The Draft Natural Resource Damage Assessment Plan (PDF, 36 pages) for the Metro Container Superfund Site in Trainer, Pennsylvania is now available and interested members of the public may comment via email or mail to the address below.

Public participation during the Natural Resource Damage Assessment (NRDA) process is critical to fully capturing the impacts of contamination. For example, one impact of the superfund site is that many fish species now have consumption advisory warnings due to PCB contamination in the Delaware River and Delaware Estuary, cited specifically for Bucks, Philadelphia, and Delaware Counties.

These assessments lay the groundwork for future restoration efforts within impacted communities. As such, we encourage members of the public to review and provide comments on the Draft Plan.

A 30-day public comment period is open through June 4, 2025.

The Metro Container Superfund site lies southwest of Philadelphia along Stoney Creek, a tidal tributary of the Delaware River and is adjacent to a petroleum refinery, auto salvage operation, metal scrap operation, and rail yard. Past industrial operations resulted in elevated levels of contamination from polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), volatile organic compounds (VOCs), polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), and metals contaminating soil and groundwater.

The Delaware River, a riparian and mudflat habitat, is home to several NOAA trust resources, including habitat for Atlantic and shortnose sturgeon (respectively listed as threatened and endangered under the Endangered Species Act) and other fish species that migrate between salt water and fresh water to complete their life cycle. In addition, freshwater mussels occur along the New Jersey riverbank in the vicinity of the site.

Get Involved

The plan is available online, and printed copies can be reviewed at the Trainer Borough Municipal Building.

Comments may be submitted to Carrie Blakeslee of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service either by email at carrie_blakeslee@fws.gov or by mail at:

Carrie Blakeslee
US Fish and Wildlife Service
110 Radnor Road, Suite 101
State College, PA 16801

After the comment period closes, the trustees will review, summarize, and incorporate comments as applicable into the Final Damage Assessment Plan.

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