The nightmares today occurred because of the lack of respect for water and air.

The American Cyanamid Superfund Site (click here) is located in Bridgewater Township, New Jersey and was added to the National Priorities List in 1983 after contamination was found at the site. Prior owners used the 575-acre site for numerous chemical and pharmaceutical manufacturing operations for more than 90 years, resulting in the contamination of waste disposal areas (referred to as impoundments), soil and groundwater with volatile organic compounds (VOCs), semi-VOCs, and metals. In 1998, EPA deleted a 140-acre portion of the 575-acre site from the National Priorities List, leaving 435 acres to be addressed. The 140 acre parcel of land, which primarily consisted of administrative and laboratory buildings, has been redeveloped for commercial use. All manufacturing at the site stopped in 1999, with most buildings demolished by 2000. Wyeth Holdings LLC, a subsidiary of Pfizer Inc., acquired the site in 2009 and assumed responsibility for its cleanup. The long-term cleanup of the site is ongoing.

The rectangular areas are the chemical impoundments.


Flooding at the American Cyanamid Superfund Site in 2011.

The American Cyanamid Superfund site (click here) (Bridgewater Township, New Jersey) is located next to the Raritan River above the Brunswick Aquifer - New Jersey's second largest source for drinking water. The area had been used for manufacturing chemicals and as a disposal site of chemical sludge and other wastes. The site's soil, ground water and waste disposal areas are contaminated with volatile organic compounds (VOCs), semi-VOCs, metals and other harmful chemicals. In 2011, Hurricane Irene dumped seven inches of rainfall in 48 hours and the site flooded. Although there was no major release of contaminants from Hurricane Irene, the flooding caused significant damage to the facility. To anticipate and better prepare for future events, the site owner raised critical infrastructure components to several feet above previous flood events and reinforced the berms surrounding two impoundments to increase their strength and prevent flood-related scour. In addition, a remedy selected by EPA in 2012 required that all future engineered caps be designed and constructed to withstand the effects of a 1-in-500 year flood event, at a minimum....