The Environmental Protection Agency told the Trenton City Council on Thursday that historic pottery operations are a major source of lead contamination across East Trenton and outlined a long, staged cleanup process now that the site is on the National Priorities List.

Joel Petty, the EPA remedial project manager for the site, said potteries in Trenton operated from the 1850s into the 1920s and used lead-bearing materials in glazes; when kilns were fired, lead was released into the air and later settled on nearby properties. He said the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection referred the historic pottery sites to EPA, and an attribution study completed in 2023 identified the potteries as a major source of contamination.

Petty said the agency’s removal program has carried out interim measures, installing temporary clean covers and raised garden beds at parks, a school and 43 residential properties in East Trenton to reduce immediate exposure risks. “Removal actions can last days to several years, while remedial actions involve years of study and cleanup to achieve a full cleanup,” he told councilmembers. The remedial program, which addresses longer-term remedies and requires placement on the NPL, was activated when the site was listed in July 2025.

Why it matters: EPA said East Trenton will be the first, highest-priority operable unit because the agency already has the most sampling data there. Petty said about 160 residential properties have been sampled to date and the neighborhood contains roughly 700 occupied properties; EPA plans to continue sampling high‑risk properties (parks, schools and homes with pregnant women, children under 7 or active gardening) and to start city‑wide background sampling in late 2025 and 2026 to determine ambient lead levels.

The federal process: Petty described the remedial investigation/feasibility study (RIFS) that will characterize risk and develop cleanup alternatives, followed by a proposed plan subject to public comment and then a Record of Decision selecting the remedy. He said removal actions — the shorter-term measures already taken — will continue while the RIFS and community involvement processes proceed.

Council questions and concerns: Councilmembers pressed EPA on timing, outreach and access to rental properties. Petty estimated that full cleanup for an identified neighborhood could take “at least 10 years” but said multiple neighborhoods might be worked on in parallel. He said sampling access to landlord‑owned properties can be harder and added that an owner could become responsible for contamination if they refuse access, though he declined to discuss enforcement specifics because of enforcement‑sensitive issues. Petty also stressed that EPA does not perform blood testing; the health department provides screening and follow-up for children and other residents.

Funding and program limits: Petty said NPL listing enables long‑term federal action but that annual agency funding varies; he added that the current and previous administrations had prioritized residential lead, so EPA expects continued work but cannot guarantee exact future funding levels. He also clarified that sites receiving Superfund remediation cannot simultaneously use EPA Brownfields funding, and redevelopment plans funded through Brownfields may remain under that program rather than transfer to Superfund.

Next steps: EPA will continue interim actions at identified high‑risk properties, expand sampling and public outreach, collect background samples from surrounding municipalities, complete site characterization for East Trenton (Operable Unit 1) and progress toward a proposed plan and ROD in 2026 or later depending on study results and public input. Petty provided contact information and a community update fact sheet available in English and Spanish and said a field office is open at 461 Brunswick Avenue for residents with questions.

Petty’s remarks and the council’s questions occurred during the agency presentation starting at 00:00:04 in the meeting transcript; the EPA background and next‑steps overview is captured in agency materials and the handouts made available to council and the public.