Bridgewater Gas Station Failed To Clean Up Contaminants, Pay Fines: NJ Attorney General

BRIDGEWATER, NJ ? A gas station in Bridgewater is facing a lawsuit after New Jersey Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin and Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) Commissioner Shawn M. LaTourette accused the business of failing to clean up gasoline contaminants and pay more than $90,000 in fines.

The lawsuit was filed in Somerset County Superior Court on Thursday against McFarland and Sons at 555 West Union Ave. in Bridgewater Township.

In 1993, the DEP found floating free-phase gasoline product and gasoline-related contaminants in groundwater monitoring wells at the property, according to the lawsuit.

The lawsuit claims McFarland & Sons' remediation efforts stalled causing the DEP to incur costs associated with remediating the property itself.

In 2008, an agreement was made requiring McFarland & Sons to remediate the contaminated site in accordance with the Spill Act, Brownfield Act, and other laws.

"However, McFarland & Sons has failed to do so, and DEP has continued to incur costs associated with remediating the property," according to Platkin.

The lawsuit is looking to compel McFarland & Sons to comply with the agreement and fulfill the outstanding remedial requirements. The lawsuit is also seeking to enforce civil penalties against McFarland & Sons, the company?s owner and president, and a former owner of the property for failing to maintain the on-site UST systems in violation of the UST Act.

From 2005 through 2017, the DEP states that it issued three separate enforcement documents to McFarland & Sons, which were uncontested and became final agency orders.

Additionally, the lawsuit claims McFarland & Sons continues to owe penalties totaling $91,200.

"McFarland & Sons? violations of environmental laws and regulations pose an ongoing risk to public health, safety, and the environment in the Bridgewater community," according to the lawsuit. "The community surrounding the Property has a significant low-income and minority population such that it is considered an 'overburdened community'."

"Historically, across New Jersey, such communities have been disproportionately exposed to high-polluting facilities and to the resultant threats of high levels of air, water, soil, and noise pollution, with accompanying increased negative public health impacts," according to the lawsuit.

Gasoline is a pervasive pollutant in the soil and groundwater around fuel stations, threatening the environment as well as human and animal health, according to the state's release.

?Gasoline contamination of our soil and groundwater has unfortunately become a ubiquitous issue for property owners across New Jersey, affecting rural communities, suburbs, and cities," said Platkin. "My team is proud to work with DEP Commissioner LaTourette and his staff on these important cases affecting overburdened neighborhoods, and we are thrilled that we have been able to protect the public?s health and care for the environment through these and other cases."

2025 1106 McFarland Verified Complaint File Stamped by Alexis Tarrazi

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