DEP activities memo regarding WTC cleanup coordination, undated

NYC 9/11 Public Portal Document

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The completion of this monumental project is at hand and DEP and its partners are in a position to return $70 million to the City.fThe return of these monies is no small feat and is being done in conjunction with FEMA. DEP was able to push its partners and the contractors to finish the project one year ahead of schedule. The Scopes of Work developed for this project were precise allowing no room for waste, Contract Change Orders were handled with an eye towards fiscal responsibility. Senior management meetings were constantly held to ensure continued progress was made and to identify and correct problems before they materialized. Innovative measures were used to speed up the public’s response to the program resulting in fewer delays. These actions were all instituted without compromising the integrity of the overall mission to reassure the public that Lower Manhattan was, and is, a safe area to work and live.

I have included the highlights of each program dating back to May of last year when our Administration became involved in a project that was going nowhere. Today, we can take great pride in the accomplishments of this effort.

Exterior Building Clean-Up Program

• DEP performed inspections of exterior building surfaces, including the examination of roofs, facades, alleys, fire escapes and ledges for the presence of visible debris from the collapse of the World Trade Center (WTC). Buildings with visible accumulations of debris were identified, and building owners and managers were directed to have the material tested and cleaned appropriately. Follow-up inspections were performed based on owner/manager written response.

• DEP’s Exterior Clean Up Program was developed with funding from the Federal Emergency Management Agency to clean up exterior surfaces of buildings that still had WTC debris. DEP staff developed scopes of work for the clean up and air monitoring. The Exterior Clean Up Program was initiated on June 3,2002.

• Three abatement contractors, chosen through the City’s procurement process, conducted the exterior cleaning of building surfaces under DEP’s direction and oversight. A third party air-monitoring firm, also chosen through the City’s procurement process, who performed air sampling during clean-up activities. The clean-up work included installing barriers, collecting all bulk debris, HEPA vacuuming and wet wiping surfaces, and a final wash down of the included surfaces. Water collection barriers are set up when necessary. Collected water was filtered.

• DEP contractors completed work removing potentially hazardous dust and debris that accumulated on the roofs, windows and facades of downtown buildings following the World Trade Center collapse. DEP contractors cleaned the surfaces of 221 building, or more than 3.6 million square feet of exterior building space, during the 10-month long project.

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