In 1984 Brick Township signed the ACO or Administrative Consent Order and began the RI/FS process with NJDEPE performing the Remedial Investigation/Feasibility Study with Ebasco Services Incorporated awarded the contract for delineation of the extent and nature of the contaminants. The RI/FS was completed in 1992. The proposed plan was released for public comment in the summer of 1992. The Decision Document selected the remedial action for the Brick Superfund site in accordance with the New Jersey Spill Compensation and Control Act, the New Jersey Solid Waste Management Act and the Revised National Oil and Hazardous Substances Pollution Contingency Plan of 1990. (NCP)
Human Health assessment for the RI/FS included the following pathways for public health implications:
- source of contaminants
- transport environmental mediums
- Point of exposures
- Route of human exposures
- Receptor populations
- inhalation of fugitive dust and VOC emissions
- inhalation of VOCs migrating into houses of nearby residents.
- Ingestion of contaminated groundwater who use private wells.
- Inhalation of chemicals volatilized from groundwater
- Ingestion of and dermal contact with soi/leachate sediment by children
- inhalation of fugitive dust and VOC emission by children playing at nearby baseball field.
- Ingestion of and dermal contact with soils/leachate and fugitive dust and VOC emissions by workers involved with future development of the non-landfill area near the site.
Environmental Assessment of the Site
The two feet of soil that was placed over the site early on in the Remedial investigation by Brick Township precludes most contact of the ecological receptors from coming into contact with contaminants in the underlying materials. The impact on plants and animals were considered minimal relative to human health impacts (IE: food chain contamination) Additionally, no endangered species, sensitive ecosystems, wetlands, surface water were identified on this site.
Total ecological assessment: minimal to none.
The Alternatives for cleanup favored Landfill capping with clay and soil and would effectively eliminate or mitigate human health and ecological effects long-term. Natural attenuation with groundwater monitoring would help to reduce contaminants by warning of any downstream users or receptors.
The estimated costs of the clean-up, monitoring and final remediation was $9,000,000. In a letter by Assemblyman David W. Wolfe from the 10th Legislative District to the Commissioner of the NJDEP on July 1992 requesting funding for Brick Township as the responsible Party for the site cleanup. He requested state and federal funds for landfill closing funds or from the landfill Contingency Fund or the Spill Fund. He also asked that if no responsible parties can be fund for the closure costs that Brick Township should not be solely responsible for closure costs and should be provided assistance through state and federal funding. Clearly a request for funding through CERCLA.
Based upon the on analysis and testing during the period of 1998-2001 Remedial Investigation conducted by the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection recommended the following Brick Landfill Clean-Up Approach.
1. Immediate Action: surface cleanup including the removal of 150 above ground drums and filling and venting of three seepage pits.
2. Capping with clay layer and two feet of soil over the entire site.
3. Installation and monitoring of surface and groundwater wells to evaluate/test plume movement and contaminants.
4. installation of landfill gas collection/venting system
5. Fencing of the entire site and establishment of appropriate deed restrictions.
Ground water sampling in the late 1990s showed elevated levels of heavy metals and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) emanating from the Landfill. Groundwater sampling since 1992 showed contaminate levels that exceeded NJDEP's Class II-A Groundwater Quality Standards.
Samples from 23 wells in the area of May 1997 indicated a total of 246 compounds of these, 24 in the 1989-1991 sampling event exceeded NJDEP's Class II-A Groundwater Quality Standards and another 67 exceeded the 1997 sampling. In addition of the 264 compounds detected in the wells, 164 of the compounds had increased in concentration, while 82 decreased.
Some of compounds and metals fund at the site in either groundwater, soils, solid waste or as leachate include: Acetone, Ammonia, Arsenic, Dichloroethane, Barium, Benzene, Beryllium, Bis(2-ethylhexyl) Phthalate, Cadmium, Chlordane, Chlorobenzene, Chromium, Copper, Di-n-Butyl Phthalate, Ethlybenzene, Iron, Lead, Manganese, Mercury, Methylene Chloride, Naphthalene, Nickel, Phenol, Silver, Thallium, Toluene, Vinyl Chloride, Xylenes and Zinc.
