal parts with chemicals;
The former location of two tanks
used to store chemicals; and
A storage area for empty
chemical drums.
3

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Location of ground water wells and contamination
Second Pumping Well Installed In 01/03
Vernay Laboratories Property Line
Tetrachloroethylene Plume
1,2-Dichloropropane Plume
Trichloroethylene Plume
PARKING
LOT
Direction of Ground Water Flow
Ground water
During the past studies, ground water
samples were taken from 31
monitoring wells on the property and
seven wells in the surrounding area.
The results showed that water
flowing underneath the eastern side of
the property is contaminated with
volatile organic compounds. The
main types of chemicals found
include:
•	Tetrachlorethylene, also known as
PCE;
•	Trichlorethylene, known as TCE;
and
•	1,2-Dichloropropane, or 1,2-DCP
for short.
PCE and TCE are commonly used to
remove grease from metal parts. 1,2-
DCP was used in pesticides many
years ago.
The map above shows three areas
where most of the chemicals have
been found in the ground water.
These contaminated areas are called
plumes.
Although the levels of chemicals in
the water would make it unsafe for
drinking, the Village of Yellow Springs
pumps its drinking water from a
location several miles south of the
contaminated area.
Legend
• Monitoring Well
O Pumping Well
] Building
In the next mailing...
In a future mailing, EPA will
provide more information about
ground water contamination
and what Vernay will do to
slow the spread of the plumes.
EPA will also describe in more
detail phase one of the RCRA
facility investigation, now
underway.
4

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Vernay's contractors complete installation of the pumping
well, above, and dig a trench (to the right). After the ground
water is pumped to the surface, it will flow through pipes in
the trench to the treatment system that will remove the
contaminants.

Mailing list updates
To add a friend to the Vernay site mailing list or update your contact information, please fill out the information
below and return it to Bri Bi ll, EPA community involvement coordinator, at the address on page 1. You may also
e-mail any updates to bill.briana@epa.gov.
Name
Address
City.
State.
Zip Code
Please add me to the mailing list j j
Please update my contact information j	|
Please remove me from the mailing list
~
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About the Vernay Site
The Vernay site covers approximately ten acres and is located at 875 Dayton St. in the northwest
portion of Yellow Springs in Greene County, Ohio. Since 1951, Vernay has used two plants on
the property to make molded rubber parts for use in cars, appliances and medical equipment.
Contamination was first found in soil and ground water at the site in 1989. Between 1989 and
1998, Vernay received several violations from the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency about
its storage of chemicals on the site. Vernay began efforts to collect and treat contaminated ground
water in 1994. After additional contamination was found in 1998, Vernay began conducting
additional activities to study and clean up the site. In 2002, U. S. Environmental Protection
Agency and Vernay signed a legal agreement requiring Vernay to study and cleanup contamination
on and around the facility.
This mailer summarizes the work to be done, provides a timeline of activities, shows where
contamination has been found in ground water and suggests ways to learn more.
SERA
Office of Public Affairs (P-19J)
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Region 5
77 W. Jackson Blvd.
Chicago, IL 60604
Vernay Laboratories Site: Cleanup Study Begins

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