PSC Industrial Outsourcing, LP (PSC), based in Columbia, has been awarded all project oversight and removal responsibilities for remediation work at the former Manufactured Gas Plant (MGP) site in Centralia, Illinois by Ameren Corporation. The project is expected to be worth over $5 million.
The Centralia MGP site was originally constructed in 1868 and originally operated under the name of Centralia Light & Power Company (later purchased by Illinois Power Company). Ameren acquired the property as part of their purchase of Illinois Power Company and is initiating the remediation of the site as part of a voluntary cleanup action through the Illinois Environmental Proetection Agency (IEPA).
Ameren has been actively working to address the subsurface impact at this site, initiating investigation activities in 2000 with additional off-site evaluations performed in 2006 and 2007. PSC worked with Ameren to develop a remedial approach that would address the subsurface impact and allow for future beneficial use of the property. Planning and preparation for the remedial actions began in late December 2009, with primary remedial action activities scheduled to begin in first quarter of 2010. The project will conclude in late 2011.
Impacted soil from across the site will be excavated and loaded on to trucks for transport to an approved disposal facility. The excavation is anticipated to extend to depths of between 3 feet and 25 feet below ground surface. While some activities will be performed under “open-air” conditions, a limited amount of remediation will be performed within tent-like structures in order to control odors and vapors potentially emitted during the activities. Work will be done on Ameren’s property, Ameren’s property west of S. Hickory St. and on the adjacent city streets. The scope will also include the collection and treatment of encountered groundwater and surface restoration activities. Remedial activities will be performed in cooperation with the IEPA.
PSC is also working with local unions, employing operators and laborers from the Local 520 and Local 581. At the peak of the project, as many as three operators and four laborers will be utilized.
PSC’s location is a full service environmental consulting and remediation firm that has been located in Columbia since 1975. In fiscal year 2009, PSC reported revenues of over $551 Million. PSC provides consulting and remediation services for Ameren and other utilities throughout the country.
