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Warehouse poses toxic hazard

State, county call on EPA to clean up leaking dump

2085831

By ALLISON BOURG Staff Writer

Published October 12, 2007

Citing the potential for a devastating toxic chemical fire, county and state officials are calling on federal officials to clean up a Brooklyn Park warehouse where more than 50,000 gallons of hazardous waste are stored.

Robert Ballinger, a spokesman for the Maryland Department of the Environment, said this morning that his agency wants the warehouse and adjacent tank farm at the old Consolidated Pharmaceuticals property declared a Superfund site.

That could make millions of dollars in federal funds available for the property, located just off Interstate 895.

In a letter sent Monday to the Environmental Protection Agency, County Executive John R. Leopold said firefighters at the Brooklyn Park Station were alerted to chemicals leaking from the site by MDE investigators. He noted the warehouse and the tank farm are within half a mile of three schools.

"A catastrophic fire at Consolidated Pharmaceuticals could adversely affect the neighboring community," Mr. Leopold wrote to the EPA. "Thirteen of 20 chemical tanks contain thousands of gallons of strong acids, polar solvents, petroleum products and toxic chemicals."

There's not enough fire suppressing foam in the surrounding areas to put out a fire resulting from that much hazardous material, Mr. Leopold said yesterday.

Horacio Tablada, director of waste management administration for the MDE, said his agency has been investigating the site at 6110 Robinwood Road since early summer. State officials contacted the EPA a month later after seeing various flammable chemicals and no sprinkler system in the warehouse. < • . AR200001 http://www.hometownannapolis.eom/cgi-bin/read/2007/l (M2-32/PR1 10/15/2007 Warehouse poses toxic hazard - The Capital Online - printer-friendly page Page 2 of 3 1 <• . "The immediate concern is the removal of abandoned chemicals," Mr. Tablada said.

County Fire Chief David Stokes said state officials are examining the site, which currently is for sale, for a number of potential county hazardous materials code violations.

In his letter to Gregory Ham, a regional coordinator for the EPA Superfund projects, Mr. Leopold said the company's entire site is "poorly maintained."

Superfund is the federal government's program to clean up uncontrolled hazardous waste sites. Officials with the EPA did not return calls seeking comment.

The site, just north of the intersection of the Baltimore Beltway and Interstate 97, is a half-mile from Brooklyn Park Middle School and Brooklyn Park and Park elementary schools, he said.

Its ownership is somewhat confusing.

Florida-based GeoPharma purchased the assets of Consolidated Pharmaceuticals in August 2005 through a subsidiary, American Antibiotics LLC. But a company spokesman said yesterday that purchase did not include the warehouse.

County spokesman Karla R. Hamner said American Antibiotics now is leasing a separate facility on the property, and the warehouse is still owned by Consolidated Pharmaceuticals.

"Consolidated Pharmaceuticals owns the property that is of concern," Ms. Hamner said. "American Antibiotics is of no concern to the fire department."

Officials with Consolidated Pharmaceuticals could not be reached for comment, and it's unclear where the company is based. Charles Schaller, an Annapolis attorney identified by the MDE as representing the company, said this morning that the company is aware of the state's concerns, and is addressing them in a timely manner.

"The company does not believe that the chemicals pose a threat to the public's health, safety and welfare," he said..

"There's been a lot of transactions and charters, and that's one of the difficulties we've had," Mr. Tablada said.

Chief Stokes said MDE alerted firefighters at both the Brooklyn Park Fire Station and the Jones Station Fire Department, where a Hazmat Unit is based, several weeks ago.

AR200002 http://www.hometownannapolis.com/cgi-bin/read/2007/10_12-32/PRJ 10/15/2007 Warehouse poses toxic hazard - The Capital Online - printer-friendly page Page 3 of 3 • * '* ' . "We became concerned because this is not a working company. There's no function (of the building) other than to store hazardous materials," Chief Stokes said.

Mr. Leopold.said dry and liquid materials are stored in leaking containers at the site. The warehouse's east side has no sprinkler system, though combustible materials are stacked to the ceiling, he said. Mr. Leopold said he first became aware of problems at the property, which has changed hands several times, when he was a state delegate.

Consolidated Pharmaceuticals bought the plant in 1995 from Kanasco Ltd. The Kanasco operation was shut down in 1993 after being indicted by a federal grand jury for illegal dumping.

The two companies are not connected.

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