Federal Creosote Superfund site

The Federal Creosote Superfund site is a 50-acre (20 ha) property located in Manville, New Jersey. It was used as a wood treatment facility. Starting in 1919, the site was contaminated with creosote. Creosotes are a category of carbonaceous chemicals formed by the distillation of various tars and by pyrolysis of plant-derived material, such as wood or fossil fuel. They are typically used as preservatives or antiseptics. It took the EPA about 18 years to cleanup the site.

Origins

The Superfund site was a former wood treatment facility in Manville, New Jersey. It was later developed into homes and a shopping center, where creosote was discovered.

Town history

Manville, New Jersey is a borough in Somerset County. The site was located in areas that in 1960 were later known as Claremont Development and Rustic Mall. Claremont Development is the residential area where homes were built and Rustic Mall is a shopping center. It lays on a 50 acre property. In 1997 a sinkhole emerged at the development. Creosote was discovered during removal of soil near the sinkhole.[1]

Company history

The Federal Creosoting Company was a wood treatment facility. They treated railroad ties and telephone poles. The site had a number of buildings and above ground tanks that contained creosote. The creosote went into two lagoons and the treated wood would drip into the soil.[2]

Superfund designation

State intervention

In 1996 when homeowners were living at the site, a man discovered a tar like substance coming from his sump pump. It was soon discovered to be creosote, which is considered a hazardous chemical. This brought attention to the EPA of the issues left behind from the Federal Creosote Site. They started to test the surrounding areas and found creosote in 31 of the 137 homes. In response, by 1998 the site was proposed to the National Priorities List by the EPA. In 1999 it made it onto the list. Eight months later EPA decided their course of action and two days later they started the cleanup. Homes and businesses needed to be relocated during this time. Public funds helped to fund all of the work that was done.[3]

National intervention

The EPA designated the location a Superfund site and its intention to cleanup the site by 2014. The New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection deemed the site to have no significant threat to public health or the environment.[4]

Health and environmental hazards

Creosote was found in the soil and groundwater of the areas surrounding where the site used to be. When in action, the substance would release into lagoons and drip on the top layer of the soil. This later had a dangerous effect on homeowners in the development.

Groundwater

Creosote containing chemicals such as NPH dispersed into lagoons and it became dangerous for anyone drinking and coming in contact with the groundwater.[1]

Soil

Chemicals (nph) leaked into soil and also formed sludge that was dangerous to anyone exposed. It caused families to relocate due to health problems. One man had the sludge coming out of his sump pump.[3]

Cleanup

The clean up process had three phases which were all completed successfully. The site is now habitable, and everyone was able to move back into the development.

Initial cleanup

Cleanup was done in three phases. "In Phase 1, source material from subsurface disposal canals and lagoons was removed from residential properties and borough right-of-ways. In Phase 2, residual levels of contaminants in soil above the cleanup goals were removed from residential properties. In Phase 3, source material and residually contaminated soils were removed from the Rustic Mall property."[5] The site has been removed from the list and is habitable again.

Current status

The steps taken in the clean up have allowed for the site to be deemed clear and safe for humans to live on again. All of the unsafe exposure has been controlled and there is prevention of coming into contact with these substances.[5]

Controversy

A man was indicted for a kickback scheme during the cleanup of the site. The individual was paid to pick a specific subcontractor, which the EPA unknowingly paid for.[6]

References
  1. "Federal Creosote Company" (PDF). nj.gov.
  2. "Federal Creosote Superfund Site". earthwatchwaste.com.
  3. "EPA deems Manville Superfund site clean, proposes removing it from list". nj.com.
  4. "EPA announcement Federal Creosote Superfund site". The Courier-News. 2014-03-09. pp. A5. Retrieved 2017-11-28.
  5. "Federal Creosote Manville, NJ". cumulis.epa.gov.
  6. "Superfund site employee sentenced in kickback scheme" – via Newspapers.com.

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