EPA takes charge of fire at toxic N.J. site

The fire at an EPA-designated Superfund site is now burning underground and will not be fully extinguished until the area receives measurable rainfall, authorities said Friday.

The fire at Pioneer Metal Finishing, Inc. on Coles Mill Road in Franklin Township has been burning since Saturday after a New Jersey Forest Fire Service watch tower identified smoke in the area, authorities said.

The property is among the 115 sites designated by the Environmental Protection Agency as a Superfund site for being contaminated. The EPA said the property is listed as a Superfund based on ecological risk, not a human health risk.

EPA officials are now in charge of the response and will continue monitoring air quality in the area until Monday, authorities said.

Potentially strong storms across the state are in the weather forecast over the weekend as a cold front moves into the region by Sunday.

The fire initially burned seven acres, which were all on the Pioneer Metal Finishing property and elicited a massive response from local, county, state and federal authorities, officials said.

Hazmat teams were called to the scene to monitor air quality based on Environmental Protection Agency recommendations, authorities said.

Initial readings in the immediate area of the fire registered as unhealthy and four residences along Coles Mill Road were contacted to evacuate, authorities said. All four families decided to shelter in place instead of evacuating, according to authorities.

Air quality testing was also completed inside and outside of Delsea Regional High School and Middle School given their proximity to the fire, authorities said.

Testing was completed each day before school and the air quality was never deemed unhealthy at the schools, authorities said.

Between 1950 and 1970, Pioneer Metal Finishing discharged untreated wastes into an unlined trench leading to a nearby wetland area, according to the EPA.

Some of the materials reported to be discharged at the property are metallic salts, untreated process sludge, cleaning solutions and plating wastes, according to the EPA.

Soil testing of adjacent wetland areas found unhealthy levels of chromium, copper and nickel as well as Polychlorinated biphenyls, the EPA said.

NJDEP officials requested help from the EPA in 2018 to address the contamination at the site.

Between 2018 and 2019, over 100 tons of hazardous waste and cyanide-contaminated debris, including 20,000 gallons of liquid waste, were removed from the facility, according to the EPA.

Authorities said Friday that the site has been listed on the EPA’s National Priorities List since September 2021.