Abutters to the Robin Rug/Bristol Yarn Mill site received notices from the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management (RIDEM) at the end of November, outlining the agency’s findings from an environmental investigation, the goal of which was to determine the extent to which historical activities at the site may have left behind contaminated soil and groundwater.

The following findings were made:

• Petroleum hydrocarbons and metals (including arsenic and lead) are present at concentrations that would pose a potential increased risk to human health if they were contacted directly. These contaminants are generally the result burn residue expected to be found at an old mill site.
• Soil vapor beneath the sub slab of the mill building presented with Volatile Organic Compounds, but because that area is proposed as an open-air garage and not a residence, it is not considered to pose a risk.
• Polycyclic Organic Compounds were found in the groundwater at concentrations that are consistent with groundwater quality for General Business areas and are not considered as a source for drinking water. The property is served by the municipal drinking water supply.

Michelle McLarney, the DEM environmental engineer who is the project manager for the 125 Thames St. investigation, suggests that the findings are very much in keeping with what DEM would have expected to find at a former manufacturing site.

“There are hundreds of sites across the state like the Thames Street site that are vestiges of Rhode Island’s industrial heritage,” she said. “If not remediated, the residual contaminants found here would be detrimental to the environment and public health. Taking action and remediating the whole site, however, will ensure it is clean and safe and ready to be converted into its next use.”

DEM’s proposed remediation plan includes encapsulation of contaminated soils and the adherence to a Soil Management Plan for any future management of subsurface soil. Based on the proposed use of the area in which sub-slab vapors were detected, no additional measures are required.