Class Action Claims N.J. Waste Management Facility Releases ‘Noxious Odors’ into Residential Area

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Waste Management of New Jersey, Inc. has been hit with a proposed class action lawsuit that claims the company’s landfill in Monmouth County, New Jersey, continually releases widespread, noxious odors that invade nearby residential properties.

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The 21-page environmental lawsuit alleges that the 900-acre Waste Management facility in Tinton Falls, New Jersey, known as the Monmouth County Reclamation Center, continually emits “widespread noxious odors” that physically invade residential properties near the landfill and create a nuisance that hampers residents’ ability to enjoy their homes.

According to the filing, the “offensive” smell from the Waste Management facility, which accepts all non-hazardous solid waste, comes from the release of “landfill gas,” a byproduct of decomposition that typically contains methane, hydrogen sulfide, carbon dioxide and other “odorous” gases. Hydrogen sulfide gives landfill gas its characteristic rotten-egg smell and can be detected at concentrations as low as 0.5 parts per billion, the case explains.

An appropriately operated landfill, the case says, will “collect, capture, and destroy” foul-smelling gas emitting from leachate and other decomposing material, which Waste Management negligently fails to do, the suit claims. To make matters worse, the facility produces a significant amount of leachate, a “highly odiferous” and hazardous liquid formed when chemical waste from the landfill dissolves in rainwater, the complaint adds.

The class action lawsuit contends that Waste Management has negligently failed to prevent “fugitive emissions” from the landfill from invading residential properties in close proximity. According to the lawsuit, the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP) has received over 900 complaints about the smell from residents in Tinton Falls.

The suit mentions that over 40 households contacted the plaintiffs’ counsel to document odors that have affected their quiet enjoyment of their properties.

Additionally, inspections conducted by the NJDEP between 2023 and 2024, at least six of which are cited in the case, indicate the extent and severity of the odors, per the filing.

One inspection report from January 3, 2024 states that an inspector noticed a “clearly distinguishable and objectionable constant garbage like [sic] odor” and identified the Monmouth County Reclamation Center as the source, according to the case. The filing shares that another NJDEP inspection report from April 26, 2024 confirmed that a garbage-like aroma was emanating from the landfill.

The case also highlights several complaints from the plaintiffs and class members. One plaintiffs reported that they “can’t sit outside on our own balcony, can’t open the sliding door or windows on nice days,” and that the smell emanating from the Waste Management facility is “horrific, disgustingly putrid.” Another potential class member noted that the smell was often so repulsive that they couldn’t take walks with their baby and dog, and “[i]n summertime you can’t BBQ and spend time outside because of the smell as well.”

Monmouth County residents created a Facebook group known as “Monmouth County Citizens for Environmental Health and Safety,” the case says, which had over 1,300 members at the time of the filing. Many of the posts in this group, the lawsuit notes, concern the offensive odor from the landfill, with one resident posting, “it’s absolutely ridiculous and inexcusable at this point. Someone needs to be held accountable and something legitimate needs to be done.”

The Waste Management class action lawsuit seeks to cover all owner-occupants and renters of residential property residing at any time within the applicable statute of limitations period in the following geographical area: Starting at Shafto Road and Route 33, proceed east to Garden State Parkway. Follow Garden State Parkway north to Shafto Road. Proceed southwest down Shafto Road to the point of origin.

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