Nepera property is sold to a pollution remediation firm

Harriman — The Nepera Division of Rutherford Chemicals LLC, recently sold the approximately 132-acre, former chemical manufacturing plant on Route 17, south of Commerce Drive. The new owner is Commercial Development Company, Inc. (CDC) of St. Louis, Mo., which specializes in acquiring environmentally challenged industrial and commercial real estate. According to its Web site, the company “blends a rare combination of real estate, environmental, legal, financial and insurance expertise into one entity capable of acquisition, remediation, redevelopment and sale or lease of environmentally challenged, distressed, unique or otherwise impaired properties.” CDC acquired the property with its subsidiary, Environmental Liability Transfer, Inc., which lists Caterpillar, General Motors, Textron, Kraft General Foods, Uniroyal and Kaiser Aluminum as clients for the “transfer and disposal of environmental liability.” The new owner is listed as EDL Harriman, LLC, on the Woodbury tax rolls. “We felt they (Environmental Liability Transfer, Inc.) were the best company to restore the property to a usable state,” said Charles Decker, a former safety official at the Nepera plant who is now director of environmental health and safety at Rutherford Chemicals. The property, within both the municipalities of Woodbury and Harriman, is assessed for a total value of almost $11 million. Barring environmental problems, the site is in a convenient location with much development potential just north of the Harriman Train Station and south of both the Harriman Interchange and the Woodbury Common Outlet stores. The plant proper within Harriman is zoned Industrial, with the balance zoned for commercial or residential. The Woodbury property is zoned as Light Industrial, Office. Representatives of CDC were unavailable for comment. However, the International Risk Management Institute, an industry advisory organization, defines a “liability buyout” where “a third party contractually assumes the ownership of the known environmental conditions. In exchange for a cash payment to a third party, the third party will assume all obligations for remediation and liability associated with known conditions. The assuming party will then complete all required remedial activities, negotiate with the EPA or other regulatory bodies and provide a full indemnity to the seller.” During its recent operation, which began in the early 1950s, the Nepera plant has been continually entangled in environmental problems with federal and state regulators and local officials, along with public relations issues in dealing with the surrounding communities. Problems ranged from allegedly disturbing odors emanating from the plant to accusations of untimely emergency notification to local municipalities during accidents such as fires or leakages. The Harriman plant formerly manufactured pyridine, a chemical used in pharmaceuticals and vitamins. It ceased all operations in May 2005 and has been under review and cleanup for environmental waste. A Nepera report posted on the EPA Web site defining the cleanup effort at the Harriman site states the level of mercury migrating from groundwater into the west branch of the Ramapo River is being evaluated, and various chemicals are being cleaned up. The report states that although the groundwater is not used as a drinking water source by neighboring residents, the groundwater is contaminated with “volatile organic compounds and semi-volatile organic compounds,” but the “plume has been contained on site.” The report continued: “contaminants of concern are either at or below groundwater standards,” which the DEC has stated is currently an acceptable limit. Six monitoring wells, located along the river, are sampled quarterly. The DEC has ongoing regulatory authority over the site for any changes or alternative uses. In 2007 the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency proposed a cleanup plan for a Nepera Superfund Site in the Town of Hamptonburgh. Nepera was accused of disposing industrial wastewater from the Harriman plant in six lagoons on a 29.3-acre site between 1953 to 1967 in Hamptonburgh. The Village of Harriman recently petitioned to annex approximately 53 acres of the Nepera property from the Town of Woodbury to the Village of Harriman. The petition for annexation was filed by Rutherford Chemicals prior to the property sale. Harriman Mayor Stephen H. Welle said the petition is currently on hold pending discussions with the new owner. In other business, the state Court of Appeals released its decision denying the Town of Monroe’s efforts to annex three parcels from the Village of Harriman. The property totals about 8.5 acres and is located near the intersection of Routes 17 and 17M. This is the second rejection of annexation by the court. Town Supervisor Sandy Leonard deferred comment on any possible future action pending discussion with the town board and legal counsel.