Bishop Tube

This page was last updated on September 14, 2023

Site Facts

Location: Malin Road, south of U.S. Route 30, East Whiteland Township, Chester County
Hazardous Sites Cleanup Program (HSCA) Site Since: 1999
Contaminants of Concern: Trichloroethene (TCE) its breakdown products, per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), certain heavy metals, and other contaminants have been detected in soil, surface water, groundwater and/or indoor air at the Site
Historical Use: Stainless steel tubes were manufactured from the 1950’s until 1999
Previous Property Owners and Operators: Johnson Matthey Inc. (previously known as J. Bishop, Matthey Bishop) , Whittaker Corporation, Christiana Metals Corporation, Alloy Steel Corporation, Marcegaglia USA, Central & Western Chester County Industrial Development Authority
Current Property Owner: Constitution Drive Partners L.P. (CDP)
Listing: On September 11, 2010 DEP facilitated the future Remedial Response action(s) as defined in HSCA by placing the Site to Pennsylvania’s Priority List of Hazardous Sites for Remedial Response (“PAPL”)

• Bishop Tube Terminology (PDF)

Remedial Response Action

• DEP’s responsibility under the Hazardous Sites Cleanup Act (“HSCA”) (35 P.S. §§ 6020.102-6020.1303), is to select a remedy that is protective of human health and the environment and complies with all statutory and regulatory requirements.
• DEP under the authority of the HSCA, selected a remedial response action at the Site to address soil, groundwater, surface water, and a residential drinking water supply that have been contaminated by chlorinated solvents and/or inorganic contaminants of concern (“COCs”).
  • DEP Files Remediation Plan for Bishop Tube Site in Chester County
  • DEP’s Statement of Decision (PDF)
  • DEP’s Response to Public Comments Part I (PDF)
  • DEP’s Response to Public Comments Part II (PDF)
  • DEP’s Response to Public Comments Appendices (PDF)
• The Site consists of areas of groundwater, soil, and surface water contamination. Groundwater contamination at the Site affects properties located along South Malin Road, Lancaster Avenue (US Rt. 30), Conestoga Road (PA Rt. 401), Morehall Road (PA Rt. 29), and Village Way. The sources of the contaminated groundwater and surface water and areas of contaminated soil are located on the 13.7-acre former Bishop Tube property (“Source Property”), currently owned by CDP.
• TCE is considered the primary Site-related COC because its concentrations within soil, groundwater, and surface water are generally higher than other chlorinated solvents, although there are other hazardous substances and contaminants that are COCs. Additionally, TCE has migrated further in groundwater than the other COCs released at the Site. Since a public water supply is available within the entire Site boundary, vapor intrusion (“VI”) is anticipated to be the most significant exposure pathway. DEP plans to divide the Site into three operable units (“OUs”) and to remediate the Site to a combination of residential Act 2 standards, including background, Statewide health, and site-specific, based on the anticipated end use of the Source Property.
• DEP’s selected remedy includes In Situ Chemical Oxidation and/or In Situ Chemical Reduction (“ISCO/ISCR”), coupled with soil mixing to address unsaturated and saturated soils impacted by Site COCs; in situ injection of ISCO, ISCR or bioremediation amendments in the two primary chlorinated solvent source areas to address contaminated groundwater with engineering, and/or institutional controls, and long-term monitoring; and connection of the residence with an impacted domestic well to the existing public water line.
• In combination, implementation of these selected alternatives would protect public health and the environment and address potential exposure pathways by using engineering controls and institutional controls, connecting a home with a private well to the public waterline, reducing COC migration across the source property boundary, reducing migration and diffuse discharge of COCs to Little Valley Creek, and hastening retraction of the groundwater contaminant plume by reducing source concentrations of COCs in soil and groundwater.
• Implementation of these alternatives will be designed and implemented in a complimentary manner to avoid potential negative interactions, comport with the protections afforded under Article 1, Section 27 of the Pennsylvania Constitution, comply with Applicable, or Relevant and Appropriate Requirements (“ARARs”), and avoid negative impacts to Little Valley Creek. The total estimated present value cost of the proposed final remedial response action is $8.1M.

Administrative Record/Public Comment

• The administrative record which contains the information that forms the basis and documents the selection of the response action was available for public review and comment between September 24, 2021 and January 31, 2022.
  • 9/24/2021: DEP Proposes Remediation Plan for Soil, Groundwater, and Surface Water Contamination at Bishop Tube Site
  • DEP’s Analysis of Alternatives and Proposed Response (PDF)
  • Remedial Alternatives Presentation 2021 (MP4)
  • Remedial Alternatives Presentation 2021 Slide Presentation (PDF)
  • Bishop Tube Administrative Record (PDF)
    *Hard copies of the Administrative Record are also available for review in DEP’s Southeast Regional Office and the East Whiteland Township Municipal Building. Due to various limitations, such as size and reproducibility, as noted on the docket, a few records will be available only electronically.
• Public Comments Received (PDF) – for inclusion in the Administrative Record
• A Virtual Public Hearing was held on Tuesday, November 9, 2021
• Hearing Transcript (PDF) - November 9, 2021

What's Next

• Planning for additional pre-design investigation activities.

