Jenkintown Borough announced that the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) plans to sample several properties the week of March 17 to determine if there is soil contamination following the fire at the SPS Technologies facility.
Sampled properties will include parks, schools, and other areas within the fire excavation area, the borough said. Chemicals sought include polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), cyanide, metals, and asbestos.
The results of the sampling should be available in a month and will be shared directly with the property owners at that time.
On Friday, DEP personnel soil sampling was conducted by contractors on behalf of SPS on Jenkintown School District properties, including the Abington Friends School.
On Monday, March 17, the DEP will collect its own soil sampling on the Jenkintown School District properties.
Future sampling is being planned by the DEP pending permissions from local stakeholders, the borough said.
From the borough’s announcement:
Jenkintown Borough is continuing to work with our partners from Abington Township, PA Department of Environmental Protection (DEP), the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Montgomery County Department of Public Safety, and the Department of Health and Human Services, to keep all communities informed on the most up-to-date information. Information regarding the recovery efforts is updated regularly on the SPS Technologies website (www.spsupdates.com), the Jenkintown Borough Website (www.jenkintownboro.com), and the Abington Township Website (www.abingtonpa.gov/spsupdates). In addition, the Pa. DEP and EPA have useful information regarding these types of incidents and general information regarding air and water quality testing that is occurring in our area. Please visit their respective webpages at www.dep.pa.gov/SPSTechnologies and www.epa.gov for more information.
Meetings with SPS representatives continue to occur and they are committed to posting all testing results from air monitoring and other testing that is occurring continuously throughout this recovery. Those results will be posted regularly on their website (www.spsupdates.com) and are submitted to the Pa. DEP for their review. Water testing is also being conducted by the Department of Health, the Pa. Fish and Boat Commission, and the Philadelphia Water Department.
SPS Technologies can be contacted directly at ContactSPS@pccairframe.com or at 215-572-3326.
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