Oct. 15--A complex project to clean up lead-filled incinerator ash affecting thousands of Jacksonville homes has been rescheduled to start in January.

Work in the first of four neighborhoods was once expected to start in September.

But final approval for the project wasn't given by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency until about two weeks ago, said Jim Manning, a city administrator overseeing the cleanup.

The city has awarded two contracts so far: $18.6 million for WRScompass, a Tampa-based firm, to work in a zone centered in the Durkeeville area northwest of downtown; and $8 million to Tetra Tech NUS for work in an area off Moncrief Road once known as Brown's Dump.

The city is still trying to set up contracts for work in neighborhoods around a former incinerator site at Forest Street by McCoys Creek and around Lonnie Miller Park on West Moncrief Road.

Close to 2,500 pieces of real estate could be affected by the cleanup plan, in which soil is tested for lead and contaminated ground is dug up and replaced with fresh dirt.

The project is meant to undo damage that started early in the 20th century when Jacksonville's garbage was burned in incinerators. Ash from the incinerators was spread like fill dirt in low-lying patches of ground, where homes and businesses were built years later.

Removing soil -- a layer as much as 2 feet thick -- without damaging the buildings is a delicate job that could ultimately cost nearly $100 million and last three to four years.

The city began setting aside money for the work years ago, but hundreds of landowners still haven't given permission for crews to test and clean their land.

That means that when work starts on lots whose owners have given permission, neighbors will watch closely to judge the outcome on criteria ranging from dust and inconvenience to landscaping.

Hoping to ease fears and get more owners signed up, city officials have organized outreach events targeting each neighborhood and two adjacent areas, in Springfield and Brooklyn, where wind might have carried ash from incinerator smokestacks.

But a lot of homeowners leave those events without agreeing to either testing or cleanups.

"I'm not going to say that until after the first of the year," Springfield resident Ed Johnston said after questioning Manning and other city employees at a recent event at the Springfield Women's Club.

Johnston said he and many neighbors are angry that the city didn't disclose concerns about old wind-borne ash until this year, despite having discussed that with the EPA years earlier.

Residue that drifted from smokestacks is expected to pose notably less risk than the loads of ash that were trucked to some properties and poured out. But Johnston said many neighbors remain angry and skeptical of city assurances.

"Not only me, but everybody else," Johnston said. "I think we're all disappointed with the city."

steve.patterson@jacksonville.com, (904) 359-4263

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