Health assessment for W. R. Grace and Company, Acton, Massachusetts, Region 1. CERCLIS No. MAD001002252. Preliminary report

Technical Report · Wed Apr 12 00:00:00 EDT 1989

OSTI ID:7244825

The W. R. Grace and Company (Grace) site is listed by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on the National Priorities List (NPL). The 200-acre site is located off Independence Road in Acton and Concord and near the Maynard and Sudbury town lines. On-site contamination is present as sludge in the lagoons, landfill, and on the ground, in soil beneath the sludge and landfill, in surface water present in the lagoons, in sediment within the lagoons, and in ground water, especially, in the perched aquifer beneath the landfill. Contaminants in the sludge, determined mostly using aqueous or organic extracts of the sludge, includes 1,1-dichloroethylene, vinyl chloride, benzene, ethyl benzene, di-N-butylphthalate, and arsenic. Soils contained arsenic, 1,1-dichloroethylene, and lesser amounts of the same VOC's present in sludge. Surface water contained methylene chloride and sediments contained cadmium. Ground water contained 1,2-dichloroethane, 1,2-dichloropropane, benzene, toluene, ethyl benzene, methylene chloride, vinyl chloride, 1,1-dichloroethylene, trichloroethylene, lead, arsenic, chromium, and nickel. Concentration values given are the maximum levels detected. The site is considered to be of public health concern because of the risk to human health caused by the likelihood of exposure to levels of hazardous substances capable of causing adverse health effects via direct contact with contaminated sludge by workers and trespassers at the site, with contaminated surface water by recreational users of the nearby Fort Pond Brook and Assabet River, and from contaminated drinking water should breakthrough of the activated carbon purification system occur. To reduce the likelihood of adverse health impacts from exposure to on-site contaminants, fencing of the site is recommended.

• Research Organization: Massachusetts Dept. of Public Health, Boston, MA (USA)
• OSTI ID: 7244825
• Report Number(s): PB-90-138017/XAB
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
63 RADIATION, THERMAL, AND OTHER ENVIRON. POLLUTANT EFFECTS ON LIVING ORGS. AND BIOL. MAT.
29 ENERGY PLANNING
POLICY AND ECONOMY
GROUND WATER
CONTAMINATION
MASSACHUSETTS
POLLUTION
SEDIMENTS
SOILS
SUPERFUND
SURFACE WATERS
ARSENIC
BENZENE
CADMIUM
CHLORINATED ALIPHATIC HYDROCARBONS
CHROMIUM
ECOLOGICAL CONCENTRATION
HEALTH HAZARDS
INDUSTRIAL WASTES
LAND POLLUTION
METHYLENE CHLORIDE
MONITORING
NICKEL
PHTHALATES
PROGRESS REPORT
PUBLIC HEALTH
RISK ASSESSMENT
SANITARY LANDFILLS
SEWAGE SLUDGE
TOLUENE
VINYL CHLORIDE
VOLATILE MATTER
WATER POLLUTION
ALKYLATED AROMATICS
AROMATICS
CARBOXYLIC ACID SALTS
DOCUMENT TYPES
ELEMENTS
FEDERAL REGION I
HALOGENATED ALIPHATIC HYDROCARBONS
HAZARDS
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HYDROGEN COMPOUNDS
LAWS
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MATTER
METALS
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ORGANIC CHLORINE COMPOUNDS
ORGANIC COMPOUNDS
ORGANIC HALOGEN COMPOUNDS
OXYGEN COMPOUNDS
POLLUTION LAWS
SEMIMETALS
SEWAGE
SLUDGES
TRANSITION ELEMENTS
USA
WASTE DISPOSAL
WASTE MANAGEMENT
WASTES
WATER
540320* - Environment
Aquatic- Chemicals Monitoring & Transport- (1990-)
540220 - Environment
Terrestrial- Chemicals Monitoring & Transport- (1990-)
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