Dangerous Lead Chunks Wash Up On Jersey Shore Bay: Report

KEYPORT, NJ — Chunks of material that tested positive for lead have washed up on the beach in Keyport, just a few miles away from the Raritan Bay Slag Superfund site, according to a new report.

NJ Advance Media reported that the hazardous lead pieces were discovered by Greg Remaud, CEO of the NY/NJ Baykeeper.

The source of these pieces, which Remaud had tested and came back positive for hazardous lead, is unknown. But the pieces are similar to some found previously at a nearby contaminated site.

Only four miles away from where the chunks were found is the Raritan Bay Slag Superfund site in Laurence Harbor.

Decades ago, a private company built the seawall and jetties using slag, which is waste from the bottom of industrial blast furnaces used to smelt metal in the late 1960s to early 1970s.
In the early 2000s, the New Jersey Department of Environmental Projection tested the area and said it found elevated levels of lead, arsenic and copper along the seawall. They also found heavy metals in the soil, sediment and Raritan Bay water around the seawall, and the entrance to Cheesequake Creek.

Clean-up at the site has gone on for more than a decade now, since it was first designated a Superfund site in 2009. So far, only one portion has been completed: The EPA declared the "Margaret’s Creek sector" complete in 2018, which included restoration of the nearby wetlands.

It was recently awarded $1 million in funding for further cleanup from the Biden Administration. Read more: $1 Million In Fresh Funding For Raritan Bay Slag Superfund Site

The EPA took over cleanup of the site in 2021.

Remaud told NJ Advance Media that the findings of the chunks was concerning, not just for the health of people visiting the bay but for the fish and birds nearby as well. He also feared that more slag could be contaminating the bay, according to the report.

The EPA has been made aware of the lead findings and is investigating further, according to the report.

This article contains additional reporting by Carly Baldwin.