Fed Plan on Quanta Superfund Site in Edgewater, NJ Called a 'Band Aid Approach'

August 2, 2010 - The federal government plans to entomb much of the pollution at the Quanta Superfund site in Edgewater, drawing criticism Monday from environmentalists who called it a "Band Aid approach" to cleaning one of the most toxic sites in North Jersey.

A 70-page report from the Environmental Protection Agency calls for coal tar, arsenic and other potential cancer-causing contaminants at the River Road site to be solidified into impermeable underground blocks using techniques similar to mixing concrete.

An EPA spokeswoman said it was the best alternative since excavating soil and groundwater would be a long, costly process. It would require 12,000 trucks to haul the contamination from the former waste oil processing facility on the banks of the Hudson River and it could pollute the air in the densely-packed borough.

But environmentalists said the plan fell short of a true cleanup.

"If I lived in Edgewater, I’d be livid," said Gil Hawkins, environmental director of the Hudson River Fisherman’s Association. "This is a Band Aid approach. If they don’t remove the pollution, it’s not clean. It’s still a contaminated site."

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