Buried lumber, possible soil contamination?

16 years ago

Hi,

I am clearing some brush for a cold frame and came across a small pile of really old lumber. I have no idea how long its been there, my house is 18 years old but I've only lived here 2.

Most of the pile was 1"X6"X16'planks of what I'm assuming is some kind of untreated softwood. The pieces on the top I could break in my hand and pieces towards the bottom are totally rotten, almost dirt. What I'm concerned about are these planks had some kind of paint on them that flaked of in large chunks.

I picked most of the chunks up but I am sure there are more in there and plenty dissolved into the soil. There were a few other random pieces of wood that were completely preserved and had that slight green hue of pressure treated lumber. So I'm fairly certain the majority of the wood was untreated, but I'm concerned about the paint in regards to soil contamination.

I plan on growing various food crops including root crops like carrots in this cold frame.

My questions are:

1) Should I be concerned at all?

2) Will just shoveling out the surrounding soil around the rotten wood and replacing it suffice to remove the threat of growing contaminated food?

3) If no for #2, what measures should I take for soil remediation?

4) Will a regular university soil test check for this type of this or will I have to find a specialized lab?

Thanks

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Comments (6)

tsugajunkie z5 SE WI ♱
16 years ago
A lot of loacal health departments will do free lead testing of paint chips. If the paint did contain lead, you should be able to specify a lead test when the soil is tested. How much wood is "a few other random pieces of wood" that you suspect were pressure treated?

tj
iowa50126
16 years ago
Most hardware stores have lead paint test kits which would tell you if the paint had lead in it. The kits are cheap and give you almost instant results.

If you have a lead paint contamination problem in your soil, you will need to check the laws in your area for disposal of the lead paint and or contaminated soil.
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bsauceman81
Original Author
16 years ago
There are exactly 2 pieces of PT lumber found so far.. One 4"x6"x4' beam and one 2"x4"x4'. These were both on the top of the pile.

There were about 8 of those 16' planks in the ground.

Thanks for the tip about lead paint test kits, i will pick one of those up.

If the paint comes up negative for lead, is there anything else I should be concerned with? For the planks towards the bottom, the paint was the only thing still recognizable. The paint came of in large sections while the wood underneath it was mush.
Kimmsr
16 years ago
The primary danger of lead paint is touching it and then ingesting, eating it, without properly washing your hands. There may also be some concern about inhaling the lead if it is changed into an airborne dust. Plants grown in soils with lead containing paint chips have not been found to uptake that lead, although in unmulched soils some could be splashed onto the plants and root crops could have some of that lead on the surface.
bcomplx
16 years ago
Once you rule out lead, you'll be okay except for cadmium, toxic copper levels, etc., that have leached from the treated wood. It gets into the soil when it's dissolved by rain. As far as I know, only beets and close cousins (spinach, chard) can actually take up these compounds, but I would err on the side of caution.

Is there a possibility of using that site for ornamentals and grow edibles elsewhere? A bodacious bed of flowers would bring in lots of beneficial insects, and plenty of organic matter will draw in earthworms, which can take up some chemical residues.

On the plus side, the fact that much of the wood has gone crumbly means that the material has been colonized extensively by fungi, which are hugely effective when it comes to breaking down contaminants. Mycoremediation works.

Here is a link that might be useful: my website
bsauceman81
Original Author
16 years ago
Yeah, just for piece of mind, I will probably find another place to grow edibles. I can find another place for this frame without too much trouble. I am going to get this soil tested though and the paint chips so thanks everyone for the great information.

Buried lumber, possible soil contamination?

Comments (6)

tsugajunkie z5 SE WI ♱

iowa50126

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Buried lumber, possible soil contamination?

Comments (6)

tsugajunkie z5 SE WI ♱

iowa50126

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bsauceman81Original Author

Kimmsr

bcomplx

bsauceman81Original Author

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