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Agency plans to contain and cap contamination, but leave clean-up for future redeveloper

BY JOE TYRRELL

NEWJERSEYNEWSROOM.COM

Federal environmental officials have agreed to take more public comments on a plan to contain and cap contamination at an Edgewater Superfund site, but leave the clean-up to some future redeveloper.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's approach to the old Quanta Resources Industrial site drew criticism from environmentalists as soon as it was released.

In response, the EPA has scheduled another public hearing at 7 p.m. on Sept. 13 at the American Legion Post, 1165 River Road.

New Jersey closed the Quanta site in 1981, citing hazards from more than a century of industrial pollution. Located along the Hudson River at the intersection of River and Gorge roads, the 24-acre property was a coal tar facility, then a waste oil terminal with a nearby chemical plant.

Even before heavy industrial operations began in the wake of the Civil War, industrial fill containing what are now known pollutants was used to turn marshes along the Hudson into suitable sites for piers, rail lines and factories.

The state Department of Environmental Protection found abandoned storage tanks with waste oil, tar, sludge and other liquids. Large quantities of the waste oil were contaminated with polychlorinated biphenyls, potentially cancer-causing chemicals that can harm human immune, reproductive, nervous and endocrine systems.

Contaminated has spread through the soil in several areas, including concentrations of liquid coal tar and arsenic hotspots, according to an EPA statement issued last month. Some of the contamination has spread below the surface of a neighboring building, according to the report.

Following the DEP investigation, storage tanks, underground pipes and several million gallons of liquid were removed from the property, and an absorbent boom was used to capture oil sheens from the neighboring mudflats along the river. But EPA initially rejected a state request to add the site to the Superfund clean-up program.

That changed after years of nearby redevelopment, including the realignment of part of River Road. In 2000, a developer began finding high concentrations of arsenic in the footprint of the old chemical plant, and in 2002, EPA added the site to the Superfund list.

Under the new proposal, EPA would trap and solidify liquid coal tar in the ground, and seek to suspend and contain groundwater containing arsenic before it reaches the Hudson. EPA officials estimated the cost at $72.2 million, compared to $168.8 million to $480.3 million for more extensive measures, which could include the removal of 150,000 cubic yards of contaminated material and demolition of buildings.

The "least effective" alternative would be to install a passive groundwater collection system, retrofit the remaining buildings, cap problem spots and monitor the site at an estimated cost of $41.5 million, according to the EPA.

The agency concluded that conditions on the site make restoration of groundwater "technically impractical," leading to the need for containment.

Besides entombing the contaminated spots and a hydraulic containment system, the EPA's preferred plan also calls for a basement seal and vapor mitigation system at a neighboring redeveloped property, which is home to dozens of small businesses including a day care center.

EPA expects future redevelopment of the Quanta site, "given the age of the buildings and the value of real estate in this area," justifying a postponement of additional clean-up steps until then.

Jeff Tittel, executive director of the state chapter of the Sierra Club, referred to the approach as "pave and wave," but EPA called it "the right balance" between costs and benefits.

Joe Tyrrell may be reached at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it