Victory in Ringwood Cleanup

Victory in Ringwood Cleanup Date : Mon, 4 Jun 2012 11:09:46 -0400

For Immediate Release
June 1, 2012 Contact: Jeff Tittel, 609-558-9100

Victory in Ringwood Cleanup

A small victory in the fight to clean up the Upper Ringwood community was secured today.The EPA announced due to significant public that are delaying the decision on the final cleanup plan for the site by the Remedy Board.Sierra Club has long been involved in efforts to clean up this site from toxic paint sludge dumped by Ford Motor Company in the 1960's.The proposed mitigation plan does not require a full cleanup of the site.Instead capping and institutional controls will be used to limit the spread of pollutants.*Jeff Tittel, Director of the New Jersey Sierra Club*, issued this statement in response:

"We believe this is a small victory because the cleanup plan that was proposed was not a cleanup plan.The plan left in place tons of paint sludge and toxic chemicals in the middle of a community that has already suffered for far too long from the effects of all these chemicals.We believe leaving these chemicals in the ground is putting the community at risk and institutional controls will fail at some point,There are a lot of toxic chemicals in the mine shafts and ground water that come to the surface in the spring or when there is high ground water."

"This delay will hopefully give us more time to get an appropriate cleanup that actually protects the people in Upper Ringwood and cleans up the toxic mess on our public parklands and protects our Highlands waters and the Wanaque Reservoir from the toxins on the site.The Rampough deserve better, they deserve a real clean up.This delay is hopefully a start in that direction."

NJ Sierra Club comments on the EPA Cleanup Plan attached 

 --  Kate Millsaps Program Assistant NJ Chapter of the Sierra Club 609-656-7612