Site Location Street Address:
EPA Site Sample
Trash at site
Oil drums at site
Invasive weed - Chinese Silvergrass (Miscanthus sinensis)
Last page update: August 22, 2019
(see CAG tab for new meeting date, see Updates tab for July Summary)
Rolling Knolls Landfill Site History
Rolling Knolls landfill is an approximately 200-acre site located in the Green Village section of Chatham Township which was used as an unlined landfill from the early 1930s through 1968. During its use, it received municipal solid waste, construction and demolition debris. According to the Chatham Board of Health, waste included; tree stumps, scrap metal, tires, household refuse, residential septage waste and industrial waste. Herbicides and pesticides were used to control weeds, insects and rodents. Oil was applied on facility roadways to control dust. Most of the site is privately held, however, approximately 30 acres are owned by U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service as part of the Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge. Landfill operations contaminated soil, sediment, surface water and groundwater. Contaminants consist of elevated levels of: arsenic, lead, mercury, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), pesticides, phthalates, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), volatile organic compounds (VOCs), semi-volatile organic compounds (SVOCs), freon compounds, dioxin and furans.
Rolling Knolls Landfill Status:
July 31, 2019: feasibility study and remediation options (see meeting summary, located here)
May 13, 2019: Topic TBA
April 11, 2019: Regular meeting; discussion of human risk assessment.
March 11, 2019: Regular meeting; discussion of environmental risk assessment.
February 2019: Currently awaiting feasibility study to be released. The feasibility study will be followed by a 30 day public comment period.
September 2018: The Rolling Knolls Feasibility Study and proposed cleanup plan was due to be released by the EPA in September 2018.
June 2018: At a Public Information Session held by EPA in June, the following potential cleanup options were listed:
Soil Alternatives:
- No action
- Site controls (such as institutional controls, fencing, signage)
- Site controls, capping of selected areas to reduce overall risk and remediation of additional areas of concern
- Site controls, excavation and offsite disposal of selected area to reduce overall risk and remediation of additional areas of concern
- Site controls and capping of all landfill material
Groundwater alternatives:
- No action
- Source control and monitoring
- Source control and monitoring, with a contingent remedy
The proposed cleanup plan will summarize preliminary conclusions and delineate why the selected option appears most favorable.
The proposed plan must be protective of human health and the environment and must comply with the law. Additionally, seven other factors are weighed in determining the preferred cleanup plan. They are:
- Long term effectiveness
- Reduction of toxicity
- Short term effectiveness
- Implementability
- Cost
- State acceptance
- Community acceptance
Superfund Process
Rolling Knolls Landfill Timeline
Next meeting: September 23, 6-8pm at Harding Kemmerer Library
19 Blue Mill Road, New Vernon, NJ 07976
Previous Meetings Minutes and Agendas:
July 31, 2019
- July 31 – Meeting Agenda
- July 31 – EPA Feasibility Study Process Presentation
- July 31 – Appendix C – sampling locations
May 13, 2019
April 11, 2019
- April 11 Meeting Minutes
- April 11 Meeting Agenda
- April 11 Rolling Knolls Superfund Factsheet
- April 11 Rolling Knolls Superfund Presentation
- April 11 Human Health Risk Assessment
March 11, 2019
- March 11 – Meeting Minutes
- March 11 – Meeting Agenda
- March 11 Presentation by Fish and Wildlife Service
- March 11 – Baseline Environmental Risk Assessment
- March 11 – Baseline Health and Human Risk Assessment
December 3, 2018:
October 29, 2018:
- Meeting Agenda
- Meeting Minutes
- TASC Presentation (Technical Assistance Services for Communities)
- EPA Presentation for Oct 29, 2018
September 17, 2018:
- Meeting Agenda
- Meeting Minutes
- EPA Presentation for Sept 17, 2018
Presentations and Informative Documents:
- Dec 3 2018 Presentation – Remedial Investigation – determining the nature and extent of contamination at the site.
- PDF Brochure – Technical Assistance Services for Communities (TASC)
- EPA Public Reports and Documentation
- EPA’s Technical Reports and Studies for Rolling Knolls Site
Links for further information:
Our Role: Community Action Group
It is the last step, community acceptance, where we, the community, must play an important role. GSWA is in the process of establishing a Community Advisory Group (CAG) through EPA.
A CAG is made up of representatives with diverse community interests, including residents near the site and who may be impacted by the site, local environmental groups, local government officials, local businesses, and possibly responsible parties. The CAG purpose is to provide a public forum for the community to present and discuss their needs and concerns and to offer input to EPA. If you are interested in being a CAG member, please reach out to Sally Rubin at srubin@greatswamp.org as soon as possible.
In addition to forming a CAG, we are working with EPA to obtain an independent professional to review and explain information to the community, including the Feasibility Study and proposed cleanup plan, through EPA’s Technical Assistance Services for Communities (TASC) program. The TASC program will provide a technical advisor to help us understand complex environmental information. This will be followed up with a more formal request for a Technical Assistance Grant (TAG).
Since the fight to stop the jetport over 50 years ago, the residents of our local communities have fought to preserve and protect our environment. Let us continue that tradition and ensure that the Rolling Knolls Superfund is restored to protect human health and the environment through ecological revitalization which supports functioning and sustainable habitat.
Click here to download PDF presentation: What is a CAG? (page 14)
Questions? Contact Sally Rubin, srubin@greatswamp.org or call 973-538-3500
Rolling Knolls Landfill Site History
Rolling Knolls landfill is an approximately 200-acre site located in the Green Village section of Chatham Township which was used as an unlined landfill from the early 1930s through 1968. During its use, it received municipal solid waste, construction and demolition debris. According to the Chatham Board of Health, waste included tree stumps, scrap metal, tires, household refuse, residential septage waste and industrial waste. Herbicides and pesticides were used to control weeds, insects and rodents. Oil was applied on facility roadways to control dust. Most of the site is privately held, however, approximately 30 acres are owned by U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service as part of the Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge.
Landfill operations contaminated soil, sediment, surface water and groundwater. Contaminants consist of elevated levels of arsenic, lead, mercury, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), pesticides, phthalates, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), volatile organic compounds (VOCs), semi-volatile organic compounds (SVOCs), freon compounds, dioxin and furans.
EPA Determination: Superfund
After many years of investigation, EPA determined that the site was a threat to people and the environment and the site was placed on the Environmental Protection Agency National Priorities List for cleanup in 2003. What exactly does this mean?
In 1980, after toxic waste dumps such as Love Canal received national attention and the public learned about the risks to human health and the environment caused by contamination, Congress established the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act (CERCLA), more commonly known as Superfund. The Superfund law allows EPA to clean up contaminated sites, including requiring responsible parties to perform the cleanup or pay for it.
According to EPA, Superfund goals are:
- Protect human health and the environment by cleaning up polluted sites
- Make responsible parties pay for cleanup work
- Involve communities in the Superfund process, and
- Return Superfund sites to productive use
After having listed Rolling Knolls as a Superfund site, EPA identified potentially responsible parties (PRPs) who then conducted a lengthy remedial investigation through soil and water sampling and a risk assessment. The next step in the process is an analysis of potential cleanup alternatives, called a Feasibility Study and identification of a preferred proposed cleanup plan.