lightman drum company

ROUTE 73

The 15-acre Lightman Drum Company (LDC) Superfund site is located on Route 73 in Winslow Township, Camden County, New Jersey. LDC acquired the property in 1974 and began recycling drums. LDC received drums, some full or partially full; which were emptied before they could be forwarded to an off-site location for cleaning. Initially, a pit was dug at the rear of the property to discard the contents of any drum that arrived “heavy”. This practice was discovered by an adjacent property owner, who contacted the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP). A formal complaint was filed in 1974 and NJDEP took legal action to force the company to upgrade its disposal methods. The NJDEP continued to monitor operations at the Site and in 1977, during a site inspection, discovered that LDC had installed two 5,000-gallon underground storage tanks. The company applied for, and was granted, a temporary one year permit to receive and store specific types of waste before sending these wastes to an approved hazardous waste facility for final disposal. Under this temporary one year permit, LDC consolidated chemical residues in underground storage tanks, in drums, and in trailers. Numerous violations occurred during this period of operation, which led to the subsequent denial of LDC's application to continue as an interim hazardous waste storage facility. Recycling operations at the Site have since ceased. LDC, d/b/a United Cooperage, is currently buying and selling used and reconditioned drums at the Site. In 1987, a NJDEP investigation led to the discovery and further investigation of volatile organic chemicals and heavy metals contamination in the on-site soils. NJDEP supervised subsequent investigations of the contamination by the company under a 1988 Administrative Order (AO). The 1988 AO ordered LDC to conduct an investigation to determine the nature and extent of contamination and any impact on human health and the environment. The investigation documented that the groundwater underlying the site was contaminated with hazardous substances as a result of the company's operations. Site Responsibility: This site is being addressed through Federal and PRPs actions.

Hazardous Ranking Score

42 / 100

A score of 28.5 or higher qualifies a site for the Superfund National Priority List.

Regional Contact

Region 2
Phone: (877) 251-4575

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Timeline

Discovery
Site Inspection
Preliminary Assessment
Final Listing On NPL
Removal

Contaminants & Health Effects

      Carcinogen
      Endocrine Disrupter
      Neurotoxic
      Sensitiser
      Reproductive Toxin
      Persistent, bioaccumulative and toxic
      VOC
      Mutagen

        Census

        White
        African American
        Asian
        American Indian and Alaska Native
        Native Hawaiian
        Other

        1,170

        People living
        within a 1 mile radius

        $88,184

        Average Income

        384

        Occupied homes

        Potentially Responsible Parties

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