Lipari Landfill - History

History

Nicholas Lipari had operated a sand and gravel pit at the site. During the period from 1958 until 1971, the landfill accepted 46,000 barrels of chemicals, containing approximately 2.7 million US gallons (10,000 m3) of chemical and industrial waste, that were placed in trenches that had been excavated in the gravel pit. 12 thousand tons of solid industrial waste were also dumped at the site. The New Jersey Solid Waste Authority had the site shut down in 1971.

The toxic materials came from several different companies, with Philadelphia-based Rohm and Haas accounting for most of the material. Toxic material dumped at the site also came from the an Owens-Illinois plant in Glassboro and a CBS Records plant in Pitman. More than 150 different chemicals, including BCEE (Bis-2-Chloroethyl ether), benzene, 1,2 Dichloroethylene, arsenic, lead and mercury have been identified at the site. In September 1985, the EPA filed lawsuits against seven companies, including Rohm & Haas, to recover the costs of the remediation at the site.

Approximately 100,000 US gallons (380,000 l) of contaminated water had been leaking from the site, leaching into groundwater or washed away in the rain. In 1983, following the construction of a 30-inch-thick (760 mm) wall constructed around the center of the dump site, seepage was reduced to 2,500 US gallons (9,500 l) per day. The contaminated areas at the dump site were also covered with a high density polyethylene (HDPE) cap. In 1992 a treatment plant was constructed to flush the landfill. By 1996 off-site work including excavation of the marsh, portions of the stream bed, and the lake sediment excavation was completed. Drains to capture contaminated water from outside and below the landfill were completed which must be operated indefinitely. These drains have successfully protected the surrounding environment from landfill contaminants and are constantly monitored to insure their effectiveness. Today, remediation continues at the Landfill through the removal of vast quantities of volatile organic compounds, such as benzene and toluene. These compounds are removed in the vapor phase and destroyed. To date (2010) over 500,000 pounds (230,000 kg) of contaminants have been removed from Lipari.