Contact: Kate Reilly, Special Assistant to the Mayor
978-620-3013/ kreilly@cityoflawrence.com
Up to $2 Million of Asbestos Removal Work Approved by EPA for Merrimac Paper Site
October 8, 2014, Lawrence, MA - Mayor Dan Rivera, with Congresswoman Niki Tsongas and Curt Spalding, Region I Administrator for the Environmental Protection Agency, today announced the signed Removal Action by the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) that approves up to $2 million of asbestos removal work to be performed on the Merrimac Paper Company site, located at 7-19 South Canal Street in Lawrence, at a press conference earlier this morning. The purpose of the Removal Action is to address the asbestos-containing materials (ACM) in debris piles, in the soil, and in several buildings at the site, that if not tackled, will continue to pose a threat to human health and the environment.
Asbestos removal contractors have been selected by the EPA and a site walk-through is currently underway, with the work to commence this week. It is expected that this first critical step, in what everyone anticipates to be a major clean-up effort, will be completed by the end of the year.
I am thrilled and thankful that the EPA is utilizing these key resources to step in and make our community safer, said Mayor Rivera. This site has been neglected for far too long, and although we have a long way to go to fully clean it up and hold folks accountable, this is a critical step in the right direction.
The Merrimac Paper Fire Site has been a decade-long problem for the City of Lawrence, but through the hard work of Mayor Rivera and partnerships across all levels of government, the potential at this site will soon be realized, said Congresswoman Niki Tsongas. The approval of the plan to remediate and renovate the area will provide significant health and environmental relief. I look forward to continuing to work with Mayor Rivera, the City of Lawrence and the EPA to ensure the process moves forward in a swift, effective manner, both for the sake of efficient redevelopment and increased public health. This is just another example of how Lawrence is turning a corner and highlights the potential that exists here.
After a major 5-alarm fire in January, Mayor Rivera reached out to the EPA, seeking environmental safety measures on the site due to what he learned were serious threats of friable asbestos. After a preliminary investigation by the EPA conducted in April, the Region I Administrators team concurred with these concerns and, in June, sent a request to the Washington bureau to take action. On August 21, official approval was given to Region I by the Emergency Response and Removal Section of the EPA. Copies of the approved Removal Action are available upon request.
"EPA is pleased that funding is available for our trained experts to safely remove asbestos from the Merrimac Paper site," said Curt Spalding, Region I Administrator for the Environmental Protection Agency. "This funding will allow us take necessary actions to address immediate hazards posing potential risks to members of the community."
The EPA will be taking initial steps to secure the safety of the area, including stabilizing or dismantling areas of the Site that are structurally unsafe. EPA staff and contractors will be removing the ACM and bringing in clean material to backfill any opened areas. Residents in the area may notice increased truck traffic as well as EPA staff and contractors dressed in protective clothing due to their direct contact with the contaminated materials.
The EPA will continue to work closely with Mayor Rivera and Congresswoman Tsongas, along with the MA Department of Environmental Protection and the Attorney Generals Office, who have also been closely involved with the monitoring, detection and enforcement at the site, to ensure clear communication on the status of the action.