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Major Milestone Reached at Cornell-Dubilier Site in South Plainfield, NJ

Release Date: 02/28/2007
Contact Information: Pat Carr, (212) 637-3652 or carr.patricia@epa.gov

(New York, N.Y.) The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is taking another major step forward in the cleanup of the Cornell-Dubilier Electronics Superfund site, with the demolition of the first of 18 buildings. Region 2 Administrator Alan J. Steinberg was joined today by South Plainfield Mayor Charles Butrico to oversee the beginning of demolition at the Industrial Park in South Plainfield. Now that many of the commercial tenants of the industrial park have been relocated with EPA’s assistance, work on the demolition can move forward. EPA will continue to assist the remaining tenants in their relocation.

“The cleanup work at this site is another example of how successful the Superfund program has been in New Jersey,” said Regional Administrator Alan J. Steinberg. “This multi-phase cleanup will help the community turn this problem property back into a local asset.”

The buildings, home to Cornell-Dubilier Electronics, Inc. from 1936 to 1962, were used to manufacture electronic components including, in particular, capacitors. Building interiors have been found to contain elevated levels of PCBs and lead. The company was alleged to have dumped PCB-contaminated materials and other hazardous substances directly onto the site soils. The full demolition work is expected to take about 18 months. EPA has cleaned up soil and interior contamination at 18 private properties adjacent to the industrial park. This summer, EPA will continue work at the site by surveying 60 properties in the community which previously showed marginally elevated levels of PCB contamination. The Agency will also install and take samples from additional ground water monitoring wells to continue to characterize the nature and extent of groundwater contamination. The Agency is also currently designing an extensive soil cleanup.

For more information on Cornell-Dubilier Electronics site: https://www.epa.gov/region02/superfund/npl/cornell/

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