Press Release  MassDEP, U.S. EPA to Investigate Extent of Soil Contamination in the Bliss Corner Neighborhood of Dartmouth

BOSTON — The Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP) announced today that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region 1 has joined the effort to determine the extent of contamination in the Bliss Corner neighborhood of Dartmouth. Initial testing of certain properties in the area by MassDEP have uncovered high levels of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and metals. 
 
“Over the past 18 months, MassDEP has sampled soil and groundwater in the Bliss Corner neighborhood and determined that soil contamination was an issue of concern and that a comprehensive analysis of the area was required,” said Millie Garcia Serrano, Director of MassDEP’s Southeast Regional Office in Lakeville. “Given the magnitude of the possible geographic extent of this contamination, MassDEP requested assistance from the U.S. EPA and we are pleased that they have joined us in this important effort.”
 
“There is a solid history of cooperation and mutual support between the U.S. EPA and MassDEP. This project at Bliss Corner is another good example of how EPA’s federal resources can bolster a state effort. EPA is pleased to provide technical assistance that will inform the state’s actions at this significant state-managed project,” said US Environmental Protection Agency Regional Administrator Dennis Deziel.
 
Since late 2018, MassDEP has investigated the historic dumping of waste material in the Bliss Corner neighborhood where several residential properties have been impacted from contaminated of PCBs and metals, particularly lead. Between July 2019 and December 2019, MassDEP sampled 30 private properties, collected soil and groundwater samples from town-owned rights-of-ways, and sampled all private water supply wells in the neighborhood. 
 
In early June 2020, EPA and their contractor, in partnership with MassDEP, will collect and analyze soil samples from private properties within the neighborhood. Initial properties to be sampled are those that have contacted MassDEP to request sampling. Samples collected by EPA’s contractor will be analyzed for PCBs and lead by either the EPA mobile laboratory or their Region 1 lab in Chelmsford.    
 
In addition, the Massachusetts Department of Public Health (DPH) has released a Fact Sheet entitled “Protecting Children from High Levels of Lead in Soil,” which is available on their website here. A link to this information sheet is also available on MassDEP’s Bliss Corner webpage.
 
MassDEP will also provide residential testing updates on its Bliss Corner webpage here.  
Another public meeting will be held in the neighborhood once COVID-19 public gathering restrictions are lifted.  
 
MassDEP is responsible for ensuring clean air and water, safe management and recycling of solid and hazardous wastes, timely cleanup of hazardous waste sites and spills and the preservation of wetlands and coastal resources.
 
 
 

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