Archive for the ‘New Jersey’ Category

Middlesex County, New Jersey – Attorney General Anne Milgram and Deptartment of Environmental Protection Commissioner Lisa P. Jackson have confirmed that a sixty acre Global Landfill Superfund site located in Middlesex County, New Jersey, has been granted a multi-million dollar settlement that will pay for the costs of clean-up.

A total of approximately $20 million has been allotted for clean-up of the site, which is located in Old Bridge Township near Cheesequake State Park. In addition, several companies will contribute money for clean-up.

The landfill has been in operation since 1968, accepting industrial, commercial, and municipal waste. In accordance with its licensing and waste management facilities the site had accepted asbestos waste, septic sludge, and other potential toxins for several years until it was closed in 1984.

However, testing carried out at the site after its closure indicated that volatile organic compounds—including the contents of several of 63 barrels of hazardous waste—had been seeping into wetlands adjacent to the landfill.

As a result of the tests, the Global Landfill site was added to the Environmental Protection Agency’s Superfund National Priorities List in 1989.

In addition to asbestos, Department of Environmental Protection studies at the site also found that shallow groundwater was contaminated with pesticides, metals, and organic compounds. In addition, deeper groundwater was found to be contaminated with volatile compounds in at least one monitoring location.

Several organizations that were involved in the disposal of hazardous waste at the landfill site—including chemical and pharmaceutical firms, municipalities, and waste haulers—have been found to be partially responsible for its current state, and will contribute to the settlement total.

A total of 31 different parties involved in generating or transporting hazardous waste will pay a combined amount of $2 million. Of that, $1.1 million will contribute to past costs of containment activities at the landfill, while $745,000 will be contributed towards repairing damage caused to natural resources. The parties involved in the settlement will also be responsible for paying any additional clean-up costs if the initial settlement is inadequate.

The settlement must go through a thirty-day public comment period, and be approved by a District Court before it can be finalized.

During and after the clean-up the EPA will require long-term monitoring of both shallow and deep groundwater around the site, as well as ecological monitoring of the surrounding wetlands, to determine the extent of long-term damage and ensure the site does not become contaminated again.

HACKENSACK, New Jersey - On February 27, a New Jersey jury awarded what is believed to be New Jersey’s largest ever mesothelioma verdict. The widow and three daughters of Mark Buttittta will receive $30.3 million from General Motors and other defendants.

The case is notable for another reason as well - Buttitta, only 50 years old, believed that his mesothelioma was caused by exposure to so-called second-hand asbestos, carried home on work clothes worn by his father and brothers. Buttistta, Sr. and his sons were employed at GM parts warehouses in Bloomfield and Englewood. Buttistta worked in the warehouses during the summers when he was in school.

Buttitta was born and raised in Bloomfield, and was widely regarded as a “rising star” in the advertising profession. His clients included Coca Cola and Continental and Northwest Airlines. He died of mesothelioma a few days after his 50th birthday, shortly before Christmas.

The suit alleges that his father, Frank Buttitta, Sr., and his brother, Frank Jr., brought home deadly asbestos fibers on their work clothes. A number of recent suits allege that various companies that worked with asbestos were aware of the dangers of take-home asbestos, but did not warn employees, nor provide them or require them to observe precautions to prevent the transfer of asbestos fibers from home to work. There are many cases of wives and daughters, who took responsibility for laundering dust-encrusted work clothes from factories and construction sites, later developing mesothelioma or asbestosis because of their inhalation of asbestos.

Buttitta’s father worked for GM all his life, according to Buttitta’s attorney. He handled brakes and clutches made with asbestos during the course of his work. In addition, both Mark and his brother Frank worked as parts pickers at the facility during college vacations. The suit alleges that all three Buttittas would wear the same work clothes for several days at a time, bringing home asbestos fibers from work and letting them loose in their home. Buttitta’s lawyer painted the picture of a Mark as a small boy, sitting on his father’s lap or next to him to watch television, breathing in asbestos from his dusty work clothing.

Buttitta was diagnosed with mesothelioma in 2001, and died a year later. In 2003, his family established the Mark Buttitta Memorial Foundation for Research for the prevention, treatment and cure of mesothelioma. According to the home page of the foundation’s web site, “Mark did not fit the typical profile” of those who develop mesothelioma and other asbestos related diseases.

Buttitta’s lawyer stated that Mark’s case shows that blue-collar workers from the automotive, construction and other industries are not the only victims of mesothelioma. “all across New Jersey, men and women who wouldn’t know a brake shoe from a horseshoe can be struck down by this horrible disease decades later simply living with someone who contacted asbestos in their daily occupation.”

MONROE TOWNSHIP, New Jersey - Township officials were caught off guard by the results of a recently completed study of the building being renovated to become a new township library. The study showed materials in the building that contain higher levels of asbestos than is permitted by federal law.

