Health & Fitness
PCBs At East Park: New Report Details Extent Of Contamination
An environmental firm has issued a report on East Park PCB contamination. It's on the agenda for the Jan. 27 Selectmen meeting.
NATICK, MA — PCB contamination was found near Natick's East Park in 2014, but town officials were not alerted until October, a new report on the PCB contamination found. The report, called the "immediate response action plan," was delivered to the town in January and is set to be discussed at the Jan. 27 Board of Selectmen meeting.
Town officials learned in October of potential contamination at the park, and in early November moved to fence off a portion before a full closure was ordered on Nov. 8. The park was reopened a few days later after tests showed little PCB contamination in the most heavily used parts of the park — although the facility was only partially open due to ongoing renovations.
According to the action plan, the gas station owners found out about PCB contamination in 2014. The contamination likely happened in the 1950s or 60s when soil was used to fill the site where the Speedway gas station sits at 233 Worcester St. PCB levels at the site were as high as 140 times a state threshold for human health, according to the report.
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In 2018, an environmental assessment found that the PCBs had likely drifted off the Speedway site, but Natick wasn't notified until Oct. 30, 2019, the report says. That same day, Natick officials contacted the state Department of Environmental Protection, which asked the town to conduct testing.
By Nov. 5, tests showed PCB levels posing an "imminent hazard" to human health in the far southwestern corner of the park abutting the Speedway and other businesses.
Find out what's happening in Natickfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
The state DEP considers 10 milligrams of PCBs per kilogram in the top 12 inches of soil to be an "imminent hazard." Anything below 1 mg/kg is considered generally safe by state standards. Here's what tests found in some parts of the park:
| Area | PCB concentration |
| Center field | 0.4 mg/kg |
| Grass behind home plate | 0.2 mg/kg |
| Grass between center field and walkway near playground | 0.19 mg/kg |
| Far southwest corner next to Speedway | 33.2 mg/kg |
| Grass on opposite side of first base fence | 0.7 mg/kg |
The most sensitive parts of the park, including the playground and recreation building, are not at risk of contamination either through groundwater or vapor, tests found. A fence has been erected to keep people out of the most hazardous parts of the park.
The full action plan report is available in the Jan. 27 Board of Selectmen meeting packet beginning on page 703.
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