Hundreds Of Abandoned Drums With Chemicals Found At Howell Business

HOWELL, NJ — Deteriorating 55-gallon drums containing chemicals were discovered last month by Howell firefighters at a former industrial plant at 15 Marl Road, and now federal environmental workers will be at the site for several weeks to manage their removal, the township said.

The Environmental Protection Agency has informed the township it will have workers at the former Compounder’s Inc. site at 15 Marl Road for the "next several weeks," the township said in a news release.

Compounders Inc. manufactured a number of chemical compounds, including glues, adhesives, and asphalt materials, the EPA said. The company closed in 2019.

The agency is "overseeing the sampling and removal of around 200 to 300 drums and containers found at the site," the EPA said in a statement. The site now has 24-hour security, the township said.

"Despite some workers wearing protective equipment and clothing, this does not mean there is a risk to the public or surrounding residents," the township said.

The EPA said there will also be increased traffic in the area during the operations at the site.

The township first alerted residents to the presence of activity in the area late last week. The township is providing the information through its website.

The township provided a document from the EPA that explains the discovery of the drums and the current scope of its work. Here are the main points in the memo:

• On Feb. 9, Howell Township Fire Departments were dispatched to the former Compounders Inc. site where they discovered materials burning inside an old metal structure on site, the EPA said in the memo.
• Firefighters found numerous drums and smelled a chemical odor. After extinguishing the fire, firefighters called the Howell Township Office of Emergency Response that called in the Monmouth County Department of Health to address potential hazardous materials, the EPA said.
• The health department discovered large quantities of 55-gallon drums, along with smaller quantities of other containers around the site. The agencies also found spilled materials on the ground and open drums, as well as solid waste, according to the EPA.
• New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection’s Bureau of Emergency Response assessed the site after a request from the county health department and found approximately 200 to 300 55-gallon drums and containers, many of which were either "bulging, rusting, dented or leaking," the EPA said.
• The state Department of Environmental Protection requested EPA’s assistance on Feb. 15. EPA found there were breaches in the front fence of the property and no fence securing any other side of the property. EPA observed containers that were leaking and labeled as hazardous materials.

The EPA said "the potentially responsible party and its contractor will secure the property by installing a fence around the perimeter of the site. They will then collect samples from the drums and containers to understand the contents and ship all of the hazardous materials offsite."

EPA will oversee all site removal operations including air monitoring around the facility during the work.

Some site workers may be dressed in protective clothing to keep contamination off their clothes; however, this does not mean there is a risk to the surrounding residents, the EPA reiterated.

Howell Township and Farmingdale Borough will continue to work with local and state police officers to patrol the facility as well, the EPA said.

According to the agency, Compounders Inc. operated until 2019. The current owner purchased the business as part of a stock sale in 2021.

According to NJ Parcels, the site is zoned industrial and has a one-story structure on 7.7 acres. Marl Road is located off of Preventorium Road.

Michael Mannino of the EPA is the on-scene coordinator, Mannino.michael@epa.gov.