Engineer: Test shows field is safe
BY KATHY BARATTA
Staff Writer

MANALAPAN - Following township health officer Dave Richardson's an-nouncement that there is no health threat on the Pop Warner youth football field at the Manalapan Recreation Center, the township engineer an-nounced that he had conducted a soil test at the site and said the results agreed with Richardson's assessment.

Engineer Greg Valesi of CME Associates, Howell, said his firm performed a soil test at no charge to Manalapan. He said the test for historic pesticides on the football field revealed there are no contamination concerns.

When asked by the News Transcript why his firm performed the soil test for free, Valesi said, "It was something we did to put an end to this."

In recent weeks the Township Com-mittee sought to respond to a resident who had brought up the issue of potential contamination at the Pop Warner football field.

Mayor Andrew Lucas, who made the announcement about the test, said, "Greg said testing showed levels well below the actionable guidelines developed by the state Department of Envi-ronmental Protection, so that's good news."

The recreation center, on Route 522 across from town hall, was constructed on former farmland.

Although the test Valesi performed is the first such documentation of any soil testing performed at the site, Richardson had previously stated there was no imminent health danger to anyone who has used the field or continues to use it.

The township turned over the field to the Manalapan Pop Warner organization several years ago. Prior to that the field was used for youth soccer matches.

Richardson previously told the News Transcript that since there has been "no evidence of raised cancer rates in the area or of other diseases associated with this type of contamination - we're not seeing anything that suggests there's a problem."