The Yaworski Waste Lagoon sits in Canterbury Township, Connecticut. From 1948 to 1973, the site received drummed and bulk industrial waste, including textile dyes, solvents, resins, acids, caustics, and solvent-soaked rags. Flammable liquid waste was burned on site until 1965. EPA added the site to the National Priorities List in 1983, making it eligible for federal Superfund cleanup funding.
Contaminants of concern include benzene, chromium, and toluene in both groundwater and sludge. Copper, lead, nickel, and mixed xylene isomers are found in sludge only. EPA identified all eleven contaminants as posing unacceptable risk to human health or the environment.
The cleanup uses a multi-layer cap over contaminated material, dike improvements, groundwater monitoring, and institutional controls. EPA set final alternate concentration limits for groundwater in September 2000. Construction was completed on September 20, 2000. Natural attenuation has been effective in reducing contamination levels in groundwater near the Quinebaug River. A 2018 Five-Year Review found that trigger values for lead were exceeded at some monitoring wells, and further evaluation is needed to confirm the remedy protects ecological receptors. The Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection has handled operations and maintenance since September 2011.
Human exposure is under control and groundwater migration has been stabilized with no unacceptable discharge to surface water. The site reached sitewide ready for anticipated reuse status on September 14, 2020. Institutional controls restrict land use, including zoning that prevents residential development. All required institutional controls are in place and will remain as long as contamination or cleanup components are present. An explanation of significant differences is estimated between June and August 2026, and the next five-year review is estimated between September and November 2028.
Community members can review site records at the Canterbury Public Library in Canterbury, Connecticut, or at the EPA Region 1 records center in Boston, Massachusetts.
