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SEACAUCUS, N.J.—-(77WABC)
New Jersey on Friday took the first step to rid the Lower Hackensack River of heavily contaminated sediment dating from the state’s industrial past.
Department of Environmental Protection Commissioner Shawn LaTourette announced the commitment of Gov. Phil Murphy’s administration to seek to place the 23-mile stretch of river on the federal government’s list of Superfund toxic sites.
Approval would mean access to federal funding and would enable the Environmental Protection Agency to seek to identify the parties responsible for polluting the waters to help fund the remediation.
A previous EPA study found elevated levels of cancer-causing dioxin, cadmium, lead, mercury and PCBs in sediment sampled from the river’s mouth at Newark Bay to the Oradell Reservoir.
Achieving Superfund status could take years to complete.
🚨HISTORIC ENVIRONMENTAL
RESTORATION ANNOUNCEMENT🚨
The New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection will pursue the cleanup of the Lower Hackensack River as a federal Superfund site. This is the first time a NJ river has been proposed for Superfund listing. pic.twitter.com/VIGNYWkyRY— New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (@NewJerseyDEP) July 23, 2021
