The Monroe Township Landfill operated from 1955 to 1978 on 86 acres in Middlesex County, New Jersey, accepting municipal and household waste. The New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection ordered it closed in 1978 after leachate seeped onto Lani Street. The EPA placed the site on the Superfund National Priorities List (NPL) in 1983 and has since completed all major cleanup work. The site has been deleted from the NPL, meaning it no longer ranks among EPA's most urgent cleanup priorities.
The landfill contaminated both soil and groundwater with nine identified contaminants. Those contaminants are 1,1-dichloroethene, 1,2-dichloroethane, arsenic, benzene, cadmium, chlorobenzene, chloroethene (vinyl chloride), lead, and nickel. EPA selected these based on the potential for people and ecological resources to be exposed, the amounts and types of contaminants present, and the health or ecological effects that could result from contact with them.
Cleanup began in 1979 with a leachate collection system. By 1984, workers had installed a perimeter leachate cut-off wall, an underground leachate collection drain, and a clay cover to reduce contaminant spread. Leachate was discharged to the Middlesex County Sewage Authority's Old Bridge Sewage Treatment Plant. A 1992 remedial investigation found that site-related contaminants would not affect off-site wells. In 1993, the state selected no further action with continued monitoring as the final remedy. Construction was formally complete on April 23, 1993, and the site was deleted from the NPL on February 3, 1994.
Today, human exposure is under control and groundwater migration is stabilized with no unacceptable discharge to surface water. The site achieved Sitewide Ready for Anticipated Use status by February 2008, meaning all cleanup goals for current and expected future land uses have been met. All required land-use restrictions and controls are in place. The most recent Five Year Review, completed November 15, 2024, confirmed the remedies remain protective of human health and the environment. Yearly monitoring and maintenance continue, with the next review scheduled for 2029.
Community members with questions can contact the EPA's Community Involvement Coordinator or the Remedial Project Manager. Site documents are available through EPA's Superfund records system and in person at the EPA Superfund Records Center at 290 Broadway, 18th floor, New York, New York.
