West Deptford Plant Contaminated Water In Delaware River, AG Says

WEST DEPTFORD, NJ — The state has filed a lawsuit against a West Deptford company over contaminated drinking water in the Gloucester, Camden and Salem counties, as well as the Delaware River, authorities announced on Tuesday.

The state is suing Solvay Specialty Polymers USA, LLC and Arkema Inc. over toxic per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) emanating from the West Deptford facility they say has contaminated the drinking water in the region, Attorney General Gurbir S. Grewal and New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP) Commissioner Catherine R. McCabe said.

Solvay is the current owner of the property, and Arkema is the previous owner. Both companies are also accused of causing contamination from more conventional pollutants, including volatile organic compounds (VOCs), polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), and numerous metals.

“As we said at the outset of the Murphy Administration, the days of free passes and soft landings for polluters in New Jersey are over,” Grewal said. “The corporations we’re suing knew full well the potential harms they were inflicting on our environment, but chose to forge ahead anyway. When companies disregard the laws meant to protect our environment, they can expect to pay.”

“Solvay cannot be allowed to continue to release toxic PFAS chemicals into the environment while leaving the public in the dark about the risks of their practices,” McCabe said. “While we always prefer to work with responsible parties to take voluntary measures to address threats to public health, Solvay’s steadfast refusal to accept responsibility for its scientifically-documented impacts to both the health of its neighbors and the environment in West Deptford and the surrounding areas, has left the Department with no choice but to proceed with today’s filing. New Jersey’s new PFAS regulations, which are informed by some of the nation’s best research, establish strong public health protections. Today, with the Attorney General, we proudly lead the way in taking strong legal action against those who violate those protections.”

PFAS substances are man-made substances that are used in Teflon and Scotchgard, among other products. Manufacturers use them for their ability to repel water, oil, and fire, according to authorities.

However, because they are highly resistant to environmental degradation, and they are known to accumulate in the human body, they have been linked to cases of cancer and other adverse health effects, officials said.

The chemicals, also called “forever chemicals,” are also known to negatively impact the immune system and decrease vaccine response, officials said.

“Drinking water should be safe from toxic forever chemicals linked to cancer and other devastating health effects," said Erik D. Olson, Senior Strategic Director for Health with the Natural Resources Defense Council. "New Jersey regulators are right to take aggressive action against bad actors that for decades have escaped responsibility for their massive contamination by highly toxic chemicals, including one reportedly found at the highest level ever detected in the world.”

In the 1970s and 1980s, Arkema produced chlorofluorocarbon (CFC) refrigerant gases and manufactured industrial plastics and coatings using PFAS compounds, authorities said.

Solvay purchased the site from Arkema in 1990, and subsequently began producing industrial plastics, coatings and other chemicals there, also using PFAS compounds.

In addition to its historic PFAS releases, Solvay continues to utilize and release “replacement” PFAS known as chloroperfluoropolyether carboxylates (CIPFPECAs) into the environment, authorities said.

Officials said Solvay has discharged “tens of thousands of pounds of PFAS compounds” into the environment, exposing New Jersey’s natural resources to harm and threatening the health of nearby communities.

It shows high concentrations of PFAS compounds, such as perfluorononanoic acid (PFNA) and perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) in the air, surface and ground water on and near the Solvay property, officials said.

A survey of the Delaware River done in 2007-08 showed that the PFNA level found in the Delaware River water near the Solvay site was the highest reported concentration in surface water in the world at that time.

Similarly, the levels of PFNA found in Paulsboro’s water supply in 2014 were higher than had ever been reported in drinking water elsewhere in the United States or the world. These findings and the department’s allegations are also backed by U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) studies, officials said.

Officials said Solvay has also ignored the NJDEP’s requests to take responsibility for PFAS contamination for years, thus disregarding the damage and risks to the public.

Solvay “has refused to take full responsibility for the necessary investigation and remediation” and “failed to disclose the impact of their use and releases of PFAS into the environment” to DEP and surrounding communities, officials said in the complaint.

Instead, Solvay has repeatedly sought to blame others for the contamination, officials said. They’ve ignored the department’s request to investigate all contamination pathways and pay for the treatment of all contaminated drinking water,” the complaint asserts.

In addition to PFAS contamination, there are excessive concentrations of VOCs, such as carbon tetrachloride and vinyl chloride at the Solvay site, and the groundwater is contaminated with a host of toxic metals, officials said. These include aluminum, antimony, arsenic, beryllium, chromium, cobalt, iron, lead, manganese, nickel and sodium, all of which have been detected at on-site levels which exceed state groundwater quality standards.

The lawsuit seeks action from Solvay to promptly and thoroughly investigate and remediate the extent of its pollution, protect drinking water sources, and restore natural resources damaged by the hazardous substances that Solvay continues to release into the state’s environment, officials said.

This includes damage to air, surface water, and groundwater. They are also asked to publicly disclose information regarding the health and environmental impacts of their operations.

Nine counts of the 10-count complaint name both Solvay and Arkema as defendants. The nine counts against Solvay and Arkema include alleged violations of New Jersey’s Spill Act, Water Pollution Control Act, Air Pollution Control Act, Solid Waste Management Act and Site Remediation Reform Act, as well as creating a public nuisance, trespass, negligence and engaging in abnormally dangerous activity. A single count filed against Solvay only alleges violation of New Jersey’s Brownfield and Contaminated Site Remediation Act.