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TagsBY JOE TYRRELL
NEWJERSEYNEWSROOM.COM
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has proposed adding a small dump site and residential neighborhood in Byram to its Superfund clean-up program.
Contamination from the one-time "Denny's Dump" is affecting nearby homes, including drinking wells and basements, EPA officials said at a July meeting where they outlined problems from trichloroethylene and other pollutants.
Including the site in the Superfund would provide resources "so we can fully address any contamination in this community, especially the toxic air contaminants that are seeping into some homes through their foundations," said Judith Enck, EPA regional administrator.
"Extensive sampling" is needed to determine the next steps, Enck said. TCE was first discovered in 2004 in a private well on Brookwood Road on a property being readied for an estate sale.
The problem was not publicized until the following year, though, when owners of a home on Ross Road, also having water tests performed for a potential sale, learned their well was contaminated. After they alerted the public, the Sussex County Board of Health and the state Department of Environmental Protection conducted other tests.Examining 75 wells along the two roads, county and state investigators discovered TCE in 18. An organic solvent, TCE is used in industrial processes, and as a spot remover, adhesive and general anesthetic.
TCE in water has been linked to various cancers, immune and endocrine system problems, and congenital heart disease in children, according to the EPA.
Trying to locate the source of the problem, DEP investigators found evidence of four trenches in the woods in the vicinity of the Mansfield Trail, a hiking and biking path, and its intersection with Sparta-Stanhope Road.
Investigators discovered the trenches had been filled with "sludge of unknown origin." Last year, DEP tests confirmed TCE contamination in two, as well as other volatile organic compounds and chlorinated benzene compounds. Based on local comments, investigators believe the area was used as a dump site, perhaps illegally, during the 1950s.
Once the lab results came in, the DEP installed carbon water filtration and treatment systems in the 18 homes to purify all incoming and outgoing water.
The DEP also collected gas samples from the soil underneath basements as well as inside the basements throughout the affected neighborhood, with varying results.
Some homes showed TCE concentrations above state screening levels in just the samples from underneath the basements. But others showed TCE concentrations above screening levels both in the basements and underneath them.
As a result, the state asked for the site to be included under Superfund to qualify for long-term clean-up funds. The EPA has proposed designating it as the Mansfield Trail site.
With the proposal of this site to the Superfund List, a 60-day comment period will begin during which EPA solicits public input regarding this action. For instructions to submit comments, click here.
Comments can be submitted, identified by Docket number (EPA-HQ-SFUND-2010-0634) one of the following methods:
- http://www.regulations.gov: Follow the online instructions for submitting comments.
- Email: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
- Mail: Mail comments (no facsimiles or tapes) to Docket Coordinator, Headquarters; U.S. Environmental Protection Agency; CERCLA Docket Office; (Mail Code 5305T);1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW; Washington, DC 20460
- Hand Delivery or Express Mail: Send comments (no facsimiles or tapes) to Docket Coordinator, Headquarters; U.S. Environmental Protection Agency; CERCLA Docket Office; 1301 Constitution Avenue, NW; EPA West, Room 3334, Washington, DC 20004. Such deliveries are only accepted during the Docket's normal hours of operation (8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding Federal holidays).
Joe Tyrrell may be reached at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
AND, NY TIMES article by Matthew Bloch, Charles Duhigg, Tyson Evans, Karl Russell & Derek Willis: SPARTA has over 190 EPA VIOLATIONS for 2009 and, OVER 160 EPA VIOLATIONS in SPARTA SCHOOLS for 2009.
2010 maybe HIGHER.