SITE REMEDIATION AND
EMERGENCY RESPONSE NEWSLETTER
May 2014
No. 188
EPA Announces $1.7 Billion Cleanup Plan for Lower Passaic River Superfund Site
EPA has announced a massive $1.7 billion cleanup plan, the largest in EPA history, for the lower eight miles of the Passaic River in New Jersey, running from Belleville to Newark."
That stretch is the most severely contaminated part of the river. It is polluted with high levels of dioxin, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and other contaminants resulting from a century of industrial activity. The river will be dredged from bank to bank. More than 4 million cubic yards of toxic sediment will be removed from the river bed. Cleanup of the Passaic has been under study for 25 years.
EPA says that sediment removal will be accompanied by capping of the river bottom. The contaminated sediment will be pressed, dried and shipped out of state for disposal.
The Passaic stretches 90 miles through 45 municipalities in seven counties. The lower 17 miles of the Passaic River, including the stretch described above, are part of the Diamond Alkali Company Superfund site in Newark.
EPA says that much of the dioxin in the river was generated by the Diamond Alkali Co. plant. In the 1960s, it produced Agent Orange and other pesticides that contaminated the sediment.
Successor companies of Diamond Alkali inherited its liability. They include Occidental Chemical Corp., Maxus Energy Corp. and Tierra Solutions Inc.
At least 100 companies have been identified as potentially responsible parties liable for cleanup. There is concern that litigation could delay implementation of the newly announced cleanup plan.