Higgins Farm
Route 518
Franklin Township, Somerset County
PI #:
G000005807
BLOCK: 5 LOT: 26.01
Community Relations Coordinator: Mark Herzberg (609) 633-1369
SITE DESCRIPTION/RESOLUTION OF ENVIRONMENTAL CONCERNS:
As
of 28 June 2004
Higgins Farm is an active cattle breeding farm. Drums containing chemical
wastes were once buried at two areas of the property. The site became
the subject of an NJDEP investigation in 1985 after elevated levels of
chlorobenzene, a volatile organic compound, were discovered in a nearby
private potable well. A geophysical survey revealed drums were buried
at the northwest portion of the site approximately 40 yards from the contaminated
well. The property owner excavated approximately 50 drums of chemical
wastes and visibly contaminated soil from this area in 1986. NJDEP subsequently
determined that three other private potable wells in the area were also
contaminated with volatile organic compounds at levels exceeding New Jersey
Drinking Water Standards. NJDEP installed Point-of-Entry Treatment (POET)
systems on the four contaminated wells as an interim measure to provide
potable water for the residents.
In 1989, USEPA added Higgins Farm to the National Priorities List of
Superfund sites (NPL) and began a Remedial Investigation and Feasibility
Study (RI/FS) to determine the nature and extent of the contamination
and evaluate cleanup alternatives. In 1990, USEPA issued a Record of Decision
(ROD) with NJDEP concurrence that required installation of a public water
line to replace the contaminated private potable wells and other wells
in the area that were at risk of becoming contaminated. Twenty six residences
were connected to the water line when it was completed in 1993. USEPA
excavated 94 buried drums and contaminated soil from a second drum disposal
area during a removal action in 1992.
Based on the findings of the RI/FS, USEPA determined that the ground
water at the site was contaminated with a variety of volatile organic
compounds, including tetrachloroethylene and benzene, as well as semi-volatile
organic compounds and metals. The RI/FS also revealed that the soil at
the property and the surface water and sediments in a pond were not significantly
contaminated. In 1992, after completing the RI/FS, USEPA issued a second
ROD for the site with NJDEP concurrence that required installation of
an on-site remediation system to extract and treat the contaminated ground
water, with discharge of the treated water to an existing pond on the
property. USEPA completed construction of the ground water remediation
system in 1997 and is conducting operation and maintenance (O&M) of
the system. Approximately 100,000 gallons of ground water are extracted
and treated each day at the site. The ground water treatment is expected
to continue for approximately 20 years.
|
Related Links
|
