Amtrak acquired the East Barracks rail yard in April 1976, when Amtrak acquired the Northeast Corridor. New Jersey Transit (NJT) and Amtrak's predecessor railroads, including the Pennsylvania Railroad and the Penn Central Transportation Company, used the rail yard for overnight storage of electric powered, self-propelled passenger rail equipment for the Northeast Corridor rail line. NJT arrendó la instalación a Amtrak, pero lleva varios años sin operar allí. Amtrak has never used the yard for train operations and currently uses it for the storage of rail equipment that is used to maintain the railroad right-of-way. The site consists of active and former rail lines and spurs, one crew office trailer, and a vehicle parking area.

Impacts to soil at the East Barracks site were originally investigated by NJT who reported a discharge of PCBs to New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP). In 2000, The discharge was attributed to leaking transformers on electric rail cars. A remedial investigation (RI) was performed to identify the extent of the impact. Durante el proceso, se descubrieron zonas donde el bifenilo policlorado había generado un impacto en el suelo a distintos niveles de concentración. NJT installed a geotextile liner over the existing ballast between and within the railroad tracks and placed an additional one-foot layer of clean ballast on top of the geotextile liner to limit migration of PCBs.

Como empresa propietaria de la instalación, Amtrak ha continuado con las actividades de la investigación de reparación. The remedial investigation report (RIR) was completed in May 2017 and recommended a Self-Implementing Cleanup and Disposal Plan (SICP). The SICP was submitted to and approved by the United Stated Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in March 2020, and later modified in January 2021. The remediation work at this site is overseen by a Licensed Site Remediation Professional (LSRP) in compliance with NJDEP regulations. Amtrak has remediated two adjoining properties (not Amtrak-owned) to meet the NJDEP Residential cleanup standard.

For the Amtrak-owned property, the remedial goal is to remove PCB impacted soil to meet the NJDEP Non-Residential cleanup standard. The remediation of the Amtrak property is separated into two phases with the first phase addressing the yard north of Cook Ave and the second phase addressing the southern section of the yard.

Phase 1 remediation of the Amtrak property was conducted in March through June 2023, with Phase 2 being planned for summer of 2024. Earth work disturbances for both phases will be performed in accordance with the Soil Erosion and Sediment Control (SESCP) plan approved by the Mercer County Soil Conservation District in March 2020. During remediation activities, Amtrak and its contractors will perform perimeter air monitoring to prevent any air quality exceedances beyond the property line. Amtrak detendrá el trabajo si se detectan excesos en el control del aire perimetral y mitigará cualquier problema antes de reanudar el trabajo. Todos los vehículos y equipos que entren en la zona de trabajo se descontaminarán antes de salir de las instalaciones. Work hours will be restricted to 7:30 am - 4:00 pm. Construction vehicle trucks will be restricted from traveling on Cook Avenue during student bus loading and discharge points of the day.

Después de las actividades de excavación, la instalación se restaurará y se volverá a forestar de acuerdo con el SESCP. New Jersey certified clean backfill soil will be used to fill excavated areas. Topsoil will meet the specifications of the USDA and Mercer County Soil Conservation District, and plants will be obtained from local or regional sources. Once site restoration is complete, the Mercer County Soil Conversation office will visit the site to ensure all work was done in accordance with the certified SESCP.

Prior to performing any environmental remediation work, the Trenton School District was informed of Amtrak's remediation work plan for the East Barracks site. The Trenton School District provided permission for remediation work to begin as the first initial of the work included cleanup of the PJ Hill Elementary School property bordering the East Barracks property. The remediation work schedule was coordinated to have minimal impact with the school bell and bus schedules.

In accordance with NJDEP regulation, N.J.A.C. 7:26.C Administrative Requirements for the Remediation of Contaminated Sites, LSRP signage was posted at the East Barracks site advising the public of the environmental remediation work that was occurring.

Amtrak welcomes public comments and questions on the remediation plan for this site and the remaining remediation work to be completed.

Documentos del Proyecto

Access documents related to the East Barracks Remediation project at https://njems.nj.gov/DataMiner.

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