Before more stringent state environmental laws were enacted, waste was buried in 48 unlined landfills in Atlantic County. Chemicals seeped directly into the ground and contaminated the groundwater.
A new system for solid waste management was required to protect the environment from further pollution.
In 1981, the Atlantic County Board of Commissioners were required to implement a solid waste management plan, and the Atlantic County Utilities Authority (ACUA) became the designated agency to implement it. After years of deliberation, the 365-acre Environmental Park was ultimately built in Egg Harbor Township and opened in 1990.
The landfill began accepting construction and demolition waste in 1992. A pilot project to accept municipal solid waste began in 1997, and ACUA's permit was modified to accept this material in 2000.