BAR HARBOR, Maine — Bar Harbor has been awarded a $510,000 brownfield cleanup grant from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to remediate contaminated soils on a portion of the Mount Desert Island YMCA Park Street campus, the town announced Friday.
Coal ash. Arsenic. Lead. Cancer-causing chemicals. It all lurks in the top three feet of soil at the MDI YMCA’s 21 Park St. campus, a lot that’s owned by the town of Bar Harbor.
“This is a big win for Bar Harbor, and it reflects the incredible teamwork behind the scenes,” Town Manager James Smith said. “We’re grateful to the EPA and proud of the strong partnership between the Town, the YMCA, and our local and state collaborators. This funding helps us protect children, expand access to recreation, and invest in the community’s future.”
The dangerous chemicals were verified in 2023 after 31 borings into the soil and around the YMCA’s foundation showed arsenic, lead and other chemicals.
There were three options, according to Beacon Environmental geologist John Cressey at the time: to do nothing, to have a complete soil removal or a limited soil removal with off-site disposal and the installation of a marker layer.
“It’s our yard. It’s our play space,” MDI YMCA Executive Director Anne Tikkanen told the town council in 2023. The board and trustees are also looking at a scope of study around the entire perimeter of the YMCA building and she said it has had great momentum in what they want to do.
According to Cressey, who did the “Phase II Environmental Site Assessment” report for his firm Beacon Environmental Consultants LLC, some of those elements in the soil can be considered carcinogenic. Some is lead. Some is arsenic.
In 1998, before the Y was constructed, an investigation of the footprint of the building found some unsuitable fill. In 2019, there was discussion about expanding the YMCA’s building to the east, which was related to an initial discussion for the Jackson Lab’s child care being built there. When tested, they found not just unsuitable fill, but urban fill.
According to the town, “In 2021, the YMCA closed a portion of its outdoor green space after hazardous urban fill was discovered and a 2023 environmental assessment confirmed unsafe levels of heavy metals and hazardous compounds. This grant will allow for the safe clean-up and revitalization of this important community space.
“Once cleaned up, the site will reopen as a safe, green space for youth programs, recreation, and environmental education, restoring a vital resource for families across Mount Desert Island.”
Maine defines a brownfield as “real property, the expansion, redevelopment, or reuse of which may be complicated by the presence or potential presence of a hazardous substance, pollutant, or contaminant.”
There were a total of eight contaminants that tested over the state’s remedial-action-guideline levels. They are listed below:
— Arsenic
— Lead
This story was originally published by The Bar Harbor Story. To receive regular coverage from the Bar Harbor Story, sign up for a free subscription here.
