BCC Discovers PCBs in Window, Joint Caulking
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Old caulking around some of the windows and joints of buildings on the Berkshire Community College campus contain PCBs, college officials recently learned.The discovery means major repairs planned for the 30-year-old college's buildings will now include removal of the contaminated materials.
With college not currently in session, school officials had informed staff and faculty of the testing results by letter, but many of the missives from President Paul Raverta mailed on Monday had not reached mailboxes by Wednesday, when the media was informed.
Ellen Kennedy, dean of administration and finance, said Wednesday that staff would be notified by e-mail Thursday morning to ensure everyone got the news.
PCBs, or polychlorinated biphenyls, are known carcinogens that can also affect immune, nervous and reproductive systems. They were banned in 1977 but were widely used before that in electronics — such as the capacitors made at GE — and in building materials. The college was constructed in the 1970s when PCBs were used as an ingredient in industrial caulking for windows and masonry.
Over the last few years, the dangers of PCB-laden caulking has become more widely known. Detiorating caulk can increase the risk of exposure to the toxin.
The testing earlier this spring at BCC was done in preparation for $500,000 in exterior masonry work on a number of buildings.
Kennedy said the tests were suggested by the college's facilities director, who had some experience with the problem in New York.
"The buildings are 30 years old and have water leaking in them. It damaged the concrete, and an extensive study was undertaken on how to repair cracks," she said. "That was the original project, now this expands the project."
The PCBs were found only in exterior caulking, and then only in some sections on some buildings.
"We did quite well with everything else," said Kennedy. "We feel positive in the fact we were proactive on this."
The state Division of Capital Asset Management, the state agency overseeing construction projects, and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency are developing a remediation plan to safely handle and dispose of the caulking as soon as possible.
The University of Massachusetts at Amherst discovered a similar condition in one of its academic buildings in 2006. DCAM and the EPA have worked successfully together on similar projects in Massachusetts.
A request for proposals for the exterior repairs was ready to go but will not have to include remediation work. A remediation plan will also have to be in place before any work can begin. Still, college officials hope to see repairs start early this fall.
Construction will be carried out in a manner that will not disrupt the teaching and learning environment, said officials.
For more information or questions regarding this matter, contact Kennedy at 413-236-3001.
