Meade Heights checked for toxic wastes
Linda McCa
The wooded area and path east
of Meade Heights may contain
buried hazardous chemicals, ac
cording to a report released April
9 by the Department of En
vironmental Resources (D.E.R.).
The site is one of five new loca
tions on the former Olmsted Air
Force Base that have been iden
tified by the Air Force as poten
tially contaminated with
trichloroethylene (T.C.E.) and
other wastes.
According to D.E.R., the
Meade Heights site was used by
the Air Force between 1956 and
1963 to dispose of unknown types
of waste. A recent site inspection
by the Air Force reportedly found
metal drums and "construction
rubble" there.
According to the report, "A
site survey revealed the presence
of eight drums at the base of the
fill area. These drums were found
to be filled with an unknown
material . . .It is recommended
that a portion of the fill area at
the edge of the post run at the
Meade Heights end of the
walkway, where the drums are
located, be excavated for observa
tion pits and inspected for the
presence of drums, sludge, or li
quid materials. If found, any
waste materials in drums should
be analyzed for T.C.E., T.0.H.,
V.0.C., and oil and grease. It is
also recommended that surface
water and sediment samples be
obtained from the stream that
runs through the area."
Campus officials were unable
to comment on the finding pen
ding action at University Park,
and had apparently not been
notified by D.E.R. that a dump
exists on campus. John Joseph,
Assistant Provost, said that the
matter had been referred to the
"Safety Division" at University
Park. Maurine Banner, an in-
Room and board upped for maj
By Neil Myers
Both tuition and room and
board charges are expected to in
crease next fall, but only the
room and board hike is definite.
The 6.3 percent increase was
announced on March 17 by the
Board of Trustees, and will
translate into and additional $7B
per semester for a "basic double
room" in the dorms. A corn
parable increase is expected for
Meade Heights and University
Apartments, although housing of
ficials have not released exact
figures for those facilities.
Whether or not the additional
room and board charges are need
ed remains an open question.
Steve A. Garban, Vice President
for Financial Operations, cited
"increased operating costs and
and Neil M ers
dustrial hygienist there, declined
to comment on whether the
University was aware of the situa
tion or what it intended to do.
She said that the university was
waiting for information from
D.E.R.
As of Monday evening of this
week, Dr. Joseph could only
report that R.E. Zilly, Vice Presi
dent for Business, would visit the
campus at an undetermined date
to inspect the site.
Joseph Kemp, Supervisor of
Maintenance and Utilities Opera
tions here, said that the university
did some construction years ago
in the area to add lights and pav
ing to the path, yet the drums
were never reported. Kemp said
his crews occasionally dump
"good clean fill" in the path
area.
Also named as a dumpsite in
Air Force records is a 15-acre
tract at the eastern end of the
Fruehauf property just north of
Capitol Campus. According to
D.E.R. Secretary Nicholas
Deßenedictis, that site may con
tain everything from barrels of
waste to typewriters and lun
chroom waste. Frank Fair, a
D.E.R. official, said the En
vironmental Protection Agency
took samples from the site about
six to eight weeks ago and hopes
to have the results back in
roughly a week. John Drayer,
Facilities Engineer at Fruehauf,
Capitol
limes
Published by students of Penn State Universit
mandated employee benefits" as
justification, adding, "It will be
necessary to spend a considerable
amount of funds in the near
future on (the) aging dining and
residence halls" at University
Park.
Bernard Resnick, Director of
Housing at University Park,
agrees. He cited several major
projects on next year's calendar.
Among them are:
--Replacing gas mains in Meade
Heights at a cost of $60,000.
--Replacing the fire alarm system
in the dorms, costing $12,000.
--Installing smoke detectors in
Meade Heights houses.
But when asked if these ex
penses amounted to more than
was common in previous years,
Resnick said, "I can't remember
what expenses were in past
years."
Rusted barrel rests In su
said the site is not used by his
company, but that he recalls the
Air Force dumping waste there
when he was in high school.
A visual inspection by Capitol
Times reporters revealed no sur
face evidence of drums or debris.
However, the Air Force report
says that "the presence of T.C.E.
and P.C.E. contamination was
Moreover, Frank Williams,
Housing Supervisor at Capitol,
said the dorms here are "not that
old", that they do not require
major repairs, and that his major
concern this year is with minor
vandalism.
Also planned for next year is
the conversion of 10 Meade
Heights houses to accomodate six
people, according to Pat Murphy,
Director of Residence Living.
University Park's Resnick said
half-bathrooms are being installed
in those units, which will house
nursing students from Hershey
Medical Center. Asked if Hershey.
students would displace Capitol
students who requested Meade
Heights assignments, Resnick
said, "We have set aside several
houses for nursing students.
Returning students get priority."
Tuition is another expense ex
pected to increase next year, but
acted dump area located along Meade Hei•hts • ath
shown in the Penn State area
located hydraulically down gra
dient. Reports indicated that large
quantities of drummed wastes
were disposed of at this site." The
Fruehauf site was used from
1950-1.956 and again from
1963-1964, according to D.E.R.
Please see "Air," p. 3.
, Ca
r repairs
no university official is willing to
speculate on how much until the
Board of Trustees meets this sum
mer. Tuition has increased an
average of 14 percent per year in
the last five years, with last year's
hike leveling off at nine percent,
according to data provided by
Capitol's Finance Office. Current
tuition charges for a full time
Pennsylvania resident are $1,156
per semester.
James H. Lane, Financial Aid
and Admissions Counselor, said
that "theoretically" students
receiving aid would not be af-
fected because tuition and room
and board charges are used to
determine aid awards. Lane said
that financial aid programs have
not been reduced this year
because "it's an election year."
Lane said students do not seem
to be concerned over the potential
increases in costs.
b Jeff re
Thursday,
April 19, 1984
Vol. 18, No. 7
itol Campus
G. Shatzer