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Hazardous Waste Cleanup: International Flavors & Fragrances Incorporated in Union Beach, New Jersey

On this page:

  • Cleanup Status
  • Site Description
  • Contaminants at this Facility
  • Site Responsibility

Cleanup Status

The facility is being cleaned up by International Flavors & Fragrances under New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP) oversight. A groundwater collector trench and slurry wall has been installed to prevent contaminated groundwater from flowing into Raritan Bay. Contaminated soil has been excavated or capped. A deed notice was issued for the property for hazardous constituents remaining at the site above standards for residential use.

Excavation and capping of contaminated soil at the site was completed. International Flavors & Fragrances will continue to conduct groundwater monitoring to assure that the migration of contaminated groundwater is controlled.


Site Description

International Flavors & Fragrances was located at 800 Rose Lane in Union Beach, New Jersey. International Flavors & Fragrances (IFF) manufactured specialty organic flavors and fragrances at this site from 1951 until the plant closed in 1997. It is adjacent to the Raritan Bay. Operations were in a 41-acre fenced-in area within a 105-acre property owned by IFF. The facility had a Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) permitted hazardous-waste tank and container storage units. Hazardous constituents were also handled in other areas, including lagoons, tanks, an incinerator and a railroad transfer area.


Contaminants at this Facility

In 1979, volatile organics were found to be moving from a fill in the northwestern part of the facility into Raritan Bay. Soil and wetland sediments were contaminated with polychlorinated biphenyls, or PCBs, as well as organic and inorganic constituents. 


Site Responsibility at this Facility

Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) Corrective Action activities at this facility have been conducted under the direction of EPA Region 2.