Asbestos removal at an old smelter site will make the property useful again.

Asbestos removal at an old smelter site could make the property useful again

Ripley, MI – The former Quincy Smelter Works property, which has been disregarded for many years, will finally see some new changes.

The Environmental Protection Agency has given word to Franklin Township officials that it has agreed to pay for the asbestos abatement of the smelter. The agency made the decision on February 27.

Once cleanup is completed at the plant, the township plans to lease the property to the Keweenaw National Historical Park, which expressed interest many years ago in the site for its role in the history of copper mining in the area. However, the project’s development was halted in 2002 when the EPA declared the site was unsafe for construction work and that asbestos and other hazardous materials had to be removed before any work was done to the buildings.

Although asbestos removal is the focus at the moment, more work will be needed to be done on the buildings before development at the site could take place. Crews will are expected to begin work in the spring once the weather gets warmer.

The EPA’s remediation project manager, Rosita Clarke-Moreno, said the agency estimated the cleanup project to cost about $400,000 in 2004 but that number would probably higher today.

The Keweenaw National Historic Park’s landscape architect will also be involved in the cleanup process to ensure no damage is done to the historic aspects of the property.

Quincy Development Corp. handed the property over to the Franklin Township in 1999 when it couldn’t fulfill certain financial obligations.

Township residents were glad to hear cleanup work will be done to the site.

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