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MARCOR Newsletter—Spring 2007
- Managing Editor
- Dr. Joan L. Blazucki
- Chief Operating Officer
- D. A. Jungers
An Era “Rolls Over” at Cape Canaveral
MARCOR Demolishes Launch Complex 36 and Titan VIB
A 210-ft. umbilical tower (UT) that once fed liquid hydrogen and propellant to Atlas rockets gains momentum as it falls during the highly controlled demolition process. An out-of-view concrete wall to the right, also to be demolished, prevents the falling tower from pushing into the ground.
The era of Cape Canaveral Atlas and Centaur missile launches ended in October 1998, but the mobile service towers (MSTs), vertical integration buildings (VIBs), umbilical towers, support buildings, and other vestiges remained.
MARCOR is currently abating all hazardous materials and removing the structural remains under multiple contracts for “removal, recycling, and disposal actions” at launch Complex 36, as well as the imposing Titan VIB. Complex 36 hosted not only the Atlas/ Centaur rockets, but also many historic Surveyor, Mariner, Pioneer, and Intelsat missions. The dismantlement and demolition work began in October 2006.
Following precision rollover of the tall MST and UT units, excavators with shears cut and pull structural members free. Two additional excavators with grapples assist the shears in moving the freed steel. (Limited torch-cutting facilitates the removal process.) The recovered steel is sized as appropriate, then stockpiled for loading and transport.
The hazardous materials include non-friable asbestos, lead-based paint, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), and universal wastes such as mercury switches, ballasts, and chemicals.
Scrap materials are recovered and recycled, wherever possible. Concrete from walls, ramp areas, and the large “flame bucket” (designed to contain rocket launch heat and flames) are broken apart and excavated down to two feet below grade. The removed concrete is crushed and used to fill voids, and any excess is taken off-site for recycling. When the dismantlement and demolition work is complete, disturbed areas will be graded, covered with topsoil, and seeded.
Debris Debacle
Used needles dropped by drug addicts mingle with carry-out containers, baseballs, and once-loved teddy bears. Broken lawn chairs, tires, large chunks of wood, and an occasional refrigerator turn up, as well. The debris found in and along Baltimore’s Middle River Branch of the Patapsco River is sadly typical of other rivers and shorelines in the U.S. In a nation that is growing increasingly aware of recycling and environmental conservation, signs of carelessness are widely evident.
Baltimore City, however, should be applauded for its proactive, contractual approach: MARCOR is cleaning up four miles of the Middle Branch shoreline, cleaning out stormwater spillways and containment booms, and patrolling 1.5 square miles of open water. In just 14 weeks, crews gathered 5,517 bags of trash, 120 tires, 3,388 pieces of wood, 578 used hypodermic needles, and one refrigerator. The work is performed after every rainfall, or upon request by the city’s contract administrator. Unusual or very large debris is recorded, as well as wildlife sightings.
On a personal note, the MARCOR employees have joined like-minded citizens and groups to volunteer for the mayor’s annual cleanup of the area. Sharps, suspected drugs, and big items are marked for removal by others.
Decomposition Rates
- Paper
- 2 to 4 weeks
- Orange Peels
- 6 months
- Milk Cartons
- 5 years
- Plastic Containers
- 50 to 80 years
- Aluminum Cans
- 80 years
- Tin Cans
- 100 years
- Plastic Soda Bottles
- 450 years
- Glass bottles
- 500 years
- Foam Containers
- never
Source: Penn State University
Helping Ecology: MARCOR Replenishes Sand Dunes
The rhythmic slap of ocean waves mingles with the roar of heavy equipment as MARCOR performs emergency sand dune repair at Assateague Island. The fragile, natural barrier reef is home to the famous wild ponies as well as 43 other mammals and 296 bird species.
Storms, erosion caused by man-made alterations in the coastal area, and various other factors contribute to the inherent instability of the island. Proactive measures are needed to replenish more than 5,000 linear feet of sand dunes that protect the island and support its bustling ecosystem.
MARCOR is moving sand that has migrated from the dune areas and is trucking in an additional 80,000 cubic yards of sand from 30 miles away. The newly refurbished dunes, about 16 feet high at their peak and 85 feet wide at their base, will be re-planted.
Climate
Global Warming 2007: Mold Growth, La Niña, & Hurricanes on the Rise
Increasingly, climate and weather extremes are occurring worldwide—the changes cannot be denied. Heat is accumulating in deep oceans. And the volatile weather patterns in recent years seem to easily surpass our typical “back-in-my-day…” exaggerations.
This year, we may break the 1998 record for hottest year ever. According to Britain’s Meteorological Office, the probability of this occurring is 60%.
