Contact: Stephen McBay, (212)-637-3672, mcbay.stephen@epa.gov

NEW YORK (May 11, 2023) - The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is seeking public input on its proposed cleanup plan to use a process called chemical oxidation to address recently discovered 1,4 dioxane groundwater contamination at the Monitor Devices, Inc./Intercircuits, Inc. Superfund site in Wall Township, New Jersey. A 30-day public comment period for the proposed plan begins May 11, 2023. EPA will host a public meeting at Wall Township Branch of the Monmouth County Library, 2700 Allaire Rd, Wall Township, NJ 07719 on Thursday, May 25, 2023, at 6:30 p.m. to explain the new cleanup proposal.

“Community engagement and feedback is a key part of EPA’s process as we work to select a cleanup plan at this Superfund site,” said Regional Administrator Lisa F. Garcia. “EPA’s proposed plan for the Monitor Devices/Intercircuits site will address the 1,4-dioxane contamination in the groundwater. We encourage the public to join our meeting, ask questions and share their views on the proposed plan.”

The Monitor Devices/Intercircuits site is the former location of a manufacturing facility that produced and assembled printed circuit boards from 1977 to 1980. The plating processes used chemicals that polluted the groundwater with volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and 1,4-dioxane. VOCs can cause health problems such as headaches, nausea, and liver damage. 1,4-dioxane can increase the risk of cancer.

In 2005, EPA chose a cleanup method called in-situ bioremediation to break down the VOCs in the groundwater. This method involves injecting non-hazardous additives into the groundwater that help bacteria degrade the VOCs. EPA started this cleanup in 2010 and will continue it until cleanup goals are achieved, which it expects will be in 2024. However, this method does not work for 1,4-dioxane, which EPA discovered at the site in 2010 during the cleanup process.

The new cleanup plan, announced today, proposes to remove 1,4-dioxane from the groundwater with a method called in-situ chemical oxidation using permeable reactive barriers. This method involves constructing a filtering wall underground that will capture and destroy the 1,4-dioxane contamination as it flows through the ground. Samples of the groundwater will be collected and analyzed to ensure that the technology is effective. EPA will monitor the groundwater for several years after the cleanup goals have been met to demonstrate that the groundwater is no longer a source of contamination.

Written comments on the proposed plan may be mailed or emailed to David Montoya, Remedial Project Manager, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 290 Broadway – 19th Floor, New York, NY 10007, Email: montoya.david@epa.gov.

For additional background and to see the proposed cleanup plan, visit the Monitor Devices, Inc./Intercircuits, Inc. Superfund site profile page.

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