Witco Chemical Corp. (Oakland Plant)

Overview

Witco Chemical Corporation ran a technical research facility on a 9-acre property in Oakland, New Jersey from 1966 to 1984. The company discharged neutralized lab wastewater into six unlined underground seepage pits. In 1982, the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, or NJDEP, found petroleum hydrocarbons and volatile organic compounds, also called VOCs, in soil and groundwater at the site. That discovery triggered a formal cleanup process that eventually brought the site under federal Superfund oversight.

Both soil and groundwater are affected. Groundwater contains dichlorobenzenes, acetone, aluminum, antimony, arsenic, chromium, cobalt, and various phthalates, among other substances. Soil contamination is broader and includes those same chemicals plus benzo(a)pyrene and related compounds, beryllium, chloroform, copper, dieldrin, lead, manganese, mercury, DDT-related pesticides, tetrachloroethene, and zinc, among others. The EPA identified these as contaminants of concern because they posed unacceptable risks to human health or the environment.

Witco led the cleanup under a 1982 NJDEP directive. The company first stopped subsurface discharges by installing a 6,000-gallon fiberglass tank to collect lab waste, completing that step in early 1984. Starting in 1987, Witco removed sludge, contaminated soil, and the seepage pit structures. The excavated area was backfilled and closed in 1988. The EPA then ordered additional groundwater and soil investigations, which Witco finished by mid-1992. Based on those results, the EPA concluded no further cleanup actions were needed and selected a remedy of no further action with monitoring. The site was proposed to the National Priorities List in 1988 and officially listed in 1989. Sources differ slightly on the deletion date, citing either November 1993 or September 1995, but both confirm the site has been deleted from the list, meaning cleanup goals were met.

Today, human exposure is under control, and groundwater migration has been stabilized with no unacceptable discharge to surface water. The site holds a sitewide ready for anticipated use designation, confirming that all cleanup goals for current and reasonably expected future land uses have been achieved and no unacceptable risks remain. Six businesses now operate on the property, employing 106 people and generating roughly $17 million in annual sales.

Community members with questions can contact the EPA's Community Involvement Coordinator or the Remedial Project Manager. Site records are available for in-person review at the EPA Superfund Records Center, 290 Broadway, 18th floor, in New York City.