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Construction to Start on Interim Remedy for Dioxin Waste at Diamond Alkali Superfund Site in Newark's Ironbound; EPA to Meet with Public

Release Date: 04/18/2000
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(#00065) NEW YORK, N.Y. -- Preparations are underway for the construction of a new $20 million on-site containment system for dioxin-contaminated wastes on the Diamond Alkali federal Superfund site at 80 and 120 Lister Avenue in the Ironbound section of Newark, New Jersey. The wastes, which consist of materials from past production activities at the facility and those collected by EPA in adjacent neighborhood streets during a major Superfund emergency cleanup in the early 1980s, are currently stored in secure cargo containers on the site. The new containment system, which includes an impermeable cap, slurry walls, a new bulkhead for the area of the site that abuts the Passaic River, and hydraulic controls, will prevent any wastes currently in the containers, as well as contaminated soils underlying the property, from migrating and reaching the river or the surrounding community. The containment system should be completed within two years. EPA previously announced the final plans to construct this containment system in August 1998 and met with community residents at that time. EPA will now hold additional public availability sessions in the Ironbound to discuss the initiation of the work with the community. The sessions are scheduled for Wednesday, April 26 from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. at the Millard E. Terrell Homes and Thursday, April 27 from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. at the Hawkins Street Elementary School. "Our first priority at this site has always been to protect the Ironbound community and environment from any wastes associated with the Diamond Alkali property. In 1983, we acted quickly to protect the community from any exposed contamination by cleaning up neighborhood homes, streets and parks and safely isolating this material on the site," said EPA Regional Administrator Jeanne M. Fox. "We are pleased that we can now move forward with an interim remedy that provides additional protection and gets rid of these cargo containers, which have been an eyesore on this waterfront property. We also remain committed to evaluating new technologies for an even more permanent approach." Chemical Land Holdings, Inc. (CLH), for itself and on behalf of Occidental Chemical Corporation (OCC), is responsible for the cost, construction and maintenance of the new containment system in accordance with a settlement embodied in a federal court order. The settlement also requires the company to evaluate every two years, after the construction of the interim remedy is completed, whether or not any new, emerging technologies exist that could provide a more protective and permanent remedy for the wastes. While the cargo containers that currently hold the site wastes are regularly inspected and have been maintained to ensure that the wastes remain securely in place, these containers are subject to corrosion and deterioration from long-term exposure to the open air and inclement weather. The new containment system will isolate the wastes in the containers and on-site soils from the environment. During the construction of the new system, rigorous health and safety procedures, including air monitoring in the work zone and site perimeter, will be in place to ensure that no contaminated wastes, airborne or otherwise, are released into the surrounding community. The Diamond Alkali Superfund site includes the former pesticides manufacturing facility at 80 and 120 Lister Avenue in Newark, New Jersey. From 1951 to 1969, the Diamond Alkali Company (subsequently known as the Diamond Shamrock Chemicals Company) owned and operated a pesticides manufacturing plant at 80 Lister Avenue. In 1983, dioxin and other hazardous compounds were found in soil samples taken at Lister Avenue and surrounding properties, as well as in sediment samples taken from the Passaic River. Dioxin, also known as 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin or TCCD, is an extremely toxic chemical and an unwanted byproduct of the manufacture of certain chemicals that were produced at the site. The site was added to EPA's Superfund National Priorities List on September 1, 1984 after EPA and the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP) initiated emergency cleanup work to prevent any immediate threat to public health and the environment from exposure to contamination from the site. This work, which began in 1983 shortly after the contamination was found, included securing the property with a fence and a 24-hour security guard, covering exposed, contaminated soils on the property with a geofabric cover to prevent migration, and removing dioxin-contaminated soils and debris from other properties in the neighborhood and securing that material on the site. The Diamond Shamrock Chemicals Company eventually took over and completed this emergency response work under State Administrative Orders. After reviewing a comprehensive study of the site contamination and evaluating various cleanup options, EPA selected an interim remedy for the 80 and 120 Lister Avenue properties in 1987. In 1989, EPA, NJDEP and OCC (a successor to the Diamond Shamrock Chemicals Company) and CLH (the current property owner) filed a consent decree that put in place an agreement for the responsible parties to design, implement and maintain the interim remedy. Before EPA approved the design plans for the interim remedy in 1998, the agency met with community residents in the summer of 1998 to discuss and explore other alternatives to address the site contamination. Of the alternatives considered feasible by EPA, the community preferred the on-site containment interim remedy but requested that new technologies that may provide a more permanent solution be evaluated in the future. CLH, both for itself and on behalf of OCC, is now required under a federal courtorder to evaluate new technologies every two years.