528 SENATE HART OFFiCE BUILDING ROBERT MENENDEZ WASHINGTON, DC 20510 NEW JERSEY (202) 224-4744
ONE GA,EWAY CENTER COMMITIEES: 11TH FLOOR BANKING, HOUSING, AND URBAN NEWARK, NJ 07102 AFFAIRS (973) 645-3030 

# CJanit(d**~tat(S ~(nat(**  ENERGY AND NATURAL RESOURCES 208 WHITE HORSE PIKE FINANCE WASHINGTON, DC 20510-3005 SUITE 18-19 BARRINGTON, NJ OB007 FOREIGN RELATIONS (856) 757-5353

Statement ofRobert Menendez April 7, 2011

- Edison, NewJersey United States Environmental Protection Agency In Response to the Notice ofOpportunity for Public Input Potential Addition ofVapor Intrusion Component to the Hazard Ranking System
Thank you for permitting me the opportunity to provide input onthe possible change in the Hazard Ranking System (HRS) to include a vapor intrusion component and thank you for providingNew Jerseyans a listening session at the EPA facility in Edison.
The ComprehensiveEnvironmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act (CERCLA andpopularly known as Superfund) has been the driving force behind the cleanup ofa number oftoxic sites inNewJersey. CERCLA, as amended by the Superfund Amendments and Reauthorization Act (SARA), requires that the HRS be periodically revised to more accurately assess the relative degree ofrisk to human health and the environment. That assessment which is taking place now is critically importantto the State ofNewJersey.
NewJersey has had a long history with Superfund, a state that has an industrial past with more Superfund sites than anywhere else in the country. Itis also a state that has a multitude ofsites where Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) pose a real and existential threat to human life through this newly recognized pathway. It is for that reason that Ibelieve vapor intrusion should be included in the HRS as a migration pathway or as partof an exposure pathway. Inclusion ofvapor intrusion in the HRS might put some ofthese sites at a ranking of28.5 or greater, which would make them eligible for the National Priorities List.
The science is relatively new, butwe nowknowthat volatile organics migrate through contaminated groundwater or soil and then seep through cracks in basement foundations as vapor intrusion, creating an exposure that can enterthe bloodstream quickly and at higher concentrations than other pathways. Whetherthis occurs in the home, in schools, or inthe workplace, vapor intrusion ofVOCs can result in a number ofailments, including cancer. In oneNewJersey Borough, PomptonLakes, wherethere is a history ofvolatile organics on site, the NewJersey Department ofHealth and Senior Services in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR), has documented a statistically significantincrease in the number ofcases ofkidney cancer and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma.
There are many sites in NewJersey where air is being monitored for vapor intrusion. In additionto the aforementioned site in Pompton Lakes, VOCs and vapor intrusion are being examined at the QuantaResources Superfund site in Edgewater, at the Fairlawn Wellfield, and at the Rockaway Township Wells. Because medical science and environmental science have progressed to an understanding ofthe potential oflifethreatening exposure to VOCs, vapor intrusion should be considered a priority issue for ranking purposes. Although we have increasingly limited resources in which to address contamination and cleanup, we haveto continue to strive to focus on the relative risks to human and environmental health. Inclusionofvapor intrusion as a migration pathway or as part ofan exposure pathway will go a long way in makingthis happen. It will afford us the opportunity to prioritize the cleanup sites and mitigate human health exposures.