Asbestos Containment Completed at Court Street in Nashua, N.H.

A clean-up effort by the U.S. EPA, the City of Nashua and the N.H. Dept. of Environmental Services has been completed adjacent to the Nashua public library. The work, completed last week, was done to prevent public exposure to asbestos contamination. The cleanup was a successful effort between federal, state, and local government.

Elevated levels of asbestos had been identified in the half-acre grassy area between the parking lot and the Nashua River adjacent to the library. EPA site investigators determined that if the asbestos in the soil should become airborne by activities such as natural erosion, or mowing, it could potentially threaten public health.

Work began approximately three weeks ago to cap the half-acre of contaminated soil. To facilitate the cap installation, approximately 95 tons of contaminated soil was removed and disposed of in space provided by the city at the Nashua City Landfill.

The City of Nashua will seed the capped area shortly. Town officials and library personnel are asking the public to be cautious and stay off the area during this critical period of re-vegetation.