Respiratory Health Hazards
Due primarily to our changing climate, U.S. asthma rates have quadrupled since 1960. Rising amounts of carbon monoxide stimulate ragweed and some flowering trees to produce excessive amounts of pollen, and some soil fungi produce increased amounts of spores.
In addition, dust clouds emanating from Africa’s expanding deserts travel across the Atlantic and affect people in the U.S. Plus, mold growth from flooding and humid conditions is on the rise, as are the associated health problems.
Economic Consequences
According to Forbes, U.S. inflation-adjusted economic damages from changing climate and severe weather rose from about $5 billion per year in the 1950s to $80 billion in the 1990s. In 2005, it surpassed $200 billion.
Beware: La Niña & Hurricanes
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) predicts storms in the Northwest and drought in the South/Southwest due to La Niña, the periodic cooling of certain ocean waters that affect weather patterns. La Niña also favors Atlantic hurricanes.
According to retired U.S. Navy Vice Admiral Conrad Lautenbacher, Ph.D., undersecretary of commerce for oceans and atmosphere and NOAA administrator, “…50% of the population lives within 50 miles of the coast and are, therefore, exposed to landfalling hurricanes.”
Be prepared. MARCOR offers two retained services programs for fast, non-residential disaster recovery. Call 800-547-0128 or visit www.marcor.com.
Preparing Your Pet for a Hurricane
While most families living in our hurricane-prone areas have a disaster plan in place, some of their pets’ needs may be unintentionally overlooked. Please don’t forget your pets when preparing your family for the hurricane season.
First of all, make sure that each pet has up-to-date vaccinations. (Pet shelters may require proof of current vaccines.) Always keep a collar with ID and rabies tags on your pet and have a leash readily available. Also have a properly sized pet carrier for each animal—large enough for the pet to stand and turn around.
When storm information is issued, decide how your animal(s) will be sheltered—at a pet center, with a friend or relative out of harm’s way, or with you, as you ride out the storm.
If your pet will go to a local shelter, make sure every item accompanying the animal is labeled with your ID. This includes a carrier or cage, leash, food supply, water and food bowls, medications, specific care instructions, and newspapers or trash bags for cleanup.
If staying at home, be sure to bring your pets indoors well in advance of a storm. Reassure them often, and try to keep them calm and comfortable.
After the hurricane, some animals can become aggressive or defensive, so it is a good idea to monitor their behavior closely. Walk pets on a leash until they become re-oriented to their surroundings. Familiar scents and landmarks may be altered, and a pet may become confused or lost. Have a photograph available, just in case.
Green Roof Industry Taking Root in U.S.
Interest in “green roof” climate control is taking root in the U.S. We’re not talking about a few potted plants on your rooftop deck. We are talking about the roof of a building that is protected by a waterproof membrane, then covered with soil and vegetation. A green roof may also contain modern drainage and irrigation systems.
Also called eco-roofs, these lofty micro-climates are becoming common in Chicago, Atlanta, Portland, and other cities where regulations designed to combat urban heat encourage their use.
In 2001, a green roof was planted on Chicago’s City Hall as an experiment to determine the benefits. As a result, researchers estimated that if all the roofs in a typical city could be “greened,” urban temperatures could be reduced by as much as 12 degrees.
The number of green roofs in the U.S. started growing in the 1960s, and their numbers grew by 80% during 2004 and 2005. But they actually date back hundreds and perhaps thousands of years, both as sod houses in this country and as “living roofs” in Europe and elsewhere.
News Notes
Anthrax Updates
Quarantine at American Media Lifted
The final chapter of the five-year saga of the anthrax attack on the former headquarters of tabloid publisher American Media, Inc. (AMI) ended with the lifting of the quarantine order by the Palm Beach County Health Dept. Throughout the ordeal, MARCOR played a key role in the anthrax cleanup and final sampling that led to the re-opening.
The building, former home of such tabloid newspapers as the National Enquirer, had been vacated after its photo editor died from anthrax.
In July 2005, the owner of the former AMI Building contracted MARCOR to decontaminate more than 8,500 boxes of anthrax-laden archival photos, clippings, and other files stored at the site. It is our understanding that the boxes contained millions of photos of celebrities taken over decades.
In November 2006, MARCOR returned to the building, finished the cleanup begun by another contractor, and collected post-decontamination samples, which were then analyzed. The results were turned over to a blue ribbon panel of representatives from the EPA, Agency for Toxic Substance Disease Registry, OSHA, NIOSH, and others. The quarantine was finally lifted in February 2007.
