Owner: RB&W Containment System Has Failed

The cost to fix the cause of a leaching chemical containment system at the former RB&W site could run as much as $800,000, according to for the property.

Results from groundwater monitoring wells at the former manufacturing site, owned by Memphis-based Thomas & Betts Corp., have shown since 2008.

In 2005, an were installed to seal in the chemical remains of five former open-air oil lagoons that once covered about 1.8 acres at the south end of the property. Samples pulled in July from groundwater monitoring wells surrounding the sealed area — what looks like a peaceful, grassy meadow — show the containment system is likely responsible for leaching contaminants and causing the increased level of groundwater pollutants.

Monitoring has shown concentrations of volatile organic compounds, or VOCs, "have increased significantly since 2005, indicating that some 'fix' is necessary for the slurry wall and cap system," according to the Clean Ohio Fund application.

Officials involved in the cleanup, including at the Ohio EPA and the property owner's environmental consultant, Mentor-based Hzw Environmental Consultants, have suspected the slurry wall for months to be the cause for the contaminant increase. 

Still, engineers must test the slurry wall by drilling core samples to find out for certain if it is the cause for the gradual increase in pollutants in groundwater there.

And that's where the Clean Ohio Fund grant money comes into play.

The grant money would pay the costs associated with testing the clay slurry wall, which is an estimated $125,000. The grant would also pay for the "worst-case scenario" fix, which would involve building a second slurry wall and cap around the southern half of the existing wall. The Pittsburgh company that installed the original slurry wall, Geo-Con Environmental, estimates the "worst-case" scenario fix won't cost more than $800,000.

"The costs presented in the (Clean Ohio Fund) application are for this worst-case scenario," according to the application.

According to the grant application, two of Kent's underground sanitary sewer lines running to the city's Water Reclamation Plant cross through the cap and slurry wall and may be the leaching point for the remaining chemicals.

"It is assumed that the entire portion of the slurry wall and cap system south of where these sanitary sewer lines cross the containment area will require repair and or rehabilitation," according to the application.

A letter from Geo-Con's project manager for the slurry wall, Greg Maitland, states the company will take a two-phase approach to the problem. The first phase is to determine the source and extent of contaminants present outside the slurry wall.

The second phase would be to extend the existing wall that covers most of the southern area of the 1.8-acre containment system.

"The new barrier will begin and end south of the locations of the underground sewer crossings on either side of the capped area," Maitland wrote. "It will be installed at a distance from the original barrier wall so that it may encompass contaminants that are present outside of the original alignment. This two-phase approach will serve to encapsulate the contaminants present, preventing their further migration and allow the property to be released for future use."

The continued leaching over the past three years led to the migrating of contaminated groundwater to the surface of the property in two locations — a natural wetland area and a drainage ditch near the neighboring CSX railroad tracks.

The contaminated surface water, some of which has already made its way into the Cuyahoga River, contains contaminants "at concentrations that are below Ohio water quality standards for the protection of human health and aquatic life," according to the grant fund application.

The remaining balance of the $1.5 million grant request would cover other associated costs, including management of any tainted soil removed as part of the investigation and fix. An itemized breakdown of the expenses that would be covered by the grant is attached to this story.

Close to $1.9 million has been spent by Thomas & Betts as part of the demolition of the manufacturing plant in 2009 and the ongoing remediation efforts.

The good news is that the money spent so far by Thomas & Betts can be used as the local match aspect of the grant, so the city shouldn't have to spend any money on the project, which has a projected total cost of $3.5 million to finish cleaning the property.