AMERICAN
THERMOSTAT

COMPANY

NEW YORK

EPA ID# NYD002066330

Site Description

From 1954 to 1985, American Thermostat Corporation built thermostats for small appliances at this
8-acre site in South Cairo. Located in the Catskill Creek Valley, the site and much of the nearby
community are bordered by Routes 23 and 23B. The company was the only manufacturer in the vicinity,
which is a popular tourist and residential area. In 1981, the New Y ork State Department of Environmen-
tal Conservation discovered that American Thermostat employees were improperly disposing of
chemicals at the site—workers had been pouring waste organic solvents down drains attached to an
abandoned septic system for a number of years and they had been dumping solvents and sludges on the
parking lot. State health personnel tested wells in the vicinity of the site and found them to be
contaminated with trichloroethylene (TCE) and other volatile organic compounds (VOCs), including
tetrachloroethylene (PCE). The company, subsequently, installed carbon filters on its own well and on
those of four affected homes. The home located next to the plant was hooked up to the company's water
supply. The company ceased operations in 1985 and filed involuntary bankruptcy without completely
fulfilling an agreement with New York State with regard to site cleanup.

Approximately 5,000 people live within a 3-mile radius of the site in low-density residential areas. Until
a waterline was installed to protect the public from exposure to the contaminated ground water, all homes
within '/2 mile of the site used private wells. Catskill Creek, less than 1/4 mile east of the site, is
classified as a trout stream and has considerable recreational value to local and visiting fishermen.

Site Responsibility: This site is being addressed through fed-

eral actions.

NPL LISTING HISTORY

Proposed Date: 10/01/84
Final Date: 06/01/86

AMERICAN THERMOSTAT COMPANY

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Threats and Contaminants	

Ground water in the site vicinity is contaminated with VOCs, including PCE and TCE. An
estimated 26,000 square feet of soil at the site were contaminated with TCE and PCE to a
depth of approximately 30 feet. Contamination was also detected in portions of the building
located on the site. Adverse human health effects may occur from ingesting or coming into
direct contact with contaminated ground water. The extension of the waterline has

eliminated the threat of exposure to the contaminated ground water to area residents.

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Cleanup Approach 	

The site is being addressed in two stages: immediate actions and long-term remedial phases focusing
on provision of a new water supply and cleanup of the entire site.

Response Action Status 	

Immediate Actions: Under state orders, the owners agreed to clean up the site and its
surroundings; to provide, monitor, and maintain carbon filtration systems for five affected
wells; and to supply bottled water for consumption by the affected residents. However,
when the company went out of business in May 1985, it stopped providing bottled water and abandoned
the maintenance of carbon filtration systems at the affected homes. The State requested that EPA sample
other private wells near the site; provide bottled water and carbon filtration systems where necessary;
and take over the maintenance of the water treatment systems at the originally affected homes. In addi-
tion to undertaking the work requested by the State, EPA also installed three air stripping systems at the
site. A system of seven extraction and reinjection wells and a soil vacuum extraction system were
installed at the site in 1989 for the purpose of accelerating the treatment of the ground water.

In November 1998, the New York State Department of Health (NYSDOH) reported to EPA the detection of
VOC contamination in two wells servicing the Country Estates residential development, located in the
western boundary of the Town of Catskill. During sampling conducted by EPA and NY SDOH in December
1998 and lanuary 1999, VOC contamination was detected in three additional residential wells which, like the
Country Estates wells, were located outside the previous limits of the contaminated ground water plume.
EPA undertook emergency actions to provide temporary sources of clean drinking water to the affected
residents, while continuing to monitor the contamination in the affected wells. The results of this monitoring
indicate that for nearly two years, no VOC contamination has been detected in the three residential wells.
Similarly, the contamination in both Country Estates wells has met drinking water standards since
December 1999. EPA expects this trend to continue as a result of its ongoing extraction and treatment
of contaminated ground water in the area. EPA also believes that certain recent improvements to the
ground water extraction system described below have resulted in containing the spread of the ground

AMERICAN THERMOSTAT COMPANY	2	July 2002


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water contamination in the area. As a precautionary measure, however, EPA will continue to operate
the treatment systems on the previously-affected wells.

Although the treatment systems functioned effectively and the treated well water met drinking water
standards, it was discovered that, at the Country Estates, water sampled at individual residences exceeded
the standards for VOCs. It was concluded that VOC contamination persisted in the water distribution
piping, which re-contaminated the treated water. As a result, EPA investigated several mechanisms for
removing the VOC contamination from the piping. Since none of these mechanisms proved successful,
in late Fall 2000, EPA replaced the contaminated distribution system's plastic piping with new copper
piping. Following the replacement of the piping, EPA testing of the water at the taps of the Country
Estate residences has shown no VOC contamination.

Water Supply: In January 1988, following the completion of afocused feasibility study
to evaluate alternate water supplies, EPA signed a Record of Decision (ROD), selecting a
remedy that would assure a clean water supply to residents near the site. It included extend-
ing the existing Catskill water district pipeline to the affected and potentially affected areas. The
construction of the water pipeline was completed in December 1992.

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Entire Site: In 1990, following the completion of a remedial investigation and feasibility
study to determine the nature and extent of the contamination at and emanating from the site and
to evaluate remedial alternatives, a ROD was signed, selecting a remedy for the site. The
actions selected to clean up the site include decontamination of the building located on the site, low-tem-
perature treatment of the contaminated soil, and air stripping and carbon adsorption for treatment of the
contaminated ground water. The decontamination of the building was completed in December 1992, the soil
cleanup was completed in December 1996, and the construction of the ground water extraction and treatment
system was completed in August 1998. EPA has made several recent improvements to the ground water
extraction system, such as the installation of high capacity pumps in the most contaminated wells, the
deepening of two wells to intercept contamination in the middle of the ground water plume, and the
conversion of a highly contaminated injection well into an extraction well.

(Soil Remediation Complete: Ground Water Remedia-
tion Underway)

The air stripping systems that were installed as part of a removal action at the site treated more than 10
million gallons of contaminated ground water. The extension of the Catskill water district pipeline provides
potable water to the affected and potentially affected residents. The decontamination of the building resulted
in the clean up of approximately 8,000 square yards of floor and wall surface. In addition, 20 drums of
hazardous materials were removed and treated off-site. As a result of the soil cleanup, approximately 65,000
tons of contaminated soil was treated. To date, more than 115 million gallons of contaminated ground water
have been treated (approximately 1.75 tons of VOCs have been removed from the ground water). It is
estimated that approximately 40 million gallons of contaminated ground water will be treated each year for
30 years.

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Cleanup Progress

Site Repositories I 5	

Town of Catskill Office, 439 Main Street, Village of Catskill, NY 12414

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Village of Catskill Office, 422 Main Street, Village of Catskill, NY 12414

EPA Region II Superfund Records Center, 290 Broadway, 18th Floor, New York, NY 10007-1866

AMERICAN THERMOSTAT COMPANY

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