Superfund Sites Near You-Durham Meadows, Connecticut

The environmental woes at Durham Meadows may have begun as far back as 1851 when Merriam Manufacturing Company was established. A second notable manufacturing company was established in 1922 called Durham Manufacturing Company. From 1973 to 1982, industrial wastes were disposed of in surrounding lagoons. Paint wastes and other toxins were stored in drums at other locations in the area. Testing began in 1982 by the State Department of Environmental Protection. In 1998, the Environmental Protection Agency in cooperation with the company began more tests in Durham Meadows. More details of the contamination at Durham Meadows can be found at Scorecard.org or just click here.

Durham Meadows is a Superfund site, which means that the Environmental Protection Agency has taken a serious interest in the cleanup of contaminated area. The Superfund is a program funded by the federal government and covers a list of polluted locations across the United States of America. When Durham Meadows made it on the Superfund list, it was the first step in a long cleanup process. More information about Superfund sites can be found at Widipedia.org or just click here.

Durham Meadows is located in Middlesex County. The Superfund area includes many private wells and all that were tested proved positive for contamination. Plans are in the works to connect the residential homes of Durham Meadows to municipal water supplies, but this is a long process and filters have currently been installed that reduce the risk of contamination to the residents of the Superfund area.

In 1998 the Merriam Manufacturing Company lost most of its buildings at Durham Meadows because of fire at the Superfund site. However, the company is working with the Environmental Protection Agency along with the other manufacturing company to assist in the cleanup of the Durham Meadows Superfund site. The Manufacturers have been responsible for regular groundwater testing as well as maintaining the water filters at the residential homes in Durham Meadows.

As part of the cleanup agreement, all of the waste drums have been removed from the Durham Meadows Superfund site and relocated to an EPA-approved location.

In 2004, water sampling turned up a new contaminate called 1,4-Dioxane which was collected at 22 of 70 wells that were tested at the Superfund site and it has been shown that the contaminate sometimes passes through the water filters. It is likely that the new contaminate was always at Durham Meadows, but new methods of contaminate detection are more sensitive. More details of the 1,4-Dioxane detection can be found at Atsdr.cdc.gov website or just click here.

At this time, the ground water at the Superfund site is still contaminated with industrial toxins, however the area is slowly recovering.