Qualified Environmental
Professional RFP
$400,000 Cleanup Grant & Loan for the 3.16-acre Yard South Site at 149A Front Street, South Portland.
Yard South: From Shipyard to Sustainability
Located in the Liberty Shipyard industrial area, the 3.16-acre waterfront site was constructed entirely of urban fill circa 1940. Over the decades, it served as a shipyard, fish processing plant, and septic tank manufacturing facility.
Fill materials and surficial soils contain weathered petroleum products and heavy metals (lead and arsenic) at concentrations exceeding cleanup guidelines. The shoreline is severely eroded, risking further discharge into the Fore River.
SPHDC has been awarded a $160,000 grant and a $240,000 loan through the Maine DECD to facilitate remediation. The goal is to dovetail cleanup activities with a mixed-use redevelopment featuring 110 residential units and a public waterfront plaza.
The future Yard South will include boutique retail, restaurants, and a 100-foot plaza/colonnade for artist installations, connecting the Ferry Village neighborhood to Bug Light Park via a new multi-use trail.
Project Framework
The site currently contains a historic pier and remnants of former industrial foundations, concrete slabs, and buried debris requiring professional oversight.
Analysis of Cleanup Alternatives (ABCA)
- Shoreline Stabilization: Placement of riprap to prevent further erosion of potentially-contaminated urban fill materials into the Fore River.
- Soil Cover Systems: Construction of engineered caps over the entirety of the Site to prevent human contact with impacted surficial soils (0-2 feet).
- "Clean Corridors" Development: Targeted soil excavation and off-site disposal in areas proposed for foundation footings and subsurface utilities to prevent future worker exposure.
- Institutional Controls: Preparation of an Environmental Media Management Plan and a Post-Closure Cover System Maintenance Plan.
- VRAP Documentation: Performance of reporting and documentation necessary to obtain a MEDEP VRAP Certificate of Completion.
- Technical Liaison: Work with SPHDC, DECD, and MEDEP VRAP staff to manage and oversee the RLF funds and cleanup operations.
Voluntary Response Action Program. Maine's program to encourage cleanup and redevelopment of contaminated properties.
Historical industrial materials typically containing metals, petroleum constituents, and hydrocarbons found at depths up to 10 feet.
The QEP services must culminate in the acquisition of a MEDEP VRAP Certificate of Completion for the site.