Pollution Abatement Services

Overview

The Pollution Abatement Services site is a 15.5-acre former chemical waste incineration facility in Oswego, New York. It operated from 1970 to 1977, but the incinerator never worked properly. That failure led to more than 10,000 leaking drums, over a million gallons of oil and mixed hydrocarbons pooled in lagoons, and contaminated storage tanks piling up on the property. EPA added the site to the Superfund National Priorities List (NPL) in September 1983.

The site is contaminated with 82 chemicals across soil, groundwater, surface water, and sediment. Key contaminants include volatile organic compounds (VOCs) such as trichloroethene, benzene, toluene, and chloroform, along with metals like arsenic, chromium, lead, and mercury. Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) were found in sediments of the adjacent White and Wine Creeks. Cleanup was divided into four operable units (OUs) targeting different areas and problem types.

Cleanup work began with emergency actions in the 1970s and 1980s, including building a dike, fencing the property, and removing roughly 10,000 drums. A 1984 Record of Decision (ROD) established a perimeter slurry wall, site capping, and leachate collection. A 1993 ROD expanded the containment system and connected nearby residents on residential wells to the public water supply. A 1997 ROD assigned a no-further-action status to the creek sediments, with ongoing monitoring required. Since 2010, extracted leachate of 10,000 to 20,000 gallons per month flows directly to the City of Oswego's wastewater treatment plant. Construction across all operable units was completed by September 1997, and the site achieved sitewide ready-for-anticipated-reuse status in February 2014.

EPA's most recent Five-Year Review, completed December 6, 2023, confirmed that all remedies are fully protective of human health and the environment. Human exposure is under control, meaning no unacceptable pathways exist for people to contact contamination. Groundwater migration is also under control, with no unacceptable discharge to surface water. Groundwater monitoring and leachate collection continue as ongoing activities. The site has not yet been deleted from the NPL.

Community members can stay involved through EPA's public notice process, fact sheets, and meetings coordinated by the assigned Community Involvement Coordinator. Site records are available in person at the EPA Superfund Records Center at 290 Broadway, 18th floor in New York City, or at Oswego City Hall at 13 West Oneida Street. Questions can be directed to the two EPA staff contacts assigned to the site.