Pre-Design Investigations

• August 24, 2021 - Soil Investigation for Certain Inorganic Constituents and Groundwater Investigation for VOCs and Certain Inorganic Constituents (PDF) Submitted by Roux Associates, Inc. on behalf of Johnson Matthey, Inc. and Whittaker to report results of soil sampling completed in May 2021 and groundwater sampling performed in June 2021. (This document was included in Part II of the Administrative Record for the Site but was not considered during preparation of the AOA.) Soil sampling was conducted to follow up prior detections of inorganic parameters and groundwater sampling was performed to evaluate VOC concentrations across the site area.
• January 28, 2022 - Recent Regulatory Updates and Laboratory Data Package Correction (PDF) - Submitted by Roux Associates, Inc. on behalf of Johnson Matthey Inc. and Whittaker to acknowledge updates to Pennsylvania Code, Title 25, Chapters 93 and 250 and to provide updated laboratory analytical data for a soil sample collected in May 2021. The update resulted from an internal audit performed by Roux’s analytical subcontractor.
• April 1, 2022 - PFAS Sampling Results (PDF) – Sampling of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (“PFAS”) conducted by Roux Associates, Inc. on behalf of Johnson Matthey Inc. and Whittaker.

Remedial Action Implementation

• January 6, 2023 Revised Bishop Tube HSCA Site –Workplan for OU 3 Implementation (PDF) – submitted by Roux Associates, Inc. on behalf of Johnson Matthey Inc. and Whittaker Corporation. DEP accepted the work plan by letter, dated January 10, 2023 (PDF).
• On May 22 and May 23, 2023, Roux Associates installed piping from the street to the impacted property. DEP anticipates that a summary of these activities will be provided by Roux. This report will be posted here after finalization.
• On June 6, 2023, Aqua PA began providing public water service to the impacted property.
• August 7, 2023 Bishop Tube HSCA Site - Completion Report for Operable Unit 3 - Water Line at 54 Conestoga Road (PDF) submitted by Roux Associates, Inc. DEP accepted the report by letter, dated August 10, 2023 (PDF)

Timeline

= Completed Steps,  = Current Step,  = Next Steps

Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) Evaluations

April 6, 2016: ATSDR letter (PDF)
July 16, 2008: ATSDR Evaluation (PDF)

Report an Environmental Health Concern

While DEP is unaware of any confirmed environmental health issues related to the Site, some residents have expressed concerns to DEP. Pennsylvania residents with such concerns are encouraged to report environmental health concerns to the Pennsylvania Department of Health (DOH), where they will be evaluated and referred to an appropriate program area for potential investigation and follow-up. Please indicate in your message that your concern is related to the Bishop Tube Site.

• Complete the environmental health concern form
• Phone: 717-787-3350
• Email: env.health.concern@pa.gov

Contact Environmental Health

East Whiteland Township

• East Whiteland Township utilized a Technical Evaluation Grant (TEG) pursuant HSCA to conduct an independent technical evaluation of the proposed remedial response at the Site.
• East Whiteland Township maintains a website for this Site: Bishop Tube Land Development | East Whiteland Township, PA
• On August 9, 2023 (PDF) DEP communicated to East Whiteland Township on certain aspects of Constitution Drive Partners, LP. Final Land Development Submission, dated June 2023.

Community Outreach

• On September 12, 2023, DEP hosted an in person public meeting to discuss the Site and the implementation of the response action.
  • Community Update Presentation (PDF)
• DEP will plan additional public meetings, as needed, to discuss Site progress.

Community Updates

To subscribe to updates, please send an email to: RA-EP-SEROECB@pa.gov. Please indicate in the subject line or text of the email that you’d like to receive updates related to the Bishop Tube HSCA Site.

Contacting DEP

To schedule an appointment to review files associated with the Bishop Tube site and project, please call the Norristown Office at 484-250-5910.
Please direct correspondence or inquiries to one of the following:

• Project Information: Dustin Armstrong, Project Officer at darmstrong@pa.gov
• Community and Media Relations: Stephanie Berardi, Regional Communications Manager at sberardi@pa.gov
• Legal: Adam Bram, Regional Counsel at abram@pa.gov
  
• Legislative Inquiries: Regional Director’s Office, 484-250-5940