Source: http://www.northjersey.com, August 5, 2015
By: Leslie Scott
Nearly 40 residents sat through a three-hour meeting on July 30 to hear updates on the cleanup of the contaminated section of the borough known as The Plume.
This information session was held by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in the municipal building.
Some of the topics that generated the most feedback from members of the audience concerned the cleanup of a 36-acre area of Pompton Lake and the pilot study that is being designed to address the groundwater plume.
After several years of changes, the EPA has an approved plan to clean lead, mercury, and other metals from the lake sediment. This area became contaminated when DuPont operated a munitions factory in the borough from 1902 to 1994. DuPont has been working on the cleanup since the 1980s, and recently created a new company called Chemours to take over the Pompton Lakes property and assume responsibility for the cleanup.
EPA officials said work is scheduled to be begin around the lake later in the year. Perry Katz, the EPA project manager, said the work will be minor, such as putting up fencing.
Katz said he expects to see actual digging start in 2016.
Residents questioned how truck routes will be used, how odors will be masked, whether steps will be taken for noise abatement, and how the soil will be dried before it is shipped off.
The EPA said much of the logistics is not finalized.
Katz said all of these details will be addressed when logistics planning is complete, and another information session with the community will be held to discuss how the project will be managed.
The EPA also briefed the audience on the hydraulic surcharge pilot program, which will inject clean water in the groundwater to help flush the chlorinated solvents from The Plume.
Residents continued to ask the EPA what protections they will have if their basements flood from the excess water.
DuPont has refused requests from the Borough Council to insure the properties from potential damage.
Both Councilman Mike Serra and Councilman Frank Jaconetta agreed that the residents should be provided some type of assurance that they would be protected in the event of an accident.
“They don’t believe that DuPont is going to give them a fair shake, so that is what they are fighting for here. They are fighting for their lives, and I agree with them,” said resident Carl Padula.
“People shouldn’t have to beg to depend on DuPont or anybody else to make the decision,” said resident Lisa Riggiola, founder of Citizens for a Clean Pompton Lakes.
Katz said the hydraulic surcharge project is still in the planning stages. Once Chemours files for the permit with the DEP, he said, then a public hearing on the hydraulic surcharge pilot program can be requested.
The public hearing, Katz said, “will be another opportunity for folks to express their concerns about different parts of the hydraulic flushing, whether it is concerns about flooding homes or any other aspect of it.”