Document yp2zLGyQQkjb1NYan4eMZoL0E

January 29, 1971 Mr, R. P, Casey Substation Operation & Maintenance Engineer Ohio Edison Company 417 North Main Street Akron, Ohio 44300 Dear Mr. Caseys Your letter dated January 20, 1971 addressed to Mr. D. A. Olson was forwarded to me for response since I have been closely Involved with the polychlorinated biphenyl environ mental problem. Since February, 1970 when Mr. Olson wrote his letter inform ing our customers of a potential problem, there has been Increasing evidence that PCB's of chlorine content less than 54. have been found in the environment generally near the source of contamination. There is also increasing evi dence that the PCl'i's being identified as Aroclor 1254 and Aroclor 1260 are probably the residues from lower chlori nated materials which had undergone degradation. Because of this limited information we have concluded that control of all PCB's is indicated. A large percentage of our production has had a chlorine content of less than However since our Aroclor products are mixtures of many isomers, the higher chlorinated ver sions have been present in virtually every mixture In vary ing amounts. These higher chlorinated isomers are very resistant to degradation; therefore, will continue to build up in the environment unless controlled. We have an active program for evaluating new materials for use in Askarel applications. The most promising material developed to date is a modified PCB from which the per sistent higher chlorinated isomers have been virtually re moved resulting in a fluid whioh has attractive dielectric properties but if It esoapea into the environment is more biodegradable. Samples of this material, whioh we have designated as MCS 1016, are now being evaluated by many of TRAN 039382 HARTOLDMONOQ27474 Mr. R. F. Casey 2 Jan. 29, 1971 the capacitor manufacturers. If test results confirm that this material is an acceptable fluid we plan to produce it in commercial quantities by mid-year 1971. An incinerator capable of destroying Askarels must operate at temperatures ranging from about 2000F to 3000F and must have facilities for scrubbing the stack gases to pre vent hydrogen chloride gases from escaping to the atmos phere. This type of unit can be relatively costly to in stall and operate but if can be Justified if the volume of material to be destroyed is great enough. It may be econ omically practical for several units of this type to be located throughout the country providing a service to the utilities nearby. We plan to operate our unit to gain ex perience to help evaluate the practicality for installing more units. At present only one State, Pennsylvania, has objected to the disposal of Askarel contaminated solids in properly managed landfills. I recommend that landfills be used as long as they are authorized. Certainly if the liquid is drained from failed equipment the potential for migrating into the environment, already very small, is reduced considerably. In the meantime we are continuing our studies on the incin eration of the3e solids and hope to have a unit in operation before the end of the year. I recognize the many problems that the PCB environmental contamination problem has created; however, 1 am optimistic that Askarels with their many beneficial characteristics will continue to servo the industry if we all follow good house keeping and disposal practices. I recommend that you seriously consider participating in the NB1A-ANSI effort to coordinate the Askarel handling problem country-wide, I hope this Information is useful to you. If I can be of further service, please let me know. Sincerely, VJBPime COMPANY W. B. Papageorge Manager CONFIDENTIAL Environmental Control \ tran 039303 HARTOLDMON0027475