Posted: Tuesday, January 5, 2010 12:30 am | Updated: 1:10 am, Tue Jan 5, 2010.
UF has agreed to pay $175,000 in federal pollution fines after inspectors discovered soil and groundwater contamination on campus from March 2008.
UF spokeswoman Janine Sikes said the university has not completed its investigation of the contamination and is still trying to determine if a cleanup will be required.
Environmental Protection Agency inspectors said tetrachloroethylene levels in the soil and groundwater were higher than allowed by state regulations.
Tetrachloroethylene is a colorless, sweet-smelling chemical and a non-flammable organic liquid.
It is commonly used in aerosol dry-cleaning products and as a metal degreaser, according to the EPA.
According to the International Agency for Research on Cancer, tetrachloroethylene is also known to cause liver damage and is suspected to cause cancer.
At high levels, tetrachloroethylene could also cause damage to the nervous system, according to the Department of Health and Human Services.
Sikes said UF committed no intentional wrongdoing.
“The EPA regulations are very technical and UF had a different interpretation than the EPA of what the regulation required,” she said.
ZEP Formula 768, the solution in which the tetrachloroethylene originated, was used to clean lawn equipment on a concrete slab outside a maintenance building.
Sikes said UF stopped using the solvent almost immediately upon learning that EPA had a concern.
Based on testing around the site, Sikes said UF believes the impact of the tetrachloroethylene is limited to the area around the concrete slab next to the maintenance building.
Because the EPA expressed concern solely for the groundwater and soil contamination, UF has not checked into the health of the maintenance workers who used the product.
UF was also fined for lesser offenses, such as not properly labeling containers of mineral spirits and batteries.
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