The Environmental Protection Agency's top regional manager for the federal Avtex Superfund cleanup and the bankruptcy trustee for defunct Avtex Fibers Inc. informed community economic leaders last week that they are prepared to convey the entire 40-acre property to the local Industrial Development Authority for redevelopment.

Andrew Palestini, EPA's Region III remedial project manager in Philadelphia, informed the IDA's industrial redevelopment committee by letter that the EPA and FMC Corp., former owner of the Avtex site, "in principle ... agree that they want the trustee to convey all of the property to an Industrial Development Authority for potential redevelopment."

No timetable for the conveyance was given. However, Palestini told Front Royal businessman Fred Foster, chairman of the IDA's redevelopment committee in the letter that the EPA, bankruptcy trustee, and insurance companies holding liens on the Avtex property "are well along" with three necessary settlement agreements that are being kept confidential while the parties are negotiating them.

"After the trustee agrees to convey the real estate to the authority, EPA will try to work out a prospective purchaser agreement with covenants not to sue etc. with the authority," Palestini wrote.

The covenants not to sue would protect the IDA from later financial responsibility for any remaining cleanup costs now being borne by FMC Corp., which owned the plant from 1963 to 1976 when Avtex Fibers took over the facility.

Avtex, because it is bankrupt, is not paying cleanup costs.

On July 20, the IDA named directors of a non-profit Warren County Redevelopment Corp., which is being established to assume title to the Avtex property as it is released.

The directors include Foster, a jeweler, of 130 East Main Street; H. Eddie Morrison, an IDA director of 16 Massie Avenue; L. Thomas Preston, a retired military officer, of 189 Lee Burke Road; George L. McIntyre Jr., a manager of Linden Beverage Co., of Rockland; Peter V. Walker, an accountant, of 235 South Street; Fitz L. Wickham Jr., of Dungadin subdivision; and

Joseph Daniel Althouse, owner of Royal Linen Service, of 1 Boulder road.

The IDA has asked its attorney, Hubert H. Marlow Jr., to draw up incorporation papers for the redevelopment corporation.

At a meeting of the redevelopment committee July 20, Anthony H. Murray Jr., the bankruptcy trustee, said EPA now seems to have put the Avtex project "on some kind of expedited timetable."

David Whitestone, a representative of U.S. Rep. Frank R. Wolf, 10th District Republican, told committee members attending the meeting that "the EPA strategy is to keep congressmen happy so they will vote for the Superfund reauthorization bill," which EPA needs to stay in business.

So far, the Clinton administration and Democratic leadership of Congress has been unable to muster the required votes to pass the Superfund legislation, Whitestone said.

Both EPA and insurance companies, major mortgage holders for the Avtex property, have caused the delay to date in getting agreement to release the site for redevelopment, Murray said.

"We've been negotiating these agreements for the past two years," the bankruptcy trustee said. "It's been a problem with the major mortgage holders. Every time we think we have it down, they renegotiate," he said.

Also, EPA's policy up to this point was to require the property to be cleaned up to a pristine state "so a child could eat the dirt and not die," said Kate Blow, a representative of FMC Corp. with Environmental Issues Management of Washington, D.C.

"I think we have turned the corner so we have a change in national policy" at EPA, Murray said.

Palestini, who was in Front Royal visiting the Avtex site last Wednesday, would not be

interviewed or photographed by The Warren Sentinel. He said interviews had to be approved in advance by EPA's Region III public affairs officer.

In his letter to Foster, Palestini reported the latest developments in EPA's cleanup of a 100,000-gallon oil spill that occurred at the Avtex Superfund site in May.

"EPA stopped pumping from four of the five sumps that were installed to capture the spilled oil and will shortly stop pumping from the last sump because we have basically pumped out all of the recoverable oil," Palestini said.

"We are now working on disposing of the captured oil and the excavated soil to offsite facilities. The berm around the tank will be reconstructed when the last sump is removed. We anticipate this may occur by next week."

Palestini said EPA has just completed removal of more than 2,000 drums of hazardous materials from the site and is now "working on disposal of the drums containing PCBs. These drums are primarily from operations of Avtex and Joseph Repetto."

Palestini said "EPA will shortly begin dismantling the carbon disulfide moats. This will begin with removing and treating the water presently in the moats and will include removing and disposing of the concrete in an offsite facility. In addition, EPA is investigating the removal of the contents of some of the remaining tanks at the site and draining the estimated 14 to 17 major transformers which still contain PCBs."

Palestini said EPA is planning to hold "a public availability" session Front Royal on Aug. 23. We are hopeful that the Industrial Redevelopment Committee, FMC, and the Friends of the Shenandoah River will be able to participate along with us," he said.