ASHEVILLE, N.C. — Wednesday, Oct. 21, is the final day for the public to weigh in on a proposed $7.6 million settlement that would repay the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for cleanup work at the CTS of Asheville Superfund Site off Mills Gap Road.
Three companies would pay under the agreement: Northrop Grumman Systems Corporation, CTS Corporation and the property owner, Mills Gap Road Associates. To comment, residents can call 404-562-8887 or write to [email protected].
The comment deadline arrives as the agency reports real progress at the site. Levels of the solvent trichloroethylene, or TCE, in vapor flowing into the Eastern Springs treatment system next door have fallen by 98 percent, and outdoor air tests found TCE far below the level considered protective. Underground water had carried the chemical from the old plant to the springs on private land nearby, where it rose to the surface, turned to vapor and raised air concerns close to homes.
With vapor levels that low, the EPA has shut down the vapor recovery system at Eastern Springs for now. Air sampling will keep going every quarter, and the equipment will stay in place in case it is needed again. Regional Administrator Kevin McOmber said keeping neighbors from being exposed to TCE has been one of the agency’s top goals at the site.
From 1959 to 1986 the plant made electronic parts for cars and hearing aids, leaving the ground polluted with TCE and fuel oil. Mills Gap Road Associates bought the 53.54-acre property in 1987 and sold 44.89 acres a decade later for a housing subdivision. The rest, about 8.65 acres, is fenced and empty; the factory building was torn down in 2011, and the site joined the National Priorities List in 2012.
Filed under: Asheville NC Health News
