EPA Press Office:

EPA Finalizes Cleanup Plan to Address Newly Discovered Contamination at the Matlack Inc. Superfund Site in NJ

NEW YORK (July 8, 2023) - The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has finalized the update to its original cleanup plan for the Matlack, Inc. Superfund site in Woolwich Township, New Jersey. The update to the plan will address a newly discovered source of contamination at the site and will ensure a comprehensive and effective cleanup.

“Following the public meeting and hearing directly from the community, EPA has finalized its cleanup decision for the Matlack, Inc. Superfund site,” said Regional Administrator Lisa F. Garcia. “This updated plan will address an additional source of contamination found at the site and will bring us closer to being able to complete the cleanup.”

As a result of past truck maintenance and tanker washing operations at the site, as well as on-site disposal of drums, the soil, sediment, surface water and groundwater are contaminated with volatile and semi-volatile organic compounds, which can potentially harm people’s health.

EPA’s finalized plan for cleaning up the drum disposal area involves a technology called in-situ thermal treatment. In situ (or in place) thermal treatment methods remove harmful chemicals in soil and groundwater using heat. The chemicals move through soil and groundwater toward wells, where they are collected and piped to the ground surface to be treated using other cleanup methods. Some chemicals are destroyed underground during the heating process.

This method is separate from and in addition to EPA’s original 2017 cleanup plan.

On March 29, 2023, EPA proposed this cleanup plan to the public and held a virtual public meeting on April 12, 2023, to explain the plan and take comments. The Record of Decision Amendment released today addresses the comments received and formalizes EPA’s selected cleanup plan for the drum disposal area.

Visit the Matlack, Inc. Superfund site profile page for additional background and site documents.

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