The Vineland Chemical Company operated in northwestern Vineland, New Jersey from 1949 to 1994, making arsenical herbicides and fungicides. The company stored arsenic byproduct salts in open piles, lagoons, and chicken coops. That practice spread arsenic contamination into soil, groundwater, surface water, and sediment across the site and surrounding areas. EPA placed the site on the National Priorities List in September 1984. The site is now organized into six operable units, each targeting a different contamination problem or area.
Arsenic is the primary contaminant of concern. It has been found in buildings and structures, groundwater, sediment, and soil. EPA determined arsenic poses an unacceptable risk to human health and the environment. The site is currently classified as "Human Exposure Not Under Control" because of potential direct contact with arsenic-contaminated sediments and surface water. Key public areas have been posted with safety and health signage. Institutional controls restrict drinking water use of contaminated groundwater. Monitoring at two Union Lake beaches has shown no unacceptable risk to beach users over several years.
A significant amount of cleanup work is already done. A soil washing facility treated more than 400,000 tons of contaminated soil and sediments, with that work completed in 2014. Eight contaminated buildings were demolished in 1995, and two more were removed in 2004. Contaminated sediment was removed from the Blackwater Branch stream in four phases, and Atlantic White Cedar wetlands were restored by 2013. A pump-and-treat system has operated since spring 2000, processing roughly two million gallons of contaminated groundwater daily. That system continues to meet cleanup goals and is now managed by the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection. Groundwater migration is considered under control.
Work is still ongoing in several areas. River sediment remediation is underway, with completion estimated between October and December 2026. Union Lake sediment work is in the design phase, with construction expected to begin between September and November 2028. A new operable unit created in 2020 is evaluating deep soil arsenic as a source to groundwater and sediment. Its feasibility study is currently being developed. The site has not yet achieved sitewide ready-for-anticipated-reuse status and has not been deleted from the National Priorities List. The most recent Five-Year Review was completed in July 2021, confirming that current cleanup actions continue to protect people and the environment. The next Five-Year Review is scheduled for 2026.
Community members with questions can contact the Community Involvement Coordinator or the Remedial Project Manager. Site documents are available for in-person review at the EPA Region 2 Superfund Records Center at 290 Broadway, 18th Floor, New York, NY 10007-1866, and additional records are available through EPA's online Superfund database.
