Lower Hackensack River Named NJ’s 115th Superfund Site

njspotlightnews.org

But rehabbing the Hackensack won’t be easy. It could cost $2 billion to $3 billion and take 20 years. For decades no fewer than six Superfund sites along the waterway dumped or leached arsenic, lead, mercury and cancer-causing chemicals like PCBs into the river, and landfills dotted the landscape. Particles get eaten by wildlife — like crabs and fish. Signs warn folks not to eat their catch — but many ignore the advisory.