By David J. Mairo, Chiesa Shahinian & Giantomasi PC (CSG Law)
On February 3, 2025, the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP) published the updated Class IIA Ground Water Quality Standards (GWQS), N.J.A.C. 7:9C, originally proposed on January 2, 2024 and formally adopted on January 2, 2025. The new standards have the potential to impact ongoing and completed remediations at sites throughout New Jersey.
When originally published, the Department sought to update the specific ground water quality criteria and/or practical quantitation levels (PQLs) for 73 constituents of Class II-A ground water. The updates were reportedly based on United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) methodologies and the best available scientific information. The adopted version resulted in changes to 64 of the 73 originally identified constituents, of which 52 became more stringent and 12 became less stringent. The other nine constituents remained less than or equal to their PQLs, therefore no change was made. Some of the more commonly encountered contaminants for which there are now updated GWQSs include:
Benzene: 0.45 ug/l (ppb)
Perfluorononanoic acid (PFNA): 0.013 ug/l
Tetrachloroethene: 0.4 ug/l
Trichloroethene: 0.28 ug/l
Vinyl Chloride: 0.035 ug/l
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