Letter regarding asbestos air tests at 310 Greenwich Street, Jan

NYC 9/11 Public Portal Document

IPNTA -_Environmental Committee Diane._S<_Lapson_._._._.

December 15, 2002

Christopher O. Ward, Commissioner New York City Department of Environmental Protection 59-17 Junction Blvd. Flushing, NY 11313

Dear Commissioner Ward: Association, representing more I am writing on behalf of the Independence Plaza Tenant located on Greenwich Street than 4000 tenants of Independence Plaza North (IPN), between Duane and North Moore Streets. dust cloud caused by the As you are no doubt aware, IPN was severely impacted by the indeed, destruction of the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001. Our homes and, dust to airborne our entire neighborhood, continued for over eight months to be subjected to our created by the debris-removal operation on Pier 25, which is virtually adjacent complex. an environmental We have been trying to get the responsible government agencies to do DEP nor any other cleanup of our buildings for more than a year. In all that time, neither agency was willing to test our buildings for contaminants. Tenant Therefore, out of concern for the health and well-being of IPN tenants, the one of Association hired MVA, Inc. laboratory to test a piece of carpet from the hallway of ultrasonication method that our towers, at 310 Greenwich Street, for asbestos, using the the results of the Dr. Millette developed for the EPA. We are enclosing herewith a copy of asbestos ultrasonication test, which show an extremely high level of asbestos (1.3 million -month structures per square centimeter). Given this test result, plus our massive 8 carpeting in IPN exposure to WTC dust, it is reasonable to assume that all of the hallway contains asbestos. that affixes the Recently, DEP ordered IPN's landlord to have testing done of the mastic since carpet mastic carpeting to the cement floor. Asbestos experts have advised us that, asbestos coming is a non-friable material, EPA's ultrasonication test will not show any from dust from carpet mastic. The test will only detect asbestos which comes testing have no contamination of the carpet. Therefore, the results of the recent mastic ordered by the IPN relevance to the enclosed results of the carpet ultrasonication test, tenant association. carpeting itself. Air Therefore, we hereby request that further testing be done on the IPN or namely ultrasonication testing should be supplemented with other testing methods - asbestos contamination of microvac - that would more accurately reflect the potential for demonstrate the need (or lack the IPN complex. Such testing must be sufficient to thereof) for asbestos abatement of the hallways of IPN buildings.

NYC-WTC 000109346