Feds unveil plan to deal with the Passaic River’s toxic mud
Updated 5:16 PM;
Today 5:10 PM
The Diamond Alkali superfund site during boat tours on the Passaic River in Newark, N.J. on July 16, 2014 (Ed Murray/The Star-Ledger)SL
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The lower reaches of the Passaic River are toxic.
Heavy industrial pollution through the 19th and 20th centuries left the river-bottom laced with hazardous substances, including carcinogens like dioxins and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs).
It’s a history of pollution that has robbed residents in Newark and surrounding towns of the chance to fully enjoy the river, a fact that once led U.S. Sen. Cory Booker to call the river “New Jersey’s biggest crime scene.” To this day, people are warned against eating any fish or crabs pulled from the Passaic.