EPA Violating Its Mission Statement To Protect Public Health

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) was established to protect human health and the environment. But its proposed plan for cleaning the lower Passaic River—once a noble effort—is now in danger of violating that very mission. What was once a blueprint for restoring a polluted river has evolved into a threat to communities that have already paid the price of industrial contamination.

The EPA’s cleanup strategy for the Lower Passaic River and the Diamond Alkali Superfund Site relies on outdated data, much of it over 30 years old. The plan was originally conceived to address a blighted, abandoned industrial corridor. But the landscape has changed dramatically. Nowhere is that transformation more evident than in Harrison, New Jersey.

Under the leadership of the late Mayor Raymond J. McDonough and then Town Council, Harrison’s southern end has evolved from a toxic wasteland into a vibrant, mixed-use residential neighborhood. Last year alone, redevelopment PILOTs (Payments in Lieu of Taxes) generated over $14 million—this year the town budget projects PILOTS will match the $16 million in annual property taxes raised from the town’s other neighborhoods.

Yet this success is now under threat. The EPA’s plan proposes a dewatering plant and staging area for toxic Passaic River sludge on a piece of land that has already undergone a $367–$400 million cleanup by PSE&G. This site, located near the Jackson Street Bridge, is no longer an industrial backwater. It sits in the heart of a thriving community filled with luxury residences such as Steelworks, Vermella Harrison, The Cobalt Lofts, The Wyldes, and others, alongside hotels like the Hampton Inn and The Element.

Map of the Area Surrounding the Proposed Harrison Sludge & Construction Staging Plant

The proposed sludge treatment process would involve mixing contaminated sediment, laden with dioxin, one of the deadliest byproducts of Agent Orange, with Portland cement. This would solidify the material for transport by truck to unidentified toxic waste landfills. Though the EPA promises air quality, odor, and noise controls, the community’s concerns are not unfounded. Dioxin can become airborne through particles, and the risk of exposure in such a densely populated area, including retail zones, residential buildings, and the nearby PATH station, should be unacceptable to any agency genuinely committed to environmental justice.

Worse still is the EPA’s plan to use the capped Lister Avenue site across the Passaic River from Harrison—the very ground zero of Agent Orange production—as a construction staging area. This site holds some of the most toxic chemical waste in the United States. The dioxins buried there were considered too hazardous to remove and remain entombed under a protective cap. Why would the EPA now place heavy equipment and construction operations directly atop this cocktail of toxicity, risking rupture, accidental or intentional, and public exposure?

This approach is reckless. It disregards both scientific prudence and common sense. EPA officials have acknowledged that the capped toxins are too dangerous to disturb—yet they now propose doing just that, all in service of a cleanup strategy rooted in obsolete assumptions about the area.

Residents raised thoughtful, pointed questions at a Harrison community meeting in August 2024—recorded by The Observer and available on YouTube. The community’s message was clear: EPA must go back to the drawing board.

And the truth is, the EPA still has time to do the right thing.

There is no official agreement with PSE&G to use its Harrison property. There are alternative sites. South Kearny, for example, is an industrial zone with no residential neighbors, ample buffer space, and direct access to both the New Jersey Turnpike and freight rail lines. A purpose-built dewatering facility located there would not pose the same public health risks and would uphold the values the EPA is supposed to champion.

The PSE&G property in Harrison, once envisioned as a green space and transportation drop-off hub for the PATH station, symbolizes the town’s revival. Turning it into a toxic sludge plant would be a cruel reversal of everything the community has worked to achieve.

It’s time for the EPA to reboot its cleanup strategy—not abandon it, but realign it with its mission and with 21st-century realities. The toxic sediment in the Passaic River will still be there tomorrow. But if we rush a flawed plan forward today, we may sacrifice communities that have already endured far too much. Per the EPA, the dioxin is being held in place right now by the sludge at the bottom of the Passaic River.  There is no direct risk to the public at this time unless you eat the fish and crabs from the Passaic River.

The EPA must choose: Will it be the protector of public health and environmental justice, or the agent of another environmental disaster?

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