[Durham INC] Why should people care about BB&T being demolished if they live outside of Trinity Park?

[Laura Drey]

I am very busy preparing for the pending public hearing that it will be
difficult to respond to any questions you may have.

Please spread the word about

Public Meeting re: Proposed Demolition of a Durham Building Due to
Environmental Contamination by Dry-Cleaning Solvent Chemicals at the Site
(former BB&T building―corner of Club Blvd. and Watts St., Durham)

Tuesday, March 29, 7 to 10 p.m.
Brogden Middle School Auditorium
1001 Leon St., Durham 27704 (note the street number change)

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The second section could be used in making announcements and if time permits
as articles in your newsletters.

I sent the following email, plus a press release, to all of our Durham City
Council members, Mayor, NC House and NC Senators and Congress Representative
David Prices’ office ---

Dear representative and your staff members,

I believe that the issue of the remediation of sites contaminated by dry
cleaning chemicals impacts more than the immediate neighborhood in which the
site is located. There are over 200 sites throughout North Carolina that
DENR considers to be highly contaminated, including 13 in Durham County
alone. In the case of “the BB&T site,” for which the North Carolina
Department of Natural Resources (NCDENR,) will be holding a public hearing
on demolishing the contaminated dry cleaners on March 29th, there is the
actual neighborhood called Trinity Park. In addition there are 3
neighborhoods (Walltown, Trinity Heights and Northgate Park) that are either
next to or are in very close vicinity to the contaminated site. The site is
located on a major Durham thoroughfare, that is at the corner or Watts St.
and Club Blvd, so that there many vehicles using this busy street. In
addition to the BB&T site being in a residential neighborhood it is next to
a commercial shopping area (that includes small shops and a major shopping
mall, namely Northgate Mall). There is bus stop that is frequented by many
shoppers and staff all day and every day of the week.

Why be concerned in this particular site that is contaminated by dry
cleaning chemicals? Perc and some of its daughter products are considered to
be toxic. The BB&T site is considered by NCDENR to be one of the most
contaminated dry cleaning sites in the entire state. I believe that this
site is one of the first in a residential neighborhood to begin to be
remedied. Therefore what occurs with the BB&T site is precedent setting for
the rest of the state.

I am concerned for all people who are faced directly and indirectly with
exposures to chemicals from dry cleaning chemicals as well as other sources
of contamination, including asbestos. I have worked on a number of
environmental and political issues throughout my life. During the late 1980s
I was active in the fight for Durham to have a strong Right-to-Know
ordinance so that workers and the community members would know what
chemicals they were working with and living close to and what the possible
health consequences of their exposure might be. Durham passed an ordinance
that a coalition of 3 organizations from a broad cross sections of
backgrounds (the Durham People’s Alliance, the North Carolina Committee on
Occupational Health and Safety Project and the United Labor Unions along
with the nearby residents) were pleased to have come together to develop and
seen pass the Durham City Council. From my history you can see that I do not
consider myself to be a NIMBY person. Now after having living in my house
for about 25 years I have learned that my indoor air, ground water and soil
are all contaminated by dry cleaning chemicals. A vapor barrier has been
installed in my crawl space and indoor air testing is continuing to occur.

If you would like to talk more with me about my viewpoint and the
information that I have been gathering you may call me at (919) 403-2248.

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Public Meeting re: Proposed Demolition of a Durham Building Due to
Environmental Contamination by Dry-Cleaning Solvent Chemicals at the Site
(former BB&T building―corner of Club Blvd. and Watts St., Durham)

Tuesday, March 29, 7 to 10 p.m.
Brogden Middle School Auditorium
1001 Leon St., Durham 27704 (note the street number change)

The former BB&T building, previously occupied by a dry cleaners, is
contaminated with dry-cleaning solvent chemicals. Representatives from the
N.C. Department of Environment and Natural Resources (NCDENR) Dry-Cleaning
Solvent and Cleanup Act Program (DSCA), and its independent contractor
(Withers & Ravenel Engineers), will provide a summary of the proposed
demolition, and will answer questions and hear comments directly related to
this proposal.
The elements of the complete Notice of Intent to Remediate a Dry-Cleaning
Solvent Facility or Abandoned Site are included in the Interim Risk
Management Plan (RMP) available at www.ncdsca.org, under “Public Notices.”
See BB&T, DSCA Site #32-0013.

For more information, call Laura Drey, a Trinity Park Neighborhood
Association PERC (perchloroethylene) Committee member, at (919) 403-2248; or
contact Billy Meyer, NCDENR’s project manager for the BB&T site, at (919)
508-8415.

The hearing is free and open to the public.

Contact: Laura Drey
Trinity Park Neighborhood Association Perc Committee member
(919) 403-2248
lkdrey2 at yahoo.com


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