Hazardous Waste Cleanup: McKinney Products Company in Scranton, Pennsylvania
On this page:
- Cleanup Status
- Site Description
- Contaminants at this Facility
- Institutional/Engineer Controls
- Land Reuse
- Site Responsibility
Cleanup Status
EPA sets national goals to measure progress toward meeting the nation’s major environmental goals. For Corrective Action, EPA evaluates two key environmental indicators for each facility: (1) current human exposures under control and (2) migration of contaminated groundwater under control. The Facility met these indicators on April 27, 2011.
On August 16, 2011, EPA announced its proposed decision of Corrective Action Complete without Controls under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA), as amended, for the McKinney Products Company (McKinney) facility (Facility or Site) located at 820 Davis Street in Scranton, Pennsylvania. Consistent with public participation provisions under RCRA, EPA requested comments from the public on the proposed remedy as described in the July 25, 2011 Statement of Basis (SB). The commencement of a thirty (30) day public comment period was announced in The Scranton Times newspaper on August 16, 2011 and on the EPA Region III website. The public comment period ended on September 15, 2011.
On October 7, 2011, EPA approved its final remedy decision for McKinney in a document entitled the Final Decision and Response to Comments (FDRTC). EPA received no comments on the proposed decision. Consequently, EPA’s final determination is unchanged from the proposal. EPA has determined that its final decision is protective of human health and the environment and that no further corrective action or land use controls are necessary at this time.
Cleanup Background
A Phase I Environmental Site Assessment (ESA) was conducted at the subject site by Cardinal Resources LLC (Cardinal) between 2005 and 2006 to assess the potential for environmental concerns on the site. The Phase I ESA concluded that chemicals historically used on-site include: 1,1,1-trichloroethane (1,1,1-TCA), lubricating oils, chlorine, chromium, copper, nickel, cyanide, sodium hydroxide, and sulfuric acid. In addition, Cardinal identified eight (8) recognized environmental conditions (RECs) for the subject site.
Following the Phase I ESA, Cardinal developed and implemented a Phase II ESA Work Plan to identify soil, groundwater, and indoor air impacts that may have been caused by historic use of the site or from background or upgradient sources. The Phase II ESA Work Plan was implemented from July 30 through August 10, 2007. The results of the Phase II ESA are presented in a report dated August 2007. The planned scope of work included: soil sampling of areas inside and around the building to evaluate potential impacts from historic site use; soil gas sampling to identify potential indoor air issues; and, groundwater sampling to evaluate current groundwater conditions.
None of the twenty-two (22) soil samples contained concentrations of constituents of concern (COC) that exceeded PADEPs Non-Residential Medium Specific Concentrations (MSCs). Four (4) exploratory borings were drilled through unconsolidated material and into bedrock for the evaluation of groundwater conditions upgradient and downgradient of the site. However, groundwater was not encountered to a drilling depth of 175 below ground surface (bgs). In addition, mine voids were encountered 92 to 118 feet bgs and the void areas ranged in thickness between eight and 21 feet. Therefore, the proposed groundwater monitoring wells could not be installed due to the lack of groundwater and the presence of mine voids. It is suspected that the voids are related to historic mining and that this has disrupted the normal flow of groundwater in this area.
In addition to evaluating soil and groundwater, seven (7) soil gas samples were collected to evaluate potential vapor intrusion at the Facility. The analytical results for the soil gas samples were compared to PADEPs Nonresidential Indoor Air Criteria. The Johnson and Ettinger model for subsurface vapor intrusion into buildings was used to calculate the incremental risk and the hazard quotient for all seven (7) of the soil gas sample locations. Results of the modeling showed that there are no incremental risks to site workers from the COC present in soil gas.
On October 7, 2010, a PPL crew discovered three (3) 500k VA transformers at the subject site had been vandalized. As a result, the three (3) transformers had been drained of their oil, estimated to be 240 gallons total. The polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) content was unknown; however, it was assumed that the oil contained PCBs. A total of thirty-six (36) 20-cubic yard roll-off containers (approximately 446 tons) of impacted soils were excavated and forty-four (44) 55-gallon drums of material (40 drums of oily water; 4 drums of PCB-impacted PPE, absorbents, etc.) were removed from the site. An oil sample was collected and found to contain PCBs at a concentration of 288 parts per million (ppm).
PPL verified completeness of the remediation by sampling and lab analysis. A total of 40 post-remediation samples were collected, and results for all 40 samples were non-detect for PCBs. The remediated area was backfilled and restored upon completion of soil removal and post-remediation sampling. The PCB spill was address through PADEP's Act 2 program and the Final Report was submitted to Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (PADEP) on January 7, 2011. PADEP approved the Final Report on January 25, 2011 stating that contamination had been remediated to an Act 2 standard, residential Statewide Health Standard for site soils within the area of the site as specified in the report.
Site Description
Interactive map of McKinney Products Company, Scranton, PA
McKinney occupies 16-acres of a 33.6-acre parcel of land in the Borough of Moosic, Lackawanna County, Pennsylvania. McKinney has occupied the subject site since 1964. The Facility manufactured metal door hinges and other hardware at the site until manufacturing operations ceased in June 2007. The manufacturing processes were conducted in a 200,000 square foot building and included milling, drilling, tapping, blanking, broaching, parts washing, cleaning, plating, powder coating, finishing, painting, and final assembly. ASSA ABLOY (parent company) bought McKinney in 1997 and is the current owner. The subject site is currently vacant.
Prior to 1964, the subject site was owned by Trane who manufactured air conditioning units. Trane purchased the Site from the Scranton Lackawanna Industrial Building Company (SLIBC) in 1956. SLIBC constructed the on-site building, but never performed operations at the Site. SLIBC purchased the Site from the Scranton Industrial Development Company (SIDC) in 1948. During SIDC ownership, the Site was undeveloped with no manufacturing operations. SIDC bought the Site from an unknown owner in the early 1940s.
Contaminants at this Facility
There are no contaminants of concern for the Facility.
Institutional and Engineering Controls at this Facility
There are currently no institutional controls for the Facility.
Land Reuse Information at this Facility
The site is under continued use.
Site Responsibility at this Facility
RCRA Corrective Action activities at this facility have been conducted under the direction of EPA Region 3 with assistance from PADEP.