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White Swan Site Included on EPA's Superfund List

Release Date: 09/23/2004
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(#04146) NEW YORK -- The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) today announced the listing of the White Swan Cleaners/Sun Cleaners Area Ground Water Contamination site (White Swan site) in Wall Township, Monmouth County, New Jersey on its National Priorities List (NPL) of the most hazardous waste sites, making it eligible for federal Superfund dollars. "The people of Wall Township should not have to worry about the safety of their drinking water," said EPA Regional Administrator Jane M. Kenny. "Placing the White Swan site on the National Priorities List will enable the Agency to further investigate the ground water contamination and take appropriate actions to clean up the site." The White Swan site consists of overlapping areas of contaminated ground water from sources located on two properties in a commercial/residential area of Wall Township. Collection of ground water samples in the vicinity of the Sun Cleaners building indicated the presence of tetrachloroethylene (PCE), a common chemical used in dry cleaning, at concentrations up to 200 parts per million, while the federal drinking water standard is five parts per billion. People within the site's four-mile radius obtain their water from public supply wells and private wells. Investigations by the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP) found that three Sea Girt Municipal wells were at risk of contamination. In December 2001, EPA began an investigation of indoor air quality at nearby residential and commercial properties, and collected approximately 300 indoor air samples. Based on the concentrations of PCE found in the indoor air, as well as input from the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry , EPA installed nine basement ventilation systems in homes and one ventilation system on a commercial property. The Agency has also proposed another New Jersey site, the Crown Vantage Landfill site in Hunterdon County, New Jersey for NPL listing. EPA periodically proposes sites to the NPL and, after responding to public comments, designates proposed sites as final. Sites that are designated as final are eligible for funds to conduct long-term cleanups. Together, these two sites would bring the total number of federal Superfund sites in New Jersey to 115.