Temporary parking acceptable use of former Apollo nuke site, DEP says

The state Department of Environmental Protection said a company that temporarily stored RVs on a former nuclear fuels plant site in Apollo didn’t violate terms of a covenant for the property.

“The temporary use of this site for the parking of vehicles will not present any radiological concerns, though substantial disturbances of the soil should be avoided,” said DEP spokesman Jamar Thrasher.

Meyer’s Shreck RV of Washington Township leased a portion of the former Babcock & Wilcox plant site from Apollo for $2,000 to temporarily store more than 30 RV campers. The plant was razed decades ago, and the top layer of radiologically contaminated soil was removed. The borough owns the site, which is subject to a covenant imposed by B&W that restricts development. The site cannot be dug up, according to the covenant.

The covenant restricts residential use and stays with the property deed and will be transferred to any new owner, he said.

In the future, if the borough plans to use the site permanently for parking, it should be paved to abide by the covenant, Thrasher said.

The RV campers were stored on the site for less than two months and have been gone since last week, said Apollo Council Vice President Mark Tarle.

“We were looking for a temporary space and were unaware of the history of the site,” said John Park, general manager of Meyer’s Shreck RV. “We were assured that there were no issues with the site. I’m glad that DEP backed up what the borough told us earlier.”

Park also appeared to be glad to be removed from any environmental drama.

“We’re passionate about what we do and we want people to enjoy camping and have fun,” he said.

The borough’s engineer is working to secure a grant to conduct a feasibility study about what the borough can do to redevelop the 22-acre site with frontage on the Kiski River. Tarle said the borough would work within the parameters of the covenants and try to find a future use that would generate income for the cash-strapped town.

Former Apollo resident and environmental activist Patty Ameno applauded DEP for adhering to the covenant.

Although the federal Nuclear Regulatory Commission released the site in 1997 from its jurisdiction after a massive cleanup, Ameno said she still has lingering concerns about contamination.