I'm going to start a thread for this, because I believe this is something that has the potential to affect the entire built environment in MA / New England generally. First off:
What is Pyrrhotite, and why is it a problem? Pyrrhotite is a naturally occurring mineral, a type of pyrite (Fool's Gold) that is relatively uncommon, but when in contact with water and air it expands as it oxidizes, as well as producing sulfuric acid. That "expansive" behavior, when included in crushed aggregates and used in concrete, causes the concrete to crack and crumble - sort of how water freezing can induce cracking, but this happens as a property internal to the concrete itself. This leads to structurally unsound foundations. Unfortunately, that behavior doesn't manifest immediately - it takes 20-30 years before symptoms are visible, leading to failures in concrete structures. There is no known fix for this, except wholesale replacement of the foundation with new concrete - literally lifting a house off its foundations and repouring a new one underneath. This is a process that can easily cost well over $150,000 for your average single family home, and conventional insurance will not cover it, nor will banks usually loan for repairs.
Initially, this was first systematically identified in CT in the early 2010s; it was believed to be a problem that was isolated to stone supplied by a single quarry in Connecticut, and to homes built between 1983 and 2015, when the CT AG got involved and sale of contaminated aggregate was discontinued. , USGS received funding in 2020 to determine where pyrrhotite may be found, and its proximity to aggregate sites: In short, its large swathes of MA and CT. While CT has continued to bear the brunt of this issue, the previously identified source was on the MA border. Unfortunately, there has recently been a spate of homes found to have been built in MA outside a reasonable radius of concrete manufacturers who sourced stone from that quarry, meaning that there is at least one additional yet to be identified source. Yesterday, a 260 unit complex in Dracut, more than 35 miles from the next closest previously identified case in Winchendon, found that it's foundations are in need of replacement at $160k per unit - a total bill of ~$43m. This was estimated to affect ~2000 properties when it was isolated to the CT border area - now that its area of impact has vastly expanded, its something that is going to continue to crop up across the state. This is a problem that is not isolated to individual homeowners - any project that used concrete before testing was implemented could have been affected. While CTDOT hasn't identified any projects that used contaminated concrete, certain municipal projects in CT, including a school and a municipal bridge, have identified its presence - As of 2015, only NYSDOT has a defined standard for its concrete.
What is being done about it? CT, having gotten there a decade ago, has since implemented a subsidized core test program to determine conclusively if a foundation is contaminated, as well as a state and surcharge funded captive insurer to cover foundation replacements when traditional homeowners policies won't. its funded by a $12 per policy surcharge, as well as $100m in state bond funds. There is a testing reimbursement program in MA, and quarries will require testing and licensing by MassDOT as of July 1 2024 - but that doesn't help anything built before then. There's also a homeowners lobbying group, MARACT, which has been vocal in getting MA to institute the same sort of supports that CT has. MA senate recently (as in last week) passed an amendment to the Affordable Housing Act that creates a Crumbling Concrete Assistance Fund, and allows for the same $12 per policy surcharge, but doesn't dedicate bond revenues to it.
https://portal.ct.gov/doh/doh/programs/crumbling-foundations
What is Pyrrhotite, and why is it a problem? Pyrrhotite is a naturally occurring mineral, a type of pyrite (Fool's Gold) that is relatively uncommon, but when in contact with water and air it expands as it oxidizes, as well as producing sulfuric acid. That "expansive" behavior, when included in crushed aggregates and used in concrete, causes the concrete to crack and crumble - sort of how water freezing can induce cracking, but this happens as a property internal to the concrete itself. This leads to structurally unsound foundations. Unfortunately, that behavior doesn't manifest immediately - it takes 20-30 years before symptoms are visible, leading to failures in concrete structures. There is no known fix for this, except wholesale replacement of the foundation with new concrete - literally lifting a house off its foundations and repouring a new one underneath. This is a process that can easily cost well over $150,000 for your average single family home, and conventional insurance will not cover it, nor will banks usually loan for repairs.
Initially, this was first systematically identified in CT in the early 2010s; it was believed to be a problem that was isolated to stone supplied by a single quarry in Connecticut, and to homes built between 1983 and 2015, when the CT AG got involved and sale of contaminated aggregate was discontinued. , USGS received funding in 2020 to determine where pyrrhotite may be found, and its proximity to aggregate sites: In short, its large swathes of MA and CT. While CT has continued to bear the brunt of this issue, the previously identified source was on the MA border. Unfortunately, there has recently been a spate of homes found to have been built in MA outside a reasonable radius of concrete manufacturers who sourced stone from that quarry, meaning that there is at least one additional yet to be identified source. Yesterday, a 260 unit complex in Dracut, more than 35 miles from the next closest previously identified case in Winchendon, found that it's foundations are in need of replacement at $160k per unit - a total bill of ~$43m. This was estimated to affect ~2000 properties when it was isolated to the CT border area - now that its area of impact has vastly expanded, its something that is going to continue to crop up across the state. This is a problem that is not isolated to individual homeowners - any project that used concrete before testing was implemented could have been affected. While CTDOT hasn't identified any projects that used contaminated concrete, certain municipal projects in CT, including a school and a municipal bridge, have identified its presence - As of 2015, only NYSDOT has a defined standard for its concrete.
What is being done about it? CT, having gotten there a decade ago, has since implemented a subsidized core test program to determine conclusively if a foundation is contaminated, as well as a state and surcharge funded captive insurer to cover foundation replacements when traditional homeowners policies won't. its funded by a $12 per policy surcharge, as well as $100m in state bond funds. There is a testing reimbursement program in MA, and quarries will require testing and licensing by MassDOT as of July 1 2024 - but that doesn't help anything built before then. There's also a homeowners lobbying group, MARACT, which has been vocal in getting MA to institute the same sort of supports that CT has. MA senate recently (as in last week) passed an amendment to the Affordable Housing Act that creates a Crumbling Concrete Assistance Fund, and allows for the same $12 per policy surcharge, but doesn't dedicate bond revenues to it.
https://portal.ct.gov/doh/doh/programs/crumbling-foundations
Pyrrhotite and Crumbling Concrete
portal.ct.gov
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