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History of the Site
W. R. Grace
bought the 260 acres of land now comprising the superfund site in 1954. The Grace facility produced materials used
to make concrete, latex products, and paper and plastic battery separators. Liquid wastes from the manufacturing process were
disposed of in several lagoons, while solid wastes were buried in industrial landfill and other disposal areas.
Beginning
in 1973, residents in South Acton filed complaints about occasional odors and irritants in the air around the W. R. Grace
plant. In 1978, the Town of Acton sampled two wells, Assabet I & II, and found that they were contaminated with Volatile
Organic Compounds (VOCs), benzene and vinyl chloride, and inorganics, including arsenic, iron, and manganese; the two wells
were temporarily closed. As part of an agreement and settlement between W. R. Grace and the town, the Acton Water District
installed air strippers to remove any volatile organic compounds present in water pumped from Assabet I, II, and
a few additional wells because groundwater was contaminated. The soils in the disposal areas, which contained VOCs and arsenic, had undergone
thermal treatment and solidification by 1997. Over 170,000 cubic yards of contaminated materials were properly removed. In
addition, a human health and ecological risk assessment study completed in 2005 determined how best to remediate contaminated
sediments in the Sinking Pond. The plan is directed at reducing unacceptable risk levels for groundwater and surface water
to acceptable surface levels.
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Current Status
In 2006,
the EPA and W. R. Grace negotiated a settlement known as a Remedial Design/Remedial Action Statement of Work. The agreement
was worth about $18 million, and requires W. R. Grace to implement and fund numerous clean up actions. After the design phase
is completed in 2010, the action phase will begin. This will include upgrading to a new groundwater extraction, treatment,
and discharge system (to be operational in 2011), which will pump 200 gallons per minute. Treatment will involve air stripping,
activated carbon, and inorganics removal. The treated discharge will be released into Sinking Pond. W. R. Grace is also responsible
for protecting against future exposures to any wastes left on-Site. There is currently no proof that contaminated groundwater
has led to additional incidents of cancer. W. R. Grace is now bankrupt.
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