Dry cleaners’ solvents taint Martinsville’s water

The dry cleaning industry’s use of environmentally hazardous solvents is declining, but the legacy of “perc” is an expensive one that will haunt cities such as Martinsville for decades. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency recently proposed placing the Morgan County seat on its Superfund priority list, citing groundwater contamination traced to several former dry cleaning shops in the heart of town.

The contamination forced the city’s water utility to install filtering equipment eight years ago. But as the groundwater contamination migrates toward the city’s water wells, the level of pollution is rising at a pace that will require Martinsville to tap a new well field within 10 years.

“It’s definitely one of the largest ones we’ve got,” Indiana Department of Environmental Management spokeswoman Amy Hartsock said of the contaminated Martinsville site, one of about 170 dry cleaner sites statewide in some phase of cleanup. The upside is that the use of the hazardous chemicals appears to be declining and sites undergoing cleanup “are not going back to perc,” said Rick Armstrong, executive director of the Richmond-based Midwest Drycleaning and Laundry Association. Others are winding down perc use as they opt for more efficient machines or as they change out […]

Full article: Dry cleaners’ solvents taint Martinsville’s water