Ramapough-Lenape Tribe Chief Honored For Spearheading Superfund Site Clean Up Efforts In Mahwah

MAHWAH, N.J. — Vincent Mann, chief of the Ramapough-Lenape Indian Tribe, was honored for his work in getting the Ford Superfund Site permanently cleaned up and remediation.

Mann was the top honoree to receive the Russ Berrie Making a Difference Award at Ramapo College recently. The awards are given to New Jersey residents whose community service and charitable contributions impact others' lives.

Mann has been chief of the tribe's Turtle Clan since 2009. The tribe lives atop the nearby the historic Ringwood mines, which remain contaminated and hazardous due to the Ford Motor Company.

For years Ford, which was located in Mahwah, systematically dumped toxic materials into the area, which are the potential cause of illness that has plagued the people who lived there for decades.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency designated the area a Superfund Site and by the 1990s, the agency said the area had been cleaned up.

But when people continued to get sick, Mann, a West Milford resident, pressured the EPA to reopen its clean up efforts.

Mann was also honored for being a "passionate advocate for a cleaner, safer environment" and works to protect the tribe's land from gas companies' fracking efforts and the proposed Pilgrim Pipeline.

Mann received $50,000 for being this year's top honoree.

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Vincent Mann, left — Patch file photo