TRENTON, NJ – Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin and Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) Commissioner Shawn M. LaTourette announced several legal actions and accomplishments targeting polluters, aiming to correct past inequities in environmental law enforcement.
Among the recent advancements, the State obtained a court order against 24 defendants involved in an illegal waste dumping scheme in Newark. The court order mandates the cessation of all activities in the solid waste industry and requires the removal of dumped waste. Additionally, an $8 million penalty has been imposed on the offenders.
In another case, Fillit and Jersey Recycling Corporation in Palmyra have been directed to create a conservation easement of over 31 acres along Pennsauken Creek. They are also required to remediate unauthorized waste and close the landfill properly, facing civil penalties of $4,012,000.
Further, a court order enforced the shutdown of unsafe wells and the drilling of new wells at the Blueberry Bill farm in Hammonton to provide safe drinking water for migrant workers and their families.
British Petroleum also reached an agreement to remediate soil and groundwater contamination originating from underground gas storage tanks at Monk’s Amoco in Camden. They are to compensate the DEP at least $260,000 and provide up to $100,000 to the City of Camden.
In addition to these actions, six new enforcement actions were filed last Thursday targeting additional polluters in overburdened communities.
Attorney General Platkin stated that under Governor Murphy, New Jersey has become a national leader in environmental justice, filing 62 enforcement actions and securing nearly $28.8 million in penalties.
Commissioner LaTourette noted that these actions highlight the DEP’s commitment to cleaning up contaminated sites, especially in communities facing environmental justice concerns.
In more affluent communities, such as Toms River, New Jersey, LaTourette is trying to seal a deal to allow one of the state’s larges polluters, CIBA GEIGY (Now BASF) to build on 225 acres at one of America’s largest federal superfund sites.