NYC 9/11 Public Portal Document
New York City Department of Environmental Protection
Bureau of Environmental Compliance
The New York City Department of Environmental Protection Asbestos Control Program (ACP)
with assistance from representatives of the NYS Department of Labor (NYS DOL) and the
United States Environmental Protection Agency (US EPA) performed site visits at buildings in
the vicinity of the World Trade Center. These site visits were scheduled in January and February
2002 to perform visual assessments of clean-up activities and the presence of visible debris at
building exteriors. These assessments were a follow-up for activities performed in October and
November 2001.
The visual assessments disclosed the presence of various amounts of debris with various
dispersal patterns of the building exteriors. The majority of buildings had isolated areas of debris
specifically at the perimeter of the roofs, at the base of parapet walls, and in gutters. Debris was
also visible at horizontal surfaces on building facades. For some buildings, building facades
facing the street were cleaned while the facades at the rear remained dirty.
The observed debris was characteristic of the debris from the impact of September 11, 2001.
The majority of the debris appears to have reformed into a dense mass (caked).
Letters were forwarded to building owners identifying the observations, and the requirements for
assessment and clean up, if necessary. Subsequently, the ACP scheduled follow-up site visits to
determine clean-up activities. During these follow-up visits, samples of the debris were
collected. The uneven dispersal identified above was also evident in the sample collection.
Samples collected from various buildings indicated that some of the debris was asbestos
containing material. Other samples did not disclose the presence of asbestos, and others were
trace or below 1% asbestos.
In the absence of sampling data for specific buildings, it is recommended that NYS DOL
licensed asbestos contractors with NYC DEP and NYS DOL certified workers perform the
clean-up activities. In addition, an independent third party must perform air monitoring during
the clean-up activities.
Supporting documentation is attached for your reference. The information includes a summary
of the visual inspections and the areas identified for clean-up, scopes of work for clean up of the
roofs and/or building facades, estimated cost for the clean-up activities.
Rev 1
February 28,2002
NYC-WTC_000150836
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