Bacteria's Weakness Exposed
Researchers at the University of Mississippi Medical Center have found a mechanism that anthrax bacteria use to elude the body’s defenses. This could lead to a drug or therapy to lessen the effect of anthrax if used in a bioterrorism attack. Pathogenic bacteria like anthrax must tap into our body’s iron supply to grow. The researchers think the key is to block iron uptake.
Contaminated Keyboards
One of the dirtiest surfaces in an otherwise clean healthcare facility could be a computer keyboard. Without most of us realizing it, keyboards can become a hot spot for bacteria, harboring well over 3,000 microbes per square inch.
According to a study reported in Infection Control and Hospital Epidemi-ology, keyboards may be successfully decontaminated with disinfectants. Ideally, this should be done daily, or whenever a keyboard appears soiled.
The study also suggested that “The risk of transmission of pathogens from computer keyboards…would be prevented by compliance with current hand hygiene guidelines…”
Cost to Remove Mold is Deductible
The IRS has privately ruled that the business expense a taxpayer incurred for removal of mold from a building they owned and leased out was deductible as an ordinary and necessary expense under U.S. Code Sec. 162. The cost would not have to be capitalized.
Generally, repairs are deductible as an ordinary and necessary trade or business expense under Code Sec. 162 if they merely keep the property in an ordinary, efficient operating condition. But expenses must be capitalized if they’re needed to place the property in an ordinarily efficient operating condition (as in the case of expenses to remedy a condition that existed when the property was acquired), or if they add to the property’s value, substan-tially prolong its useful life, or adapt it to a new or different use. [See Code Sec. 263(a), Reg. § 1.263(a)-1(b), Reg. § 1.162-4.] These rules also apply for environmental cleanup costs (Rev Rul 94-38, 1994-1 CB 35).
NIOSH: Isocyanate Hazard Warning
The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) has posted a topical Web page about the potential environmental hazards of isocyanates, which are used in the manufacture of flexible and rigid foams, coatings, and insulating materials. A spray-on type, for example, is typically used in the automotive industry for truck bed liners.
“Isocyanates are powerful irritants to the mucous membranes of the eyes and gastrointestinal and respiratory tracts,” NIOSH asserts. “Direct skin contact can also cause marked inflammation. Iso-cyanates can also sensitize workers, making them subject to severe asthma attacks if they are exposed again.”
Proper engineering controls and the use of personal protective equipment (including fit-tested respirators) are crucial for eliminating the health hazard.
The NIOSH Web page includes additional information and a list of resources.
Los Alamos Cleanup
Low levels of pesticides and dioxin, asbestos- and lead-contaminated debris, incinerator ash, low-level radioactive waste (RAD), and possible unexploded ordnance (UXO) had been discarded near the Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico. The hazardous materials, dumped along an extremely steep, in-accessible area in Pueblo Canyon, had accumulated over 40 years. But the lab was ordered remove it all in 30 days.
Highly trained MARCOR personnel used a tram lift, extensive fall arrest systems, 3 excavators, and a special “spider” excavator (26-ft. reach), which could hug the steep terrain. The work was performed safely and on time.
School Bus Silica
Due to a malfunction in a Charlestown, Mass. concrete plant, over 3,000 lbs. of hazardous silica dust, also known as slag, contaminated nearby areas where 200 school busses were parked. Sixty-one people were rushed to local hospitals, complaining of respiratory problems, as well as associated throat and eye problems.
Within one hour, a fully equipped MARCOR crew mobilized and began the emergency cleanup effort. Work continued throughout the night and into the early morning hours so school children could have hazard-free transportation the next morning. Air monitoring confirmed MARCOR’s success.
Did You Know?
Factoids with an Environmental Flair
Pink Superbug Eats Toxic Waste, Smells Like Rotten Cabbage
The bacterium Deinococcus radiodurans, which can survive an atomic blast, is believed to be the world’s toughest organism. Now scientists have bio-engineered it into a “superbug” by adding genes from a strain of E. coli bacteria. According to lab tests, the resultant bacterium can digest and transform toxic compounds commonly found at nuclear weapons production sites into less harmful forms.
Zap Your Kitchen Sponge
The cellulose sponge that you use to keep your counters sparkling is a real germ trap, and it’s a sure way to spread bacteria and viruses each time you “clean” kitchen surfaces. By the end of one week’s use, a sponge can harbor more than a million bacteria!
Soak your sponge with water and microwave it for two minutes. This will not sterilize it, but will kill up to 99% of all bacteria and germs. At about 197° F, microwaving is more effective than tossing the sponge into a dishwasher, which reaches 140° F.
