New Jersey AG Filed Lawsuit to Stop Statewide Illegal Waste Dumping Scheme

APRIL 20, 2023

In April 2023, New Jersey Attorney General Matthew Platkin, along with the Department of Environmental Protection, filed a lawsuit against various parties affiliated with MJ & Sons, a contracting company, for violating DEP orders to cease illegal transport, storage, and dumping of solid waste. The operations were part of “an illegal statewide dumping scheme” that involved dumping contaminated waste on private properties without the knowledge of the owners, or under the impression that the waste was “clean, free” soil. This action was part of a tranche of lawsuits taken as part of the New Jersey AG Office’s environmental justice initiative.

In September 2023, AG Platkin and DEP announced that a court had ordered 24 defendants in the case to “remove solid waste and return dumping sites to their original conditions, exit the solid waste business until they have the proper permits and licenses, and to pay over $8 million in penalties.”