According to the study, the joint compound used to seal the wallboard on the perimeter walls of the building contain 3 percent asbestos. Federal law limits the use of asbestos containing materials in construction to products containing 1 percent or less asbestos.

County officials immediately notified the Gloucester County Board of Health, as well as other state and federal agencies. The area where the samples were taken has not been disturbed.

Mayor Michael Gabbianelli learned of the study results on Thursday afternoon. He immediately authorized air quality tests to determine the level of airborne asbestos fibers in the building. Whatever the results of those tests are, however, they can only show the current levels of asbestos fibers in the air. There is no way to determine whether airborne asbestos levels were higher at other times in the past.

This is a concern for the township because public works employees did demolition tasks inside the building last summer. Gabbaianelli said that the township is contacting all employees, including the summer and student hires, and notifying anyone who may have been in the building or in contact with the building during the past year.

Asbestos is a mineral fiber that was widely used in construction and manufacturing in the past, and is often found in older construction materials. While it is generally considered to be safe as long as the materials containing it are not damaged, asbestos becomes a health concern when those materials are disturbed and release asbestos fibers and dust into the air.

Breathing high levels of asbestos has been shown to increase the risk of developing lung cancer, asbestos cancer, and may cause asbestosis, a progressive and debilitating disease that involves scarring of the lungs. Inhaled or swallowed asbestos fibers are also the only known cause of mesothelioma, a rare cancer that affects the lining of the lungs which is only found in those with a history of asbestos exposure.

Gabbianelli said that the township doesn’t believe that the asbestos presents a public health hazard or risk, but that the township is going to proceed with “an abundance of caution”.

“I want to assure all of our employees, including our summer help, that the township is dedicated to protecting their well-being,” Gabbianelli said.

In the past few decades, manufacturers and employers who allowed employees and others to be exposed to asbestos have been held liable in the courts for billions of dollars in settlements to those who developed asbestos-related diseases. As municipalities face the issue of deteriorating and aging properties that contain asbestos construction material, the township’s reaction is a common one.

Municipal officials are creating an action plan for employees and a remediation plan for the library to address the asbestos issue. Meanwhile, the township will provide any concerned employees with a medical screening and attempt to answer any related questions about asbestos exposure.

EAST ORANGE, New Jersey - A novel job training program is taking a two-pronged approach to dealing with environmental and social problems. The East Orange Office of Employment & Training used a Community Block Development Grant two years ago to fund the training of city residents in asbestos removal.

The city is reaping the benefits of that decision now. Fifty formerly jobless city residents completed the training course and qualified to take an asbestos control and licensing test, then secure a work permit from the New Jersey Department of Labor’s Division of Public Safety, Occupational Safety and Health.

Like many cities, East Orange faces the issue of how to deal with older buildings that are in dire need of renovation. Many of those buildings were built at a time when asbestos, which has been linked to deadly cancers like mesothelioma, was used widely in all areas of construction. At one current renovation project, for instance, there is asbestos in the floor tiles, the resin beneath the floor tiles and the adhesive holding innumerable dark glass window frame panels in place.

Station Plaza I and II were built in 1970, before it became widely known that the tiny fibers of asbestos could be inhaled and get stuck in the lungs and other soft body tissues. Once there, fibers can remain for decades, causing health problems that range from minor respiratory problems and lung scarring to deadly lung cancer and mesothelioma, a cancer that thickens the pleural lining and is always fatal.

While many forms of asbestos were banned in the 1980s, the ban did nothing to change the fact that millions of tons of asbestos had been used in buildings across the country - and indeed, around the world. The EPA estimates that asbestos-containing products were used in over 750,000 public and commercial buildings and more than 30,000 schools between World War II and 1980.

As those buildings age and deteriorate, the materials that contain asbestos are in danger of breaking down and releasing asbestos fibers into the air. Renovations and repairs often involve disturbing materials that contain asbestos, increasing the risk of creating a public health hazard. Tearing up an old tile floor without taking proper safety precautions, for instance, can contaminate the air in an entire building with microscopic asbestos fibers.

Because of the risks, the EPA and other federal and state regulatory bodies prescribe specific procedures that must be followed in order to reduce the chance of exposing the public to asbestos fibers. Those regulations include the removal of all asbestos containing materials before demolition, and methods of removal that must be carried out by trained and licensed asbestos removal workers.

In East Orange, the city recognized a need for trained asbestos remediation workers in 2005 when the developers of a housing complex told city officials that they needed asbestos removal workers to help remove asbestos from residential, classroom, office and religious buildings.

The idea to offer the training surfaced when the developers of the Woodlands at Upsala housing complex on the defunct Upsala College’s western campus in East Orange, told city officials in 2005 that they needed asbestos removal workers to help remove the asbestos from the residential, classroom, office and religious buildings there. The city started offering a training program for apprentice helpers, and evolved it into a full 32 hour training course for asbestos removal handlers.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, employment for hazardous waste removal workers is expected to grow 11 percent between 2006 and 2016.