The investigation included the installation of 7 additional wells to monitor the well clusters in the Fall of 1998. The wells were installed up, side and down gradient of the groundwater direction to determine and fully delineate the contaminant plume. Each cluster monitored shallow, intermediate and deep groundwater wells that access the Cohansey Aquifer. The analysis of the well and groundwater sampling indicated that the contaminant plume had had migrated into residential areas beyond the landfill confines.
Remedial groundwater investigation was implemented and several activities were conducted:
- groundwater withdrawal points within the landfill vicinity.
- limited area canvasing to identify residential use of irrigation wells adjacent to the landfill.
- Study aquifer characteristics and flow.
- Confirm groundwater direction
- Collect and analyze over a hundred groundwater samples ans 35 passively place sampling sites.
- Evaluation of groundwater quality from two wells used for irrigation purpose at the Brick Memorial High School and 8 residential points close tot he landfill and known contaminant plume.
Based upon the results of further sampling and analysis indicated that the extent of the plume extended 3,800 feet south-southwest of the landfill and is approximately 3,100 feet wide. It is estimated to cover 325 acres. The following compounds; Volatile Organic compounds (VOCs), semi-volatile compounds, PCBs pesticides, herbicides, ammonia and total dissolved solids (TDS) cyanide and phenolic compounds.
More sampling occurred throughout the affected area over the next few years culminating in connecting over 200 residences to the municipal water supply, although there were several residences that refused this. NJDEP concluded that these wells could be used for irrigation purposes. Additionally the two wells at Brick Memorial High School also showed that only Iron exceeded the NJDEP Groundwater Quality Standards and they were permitted for only irrigation uses.
Subsequent testing and sampling showed metal pollutants in all 35 wells however there were several possible explanations regarding these elevated concentrations. As a result the NJDEP and USEPA required that the groundwater plume be delineated by the installation of a series of permanently installed monitoring wells. A Classification Exception Area (CEA) was proposed in 2001 Remedial Investigation Report/Remedial Investigation Workplan using sampling data from 2000.
Sampling continued in these wells for the next few years.
Of the 45 compounds detected in each level of the aquifer approximately 33% of the them were detected to be above the Groundwater Quality Standards (GWQC). Except for a few compounds, most of the plume had been successfully delineated. Subsequent analysis indicted that only Iron remained in higher quantities from sampled wells and that the plume appeared stable in size. NJDEP continued to mandate sampling from the installed wells in most residential communities.
Based on these findings, legal restrictions on the use of drinking water wells within a 470-acre area were put in place by the State of New Jersey and the Township of Brick.
Brick Landfill received a HRS score of 58.13 for Groundwater contamination and soil exposure under the Mitre System of the HRS.
HRS or Hazard Ranking System; is the principal mechanism EPA uses to place uncontrolled waste sites on the National Priorities List (NPL). It is a numerically based screening system that uses information from initial, limited investigations - the preliminary assessment and site inspection to assess the relative potential of sites to pose a threat to human health or the environment. Any person or organization can petition EPA to conduct a preliminary assessment using the Preliminary Assessment Petition
The HRS uses a structured analysis approach to scoring sites. This approach assigns numerical values to factors that relate to risk based on conditions at the site. The factors are grouped into three categories: - likelihood that a site has released or has the potential to release hazardous substances into the environment;
- characteristics of the waste (e.g. toxicity and waste quantity); and
- people or sensitive environments (targets) affected by the release.
- ground water migration (drinking water);
- surface water migration (drinking water, human food chain, sensitive environments);
- soil exposure (resident population, nearby population, sensitive environments); and
- air migration (population, sensitive environments).
Images and artifacts of this investigation can be found in the Images Page of this Blog. They include Groundwater Flow, Maps of the landfill and affected areas as well as well locations and sampled contaminants. and will add visual corroboration tot his narrative.
*NOTE*
Data for this section was taken from the Remedial Investigation/Investigation Report Workplan of May 2002 Volumes 1-7 by Primary Contractor-Birdsall Engineering, Inc of Belmar, NJ. Patricia Calvert Project manger, Thomas Rospos PE Brick Township Engineer. Case # NJD 980505176 contained at the Brick Township Branch of the Ocean County Library System and from the USEP web site for data for the Brick Landfill.
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