Source: http://www.nj.com, September 29, 2016
By: Don E. Woods
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency anticipates spending $15 million to remove arsenic from a former chemical company Superfund site that was originally cleaned in the 1990s.
The Vineland Chemical Company produced arsenic-based herbicides at the Mill Road facility from 1949 to 1994. Arsenic contaminated the soil and groundwater at the site, due to the company’s poor handling, storage and disposal of the pesticide production byproducts.
According to a statement by EPA Regional Administrator Judith A. Enck, the Vineland Chemical Company left a toxic legacy and the agency has come a long way in cleaning up the site.
Site work began in 1992 to contain the contaminated area, remove harmful chemicals and raze the buildings at the 26-acre facility. In order to stop the contaminated groundwater from spreading through the nearby Blackwater Branch, a water pump was utilized.
However, the EPA discovered recently that the Blackwater Branch and Union Lake is again being contaminated with arsenic from Vineland Chemical Company’s former site.
In order to address the arsenic threat, the EPA plans on treating the arsenic in the groundwater, therefore stopping it from contaminating the soil. By injecting oxygen into the ground, the arsenic will react and be rendered immobile. Hot spots of contaminated soil will be removed from the Superfund site.
The EPA continues to monitor the water quality in Maurice River and plans on cleaning up Union Lake. The drinking water in the area comes from a public drinking provider and is regularly tested for state and federal standards.
Officials told Vineland residents about the plan during an August meeting.