Pending test results of asbestos land waste in Ambler has led the community organization Citizens for a Better Ambler to warn Chestnut Hill that a test of Wissahickon Creek banks may be necessary.

CBA, originally formed to combat a developer who proposed building a 17-story high-rise on an Ambler site, has pushed the Environmental Protection Agency to test three sites in the borough and Whitpain Township that were waste sites for asbestos manufacturers Keasby & Mattison and Nicolet Industries from the 1930s to 1970s.

The EPA collected soil, air and surface water samples from the Ambler properties between April 20 and April 28 to assess the possible asbestos content. The results of this assessment are expected in 60 to 90 days, according to an May 3 e-mail to the CBA from the EPA’s Site Assessment Manager Charlene Creamer. Creamer also wrote that an evaluation of those results, including possible action, would be complete 60 days after the results are released.

The CBA is concerned that the water of the Wissahickon Creek, which runs through the Ambler properties, could have carried asbestos material and deposited it on the creek’s banks in Chestnut Hill. CBA’s Sharon McCormick suggested a push for testing of the local banks similar to the assessment in Ambler.

“To the best of our knowledge, asbestos has never been a problem in the water of the Wissahickon,” said Friends of the Wissahickon Executive Director Tom Pelikan, who has reviewed reports on the water content.

The waste on another Ambler site, that was owned and operated by the two companies, now a Superfund site (described by the EPA as an uncontrolled or abandoned place where hazardous waste is located), was deemed safely contained by the EPA in 1993, with confirming reviews in 1997 and 2002. The waste piles on this site are covered with at least 18 inches of soil and vegetation, according to the state Department of Environmental Protection.

The three remaining sites being assessed — which the DEP refers to as the Bo-Rit site, the Reservoir site and the Wissahickon (Whitpain) Park site — are in line with EPA’s Pennsylvania Bureau of Air Quality regulations by having fencing and a natural barrier, the Wissahickon Creek, to bar trespassers. The EPA and DEP said they have been active in making sure the fencing and warning posts, are in repair. DEP officials said that the Bo-Rit and Reservoir sites have been inspected about 17 times from 2000 to 2005, and that some inspections led to citations being issued for repairs in the fencing and replacement of the signs.

However, the CBA is concerned that the effort isn’t enough. Parts of the properties are not fenced, where the Wisshickon Creek is used as the barrier. McCormick said she has seen fishermen on the sites, and fears for their safety, with the exposed asbestos products still on the property in the form of siding and piping. But under the Pennsylvania Air Quality the use of the Wissahickon Creek as a barrier is allowed.

“We acknowledge that most of the Ambler sites can be accessed, even with fencing in place, if an individual is intent on gaining access,” reads the DEP website. It also says the barrier may be revisited in the future.

According to DEP, the Bo-Rit site is northwest of Butler and Maple Avenues in Ambler and owned by Kane Core. Last year a plan to build a 17-story high-rise on the site was canceled because of community concerns. The second site, Whitpain Park, is between the Reservoir site and Mt. Pleasant Avenue in Whitpain Township.

The Wissahickon Valley Watershed Association purchased the third site, the 15-acre Reservoir site, last month to ensure the conservation of the surrounding land and to provide a waterfowl sanctuary. David Froehlich, association president, estimated that cleaning and landscaping the property would cost $200,000. His group is working with landscape architect Land Concepts of Blue Bell to complete a detailed plan. He expects the restoration to be financed with grants and fundraising.

“We’d like to provide a little bit of space that would be green and a sitting area to overlook the reservoir and allow people to watch the birds,” Froehlich said.

The watershed association is aware of the testing and has been in contact with both the EPA and DEP. “We hope to try to pick up the asbestos siding and pipe that we can,” Froehlich said. “In areas where there seems to be materials partially showing, we will cover and contain it.”

Currently, the CBA is awaiting the EPA’s results, and there is no word yet on whether assessment is needed in the Chestnut Hill area.

For more information regarding the sites, search for Ambler Area Asbestos Disposal sites on websites for the EPA (www.epa.gov) and the DEP (www.depweb.state.pa.us).