This site, a defunct automotive brake pad manufacturer, was brought to the attention of EPA by the NJDEP for a possible referral for a CERCLA removal action. An inspection by EPA OSCs and a DEP responder on 12/23/05 revealed the following hazardous materials/wastes were abandoned at the site: tons of asbestos material, tons of elemental sulphur, 1,000+ drums of mostly unknown materials or materials that do not match the label description, hundreds of smaller containers, acids, flammable liquids, iron and aluminum powders, flammable solids, waste oil, solvents, and other contaminants or pollutants. The site is semi-controlled, with most doors being locked but numerous open windows or sections of sheet metal walls missing. A maintenance man is on-site for a few hours Mon-Fri. The owner of the building (not the business) has balked at doing a cleanup, but with pressure from the DEP, he has hired a company to provide him with an estimate of the clean-up cost. The former operator of the actual manufacturing business has left the state and resumed the same business in Pennsylvania.
Negotiations with former operator of the Site, Friction Division Products, have stalled. RP is trying to secure funds from an escrow account that may be in dispute over 'ownership'. RP has indicated that without this money, it may not be able to afford the removal action. Additional discussions with RP and escrow holder (also an RP) are on-going.
EPA will closely track the discussions between the RP and the escrow holder.
As a contingency in the event that one or both RPs cannot/will not perform the removal action, OSC Kahn has directed the ERRS contractor to begin drafting a work plan, HASP, and sampling plan. A Site walk-thru with the ERRS RM is tentatively scheduled for early December.
Resolving the matter of RP removal funds.
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