Peterson said there will still be future work for the East Orange-trained asbestos remediators. The same holds true for many other cities that are undertaking redevelopment projects. East Orange recently announced that they are recruiting members for the next training class in asbestos abatement.

EDISON, New Jersey – The Edison Wetlands Association has brought suit against the current and former owners of a chemical plant near the Raritan River, charging that they have caused significant environmental damage, including leaving chunks of asbestos laying around the site.
The suit was filed January 27, in cooperation with the Eastern Environmental Law Center. It names Akzo Nobel Chemicals, Inc., the owners of the plant until 2006, and the current owners, Bassell USA Inc.
The suits filed by the environmental groups claim that the businesses failed to comply with the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act, the New Jersey Water Pollution Control Act and the New Jersey Industrial Site Recovery Act. The EWA engaged Chapin Engineering to test the water of the Raritan River. Their tests revealed several highly hazardous chemical contaminants, including asbestos.
“It’s a witch’s brew of various chemicals,” said Richard Chapin, president of Chapin Engineering.
Among the chemicals found in the water were benzene, 4-chloroaniline, arsenic and lead. The levels of benzene in the water were more than 860 times the acceptable level. Arsenic levels were over 550 times the acceptable level. In addition, said Chapin, his surveys found “significant amounts” of black tar and chunks of asbestos on the site.
Lead is linked to brain damage and other organ failures. Arsenic also causes brain damage and multiple organ failures. Benzene and 4-chloroaniline are both classified as carcinogens, and the latter can cause skin blistering. Asbestos is a carcinogen that causes lung cancer, asbestosis and mesothelioma, a rare cancer of the lung lining.
Chapin suggested that he wouldn’t let his dog lick his shoes after walking around the area.
The purpose of the lawsuit is to link the chemical plant owners to the nearby pollution, and to compel them to cease further contamination, remove wastes from the river, including those wastes embedded in the riverbank and change their practices to control any future contamination.
Chapin cited the history of the site, and stated that he is fairly confident that the contamination can be linked to the plant. He said that the chemicals found in the samples that he took are chemicals that the plant has historically produced.
In April 2007, EWA notified the Department of Environmental Protection of the chemical contamination of the river. The EPA ordered Akzo to repair the situation. The company dug several wells to pump contaminated water away from the river. Chapin said that he had told the company the method would be ineffective because of the kind of soil on the river bank. Tests done after the wells were dug confirmed that Chapin was right.
“It’s been pumping since the late fall and [the contamination] hasn’t gone away. That’s part of the problem. … They tried something, we told them it wouldn’t work, and they have not cut off the seepage into the river,” said Chapin.

SOMERSET, New Jersey - Alfacell Corporation announced today that they are within five evaluable events of moving on to the next step to approve their ground-breaking anti-cancer drug, Onconase for treatment of mesothelioma.

Alfacell and Onconase have been news in the financial pages around the world over the past month as the New Jersey pharmaceutical development company closed in on licensing and marketing deals for the new drug, pending FDA approval of the drug as an orphan drug. Malignant mesothelioma is generally considered an incurable cancer. Because it is so often undiagnosed until it has reached the later stages of the disease, a diagnosis of mesothelioma cancer often means death within a few short months.

Alfacell is in Phase IIIb testing of Onconase for treatment of patients with unresectable malignant mesothelioma. The company finished enrolling patients in the study on September 30, 2007. There were a total of 428 patients enrolled in the trial.

The statistical plan that was filed with the study states that Alfacell must wait until 316 evaluable events have occurred before they can begin the statistical analysis for the final sections of the rolling NDA (New Drug Application). In order to be evaluable, the patients must meet all of the eligibility requirements of the study, and receive at least one dose of Onconase. Since the purpose of the study is to determine whether Onconase increases the survival time of patients with unresectable malignant mesothelioma, the “evalauble events” are patient deaths.

The study has set a benchmark of 316 evaluable “events” in order to have enough data on which to base conclusions. The original projected timeline has been twice delayed. Today’s news puts the company within 5 events of their promised announcement that the final section of the NDA is in preparation. Once the 316th evaluable event is confirmed, the company has stated that they expect the final section to be ready for submission within four months.

While waiting is difficult when the results appear promising, the reason for the delays could be cause for celebration. All the early data suggests that the combination of Onconase and another anti-cancer drug increase the expected survival time for patients with unresectable malignant mesothelioma by up to two months and more. The original time lines were based on the expected survival times of newly diagnosed patients with unresectable malignant mesothelioma.

Onconase is a pharmaceutical product candidate that is based on proprietary Alfacell technology. It is a natural protein isolated from the leopard frog that has been shown in the lab and in clinical trials to target cancer cells without affecting non-cancerous cells. In addition to increasing life expectancy in those diagnosed with the killer cancer, it could also be more tolerable to patients, and improve their quality of life.