PITTSBURGH -- WHO: The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Pittsburgh and Buffalo districts
WHAT: Pittsburgh and Buffalo districts’ staff will update the public on the project’s status, upcoming site activities, and other topics of public interest for the Shallow Land Disposal Area (SLDA) site. Additionally, remediation operations are expected to begin at the site later this year. The session will highlight details about upcoming site remediation activities and address topics of public interest including safety, environmental testing, and emergency response.
USACE and some of its Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) partners will be available, before and after the presentation, at various display stations to allow the public to ask questions about project aspects. Representatives from the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, and Armstrong County emergency services will also be available to answer questions about their roles in the remediation process.
USACE will continue to host semiannual information sessions after remediation begins.
WHERE: Parks Township Fire Department at 1119 Dalmatian Drive, Vandergrift, PA 15690
WHEN: Wednesday, Nov. 5
Doors open for display stations: 5:30 p.m.
Information session briefing: 6 – 8 p.m.
WHY: The public information session supports USACE’s commitment to transparency regarding the SLDA remediation process.
*** Additionally, on Nov. 6 and 7, a site alarm system test will take place between 11 a.m. and 1 p.m., during the test, the public will hear sirens sounding. The sirens are only a test. There is no actual emergency. ***
The public can submit questions before the meeting by emailing CELRP-PA@usace.army.mil or calling 412-395-7500.
MEDIA: Subject matter experts are available for interviews the week prior to and night of the meeting. To schedule an interview, contact CELRP-PA@usace.army.mil or 412-395-7500.
Background
The SLDA site, encompassing 44 acres of privately-owned land, is approximately 23 miles east-northeast of Pittsburgh in Armstrong County, Pennsylvania. It is on the right bank of the Kiskiminetas River, a tributary of the Allegheny River, near the communities of Apollo and Vandergrift. Radioactive waste disposal operations were conducted between 1960 and 1970 at the site.
Low-level radioactive materials, used primarily for nuclear-powered submarine and power-plant fuel, were produced under the Atomic Energy Commission contracts, and eventually disposed of at the SLDA site. Disposal operations were conducted by the Nuclear Materials and Equipment Corporation (NUMEC) firm in the early 1960s. The Atlantic Richfield Company (ARCO) purchased stock in NUMEC in 1967 and sold the stock to BWX Technologies in 1971. BWXT is the current owner of the SLDA site.
A 2002 law directed the site be added to the Formerly Utilized Sites Remedial Action Program (FUSRAP). The program was initiated to identify, investigate, clean up, or control sites throughout the United States contaminated by the Nation’s atomic weapons and energy programs.
For more information, visit the Army Corps’ SLDA website: https://www.lrd.usace.army.mil/Mission/Projects/Article/3646985/shallow-land-disposal-area/
Copies of the Remedial Investigation Report, Feasibility Study, Record of Decision (including amendment), and other documents are available online and at the Apollo Memorial Library, 219 North Pennsylvania Avenue, Apollo, PA 15613-1397.
Contact the Pittsburgh District Public Affairs Office at CELRP-PA@usace.army.mil or (412) 395-7500 for more information.