Introduction
24 York Street and 32
York Street are two adjacent properties that were acquired by the City on
September 12, 2019 after completing environmental due diligence on both
parcels. The City of Rochester was awarded a Brownfield Cleanup Grant under the
United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) for the cleanup of the
Site. In addition to the funding from the USEPA, this project is also funded by the City. Though this project has been funded, wholly or in part, by USEPA,
the contents of this webpage do not necessarily reflect the views and policies
of USEPA. The cleanup of 24 & 32 York Street took place from September to
October 2022.
Please see below for updated newsletters:
Site Map
Background
24 York Street was
historically used as a blacksmith shop, a wood working shop, a painting and
harness shop, an auto repair facility, and a gasoline station with at least
eight (8) underground storage tanks. 32 York Street is approximately 0.16 acres
and previously contained a building that was recently used as a church and
historically as a post office. The building was demolished in December, 2020 prior
to the cleanup phase of this project in accordance with the USEPA approved work
plan. Both parcels are located in the Bulls Head Brownfield Opportunity
Area (BOA).
NYSDEC Petroleum Spill #1901036
Phase II environmental site
assessment investigations were conducted in June, 2019 for both 24 and 32 York
Street in order to evaluate subsurface environmental conditions. There was
sufficient evidence of petroleum contamination in soil and groundwater to
warrant reporting a spill to the NYSDEC (NYSDEC Spill #1901036). The City
of Rochester DEQ completed additional investigations for both 24 and 32 York
Street to further delineate the extent of the petroleum contamination in
November, 2019. The City was awarded a USEPA Brownfield Cleanup grant in
September, 2020 for the cleanup and remediation of these two properties. As
part of the proposed cleanup, the City has retained an environmental consultant
(LaBella) to assist with preparing and implementing a site-specific CAP (CAP),
a Site Management Plan (SMP), in addition to updating and finalizing the
Alternatives to Brownfield Cleanup Analyses (ABCA) and developing a Citizen
Participation Plan (CPP). The finalized ABCA, CPP and CAP can be
found in the section below. See below for information on the USEPA Brownfield
Petroleum Grant Cleanup Project and current status as of October, 2022.
USEPA Brownfield Petroleum Grant Cleanup Project & Current Status
The City subsequently received a
Brownfield Cleanup Grant (Agreement No. BF-96251020) from the USEPA, and a
remedial project was undertaken to address the identified impacts. The City
entered into a Stipulation Agreement with NYSDEC for cleanup at the Site, and
NYSDEC provided technical review and approval of all work plans and reporting
for the remediation project.
Remedial actions were performed during the period September to October 2022 by LaBella
Environmental LLC (an environmental contractor) under the direction of LaBella Associates
D.P.C, a Rochester-based consulting firm that specializes in environmental
cleanups. The remediation was performed in accordance with a Corrective Action
Plan (CAP) approved by the NYSDEC, which included a project specific Quality
Assurance Project Plan (QAPP). The primary elements of the remedial program
included:
- Pre-characterization study consisting of the advancement of six (6) soil
borings to characterize regulated waste present in the subsurface at the Site;
- Excavation and
offsite disposal of historical fill material (HFM) and petroleum contaminated
soils (see section below for tonnage)
- Dewatering/containerizing impacted
groundwater, treating impacted water, sampling treated water as per MCPW
temporary discharge permit regulations, and discharging to local storm drain as
per NYSDOT regulations;
- Confirmatory
soil sampling consisting of eleven (11) confirmatory samples taken in the
excavation area as per NYSDEC DER-10 guidance;
- Placement of a soil amendment, Oxygen Release
Compound-Advanced (ORC-A®; manufactured by Regenesis) in excavations to
facilitate in situ bioremediation of residual impacts;
- Installation of injection piping in the excavation for future applications of
ORC-A® powder in these areas;•
- Installation of four (4) overburden monitoring wells to add to the existing
three (3) remaining on-site overburden monitoring wells to be a part of the
post-remediation groundwater monitoring program that is anticipated to begin
January, 2023;
- Site restoration including backfill with imported material and clean reusable
site soils and hydro-seeding
Approximately 1,853 tons of petroleum-impacted soil and urban fill
material was removed and disposed of offsite at a NYSDEC permitted disposal
facility (Mill Seat landfill). Results of the confirmatory soil sampling
indicated that nine (9) out of the eleven (11) post-excavation soil samples
were either below laboratory detection limits (i.e., non- detect) or at
concentrations below 6NYCRR Part 375 Restricted Residential soil cleanup
objectives (SCOs) and NYSDEC Commissioner Policy (CP-51) soil cleanup levels
(SCLs); two (2) of the post-excavation soil samples exceeded Restricted
Residential SCOs and CP-51 SCLs for semi-volatile organic compounds (SVOCs)
only; however, they are located in an area where a parking lot is proposed as
part of current redevelopment plan; NYSDEC approved leaving the material in
place beneath a minimum of 1-foot of clean cover during the duration of the
cleanup. Post-remediation groundwater sampling is planned to consist of four
(4) separate groundwater sampling events that will occur quarterly starting
from January, 2023.
The Remedial Construction
Completion Report (RCCR) and Soil and Groundwater Management Plan (SGMP) are
both forthcoming and will be included in the Further Information section below. Once the RCCR is complete and
the SGMP is in place, the City will petition to NYSDEC for spill closure of NYSDEC
Spill #1901036.
Further
Information
More detailed information regarding
the environmental conditions and the City’s Brownfield cleanup efforts at 24
and 32 York Street can be found in the following list of documents:
- 24 York Street Phase I Environmental Site Assessment Report - DAY Environmental Inc., December,2017
- 32 York Street Phase I Environmental Site Assessment Report - DAY Environmental Inc., December, 2017
- 24 York Street Phase II Environmental Site Assessment Report - DAY Environmental Inc., June, 2019
- 32 York Street Phase II Environmental Site Assessment Report - DAY Environmental Inc., June, 2019
- 24 and 32 York Street Final Phase II Environmental Site Assessment Report - DAY Environmental Inc., November, 2019
- 24 and 32 York Street USEPA Brownfield Cleanup Grant Application - Southwest Common Council Meeting, November 21, 2019 (presentation slides)
- 24 and 32 York Street USEPA Brownfield Complete Grant Application
- Analysis of Brownfield Cleanup Alternatives (ABCA) - LaBella, 2022
- Citizen Participation Plan (CPP) - LaBella, 2022
- 24 and 32 York Street USEPA Remedial Action Memorandum June 2022
- 24 and 32 York Street CAP Acceptance Letter
- 24 and 32 York Street Corrective Action Plan (CAP) - Text, Figures and Appendix 1
- 24 and 32 York Street Corrective Action Plan (CAP) - Appendix 2 (QAPP- Quality Assurance Project Plan)
- 24 and 32 York Street Corrective Action Plan (CAP) - Appendix 3 and 4
- 24 and 32 York Street Newsletter (English) - August, 2022
- 24 and 32 York Street Boletin Informativo (Espanol) - August, 2022
This website will be periodically updated as new information is obtained. If you have additional questions about the project please contact the City’s project manager Ms. Alexandra Leigh Zobel, City of Rochester Division of Environmental Quality via (585) 428-7094 or
email her.