Anniston residents who have not allowed Solutia Inc. to remove contaminated dirt or sample for PCBs on their properties soon may get a strong push from federal regulators.Solutia is a spinoff of Monsanto Corp., which is accused of contaminating local residents, properties and waterways with its PCBs.
Tuesday morning, Solutia Inc. began removing 15 cubic yards of PCB-contaminated dirt from a small rental property on Zinn Parkway, with permission from the owner. "I need to get it cleaned up so I can rent it," said Raymond Traylor, who owns the property but lives in Chicago. "I can't rent it if it isn't safe for kids."
A consent order signed last fall by Solutia and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency requires Solutia to remove the top three inches of soil from residential properties with elevated levels of PCBs. Now, EPA is considering enforcing as many as 16 additional PCB dirt removals in western Anniston neighborhoods.
Last year, EPA determined that the level of contamination on the residential properties - 10 parts per million - constitutes an immediate threat to human health, according to Angela Leach, community coordinator for EPA's Anniston PCB site.
As a result of continued sampling, EPA's original list of six properties with elevated PCBs grew to 11 properties, and soon will grow to 16, said Steve Spurlin, EPA's project manager for the Anniston PCB investigation.
So far, 717 Zinn Parkway is the only residential property that has been cleaned. Eleven other property owners have denied access to Solutia.
"We might literally have to take them to court," Spurlin said. He said the EPA likely will attempt to begin enforcement activities regarding some of the properties within several weeks. EPA first will address the properties where women and children live, he said.
Properties with elevated levels but without women or children in residence may be handled differently, he said.
Anniston attorney Donald Stewart, who represents some of the property owners, said his clients are willing to provide access, but only under certain conditions. He said he has discussed his clients' concerns with EPA officials. "There are some practical problems involved," he said.
For example, Stewart said, his clients are concerned about Solutia's role in the cleanup, and they want a more comprehensive cleanup. "All we are asking for are reasonable things that anybody would ask for."
"They (the clients) are the victims in this situation," he said.
Attempts to reach the property owners for comment Tuesday night were unsuccessful.
Last November, some Anniston residents protested the consent order, saying that it was unfair to the community.
David Baker, president of the citizen environmental justice group, Community Against Pollution (CAP), said Tuesday that it is unfair for EPA to force residents to allow Solutia on their properties. "They should instead be forcing Solutia to move its landfills," Baker said.
CAP will "fight with the community" on this issue, Baker said. "It's going to be a problem."
Dr. Robert Kaley, Solutia's environmental affairs director, said Solutia is confident that the PCB contamination on the properties can be fully eliminated under the consent order.
"We feel we've got a really good (removal) plan," Kaley said.
Yet, many of the property owners have refused to allow Solutia on their property, either because of their involvement in litigation against the company or because of their desire for buyouts, according to previous Anniston Star reports.
Meanwhile, numerous property owners have refused to allow Solutia to conduct additional PCB sampling on their properties, Spurlin said. Solutia's sampling effort also was required by the consent order.
He said EPA has sent out a first batch of 75 letters to property owners who refused sampling. In the letters, EPA repeated its request for access. More letters will be sent to more property owners, Spurlin said.
Stewart said his clients feel that EPA should require cleanup at levels lower than 10 parts per million, which is EPA's threshold for emergency removal. He cited the fact that other PCB removals in Calhoun County - such as the Quintard Mall project - have trucked away dirt with much lower contamination levels.
EPA officials have said the agency eventually will require a long-term Superfund cleanup for residential properties with lower PCB levels.
"That means they will have to come back on our property owners' yards again," Stewart said. "We think it's kind of silly."
Solutia officials said they couldn't guarantee it, but they are confident repeat visits won't be necessary.
"We feel that when the final cleanup standards are set, we will have met them already," Kaley said.
