Scovill Industrial Landfill

Overview

The Scovill Industrial Landfill covers 30 acres in Waterbury, Connecticut, where the Scovill Manufacturing Company disposed of ash, cinders, demolition debris, and other industrial wastes from 1919 until the mid-1970s. The EPA added the site to the National Priorities List in July 2000. Today, the southern portion of the site holds residential and commercial buildings, while the northern 6.8-acre Calabrese parcel was left undeveloped until excavation for a planned housing complex uncovered industrial wastes in the late 1990s.

The site has 16 confirmed contaminants of concern in two media types. Contaminated soil contains antimony, arsenic, chromium, chromium(VI), nickel, vanadium, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), chlorinated dioxins and furans, and several polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). Soil gas contains chloroethene (vinyl chloride), chloroform, and trichloroethene. The EPA determined these substances pose unacceptable risks to human health and the environment.

Cleanup has moved in stages. In 1998, Connecticut's Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (CTDEEP) removed 2,300 tons of PCB-contaminated soil and capacitors from the Calabrese parcel, then covered the area with a temporary soil cap and fencing. A vapor intrusion system was installed under an on-site building in January 2015 to block soil gas from entering the structure. The EPA selected the long-term remedy in September 2013. It calls for an engineered cap at the Calabrese parcel with wetland restoration, targeted removal of contaminated soils from developed areas, off-site disposal of soils exceeding leachability standards, and environmental land use restrictions across the entire site. Full-scale construction began in spring 2024, with a target completion date between June and August 2027.

Currently, no unacceptable human exposure pathways exist at the site. Contaminated soil is covered by pavement, buildings, or vegetation, and all residents and workers use municipal water. The EPA has determined that both human exposure and groundwater migration are under control. Even so, the EPA advises residents not to dig on their properties or plant gardens without first consulting the EPA and CTDEEP, since the physical cleanup is not yet complete.

The EPA funded this cleanup through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, which provided $1 billion to restart work at 49 previously unfunded Superfund sites nationwide. The agency held a public informational meeting on March 19, 2024, with materials available in both English and Spanish. Community members can contact the EPA's Community Involvement Coordinator or Remedial Project Manager. Public records are available at the Silas Bronson Library in Waterbury and the EPA Region 1 Records and Information Center in Boston.