State DEP sets clean-up plan for ‘barrel factory’

By:Lea Kahn Staff Writer
   The state Department of Environmental Protection will hold a public meeting tonight on its findings at the former Trenton Fibre Drum site at 1545 New York Ave., according to Municipal Manager Richard Krawczun.
   The meeting is set for 7 p.m. in the lower level conference room at the Municipal Building.
   DEP officials plan to discuss the Remedial Action Selection Report prepared by the state agency. The report, which was forwarded to Lawrence Township officials earlier this month, identifies the preferred cleanup method as well as other cleanup alternatives.
   Municipal Manager Richard Krawczun said township officials are "anxious" to hear a review of recommendations for the site. Township officials recently learned of the DEP’s interest in reviewing and recommending remediation of the site, he said.
   "These recommendations hopefully will not only address the technical remediation of the site, but the financial and liability issues as well," Mr. Krawczun said. "The end result will be specific steps that we will be able to take in seeing the property refurbished for some useful purpose. At this time, there are no plans for what that purpose may be."
   The property belonged to Jack Binder, who operated it as the Trenton Fibre Drum Co., according to the DEP report. The township obtained the tax liens against the property for unpaid real estate taxes in 1990.
   Known informally as the barrel factory, the Trenton Fibre Drum Co. went out of business in 1984 after it was destroyed by fire. The state Department of Environmental Protection subsequently discovered hazardous materials on the site.
   The Trenton Fibre Drum Co. cleaned out used metal drums. An acidic wash was used to remove the chemicals that had been stored inside the drums, so they could be repainted and reused. The contamination occurred when the rinse solution was dumped on the ground.
   The last major site cleanup activity occurred in 1991, when approximately 1,000 drums and a 550-gallon underground storage tank were removed by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, according to the DEP report.
   A remedial investigation of the site revealed volatile organic compounds, semi-volatile organic compounds, pesticides, PCB and metals in the soil, the DEP report said. The contaminants include xylene, vinyl chloride, benzene, tetrachloroethene, napthalene, lead, mercury and zinc.
   The DEP’s preferred remediation plan — which is estimated to cost $3.1 million — calls for excavating 8,200 tons of contaminated soil, filling it in with clean soil and then installing a semi-permeable cap on top. About 180 tons of soil along a drainage ditch to the north and south of the site also would be removed.
   Other options, which would cost less money, include excavating smaller amounts of soil.