Fact Sheet 11
Facts About Dredging Hudson River PCBs
- The Hudson River is the largest federal Superfund site in the US,
covering a 200 mile stretch. Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) dumped by
General Electric at their Hudson Falls and Fort Edward plants continue
to contaminate both the Upper and Lower Hudson River. GE´s dumping,
most of which was done without permits, occurred from 1946 until 1977,
when PCB use was banned. Small amounts of PCBs continue to seep into
the river from bedrock beneath GE´s plants, which GE will remedy by
2003. GE is responsible for the costs of cleaning up their PCBs.
- The Hudson River is not `cleaning itself´ of PCBs.
Scientific studies have shown that less than 10% of PCB mass has been
reduced by dechlorination over the past 20 years, leaving slightly
lighter PCB molecules that are still toxic. PCBs are most often in the
top nine inches of sediment, making them available to the aquatic food
web. Each year, five hundred pounds of PCBs flow over the Federal Dam
in Troy from sediments in the Upper Hudson and move down river.
- PCBs remain an unacceptable health risk for residents and wildlife in
the Hudson Valley. PCBs cause cancer in animals and are a probable human
carcinogen. PCBs cause neurological, reproductive, and endocrine
problems, as well as birth defects in both humans and wildlife.
Currently, fishing in the Upper Hudson is catch and release only.
Anglers are prohibited from eating fish from this 40 mile stretch due to
PCB contamination. Women of childbearing age and children are advised
not to eat any fish from the Lower Hudson, and men are advised to limit
their consumption. Despite health advisories, many anglers and their
families continue to eat their catch.
- The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recommends cleanup of
PCBs and has proposed removing of 2.65 million cubic yards of
contaminated sediment containing over 100,000 pounds of PCBs. Forty
targeted ³hotspots² in the Upper Hudson River will be cleaned up using
environmental dredging techniques that minimize adverse ecological
impacts. The proposed project will take three years to plan and five
years to implement. The river will remain open to the public and to
boating. Towns that use the river for their drinking water will be able
to continue to do so, and strict monitoring will be in place.
- Modern environmental dredging equipment and techniques can safely
remove contaminated sediment. Hydraulic dredges, such as the
cutterhead dredge and the eddy pump, and enclosed mechanical buckets are
designed to minimize resuspension of contaminated sediments.
Environmental dredging is much more contained and precise than
navigational and construction dredging and has been used successfully in
environmental cleanups throughout the US.
- Safety precautions provide added protection for the environment.
Dredges can use the Global Positioning System (GPS) to accurately target
identified hotspots, eliminating unnecessary dredging.
Video and/or sonar equipment are often used to monitor the process.
During hydraulic dredging, the river remains clear enough to allow
underwater cameras to help guide operations. Multiple water testing
sites are set up in the vicinity of dredging. If a problem should
arise, it will be immediately detected, and the operation can be quickly
shut down. Silt curtains or barriers, which surround the work area,
help to contain any resuspended sediment.
- The successful completion of a PCB dredging project along Lake
Champlain in Plattsburgh, NY has demonstrated the effectiveness of
environmental dredging. The three year process removed 25,000 pounds
of PCBs, reducing on-site contamination by 90%. Waterfront homes along
the shoreline were undisturbed, and swimming beaches and motels stayed
open during the process. A paper plant intake valve, which required
water clarity with no more than 2 parts per billion of suspended
particles, remained open throughout the dredging.
- The EPA has proposed shipping contaminated sediment by rail to
licensed hazardous landfills outside the Hudson Valley after they
are dewatered and stabilized. Two dewatering facilities have been
proposed for processing sediment and will be sited on existing
commercial properties. No farmland will be used for landfilling or
processing. Clearwater advocates using treatment technologies that
remove PCBs from sediment for decontamination.
- PCB remediation will create important economic opportunities.
The $460 million dollar cleanup will significantly strengthen the local
economy and create jobs. PCB contamination has prevented routine
maintenance dredging of navigational channels. This has limited boat
access to area marinas and the Champlain Canal. Removing PCBs will
allow maintenance of channels to resume, enhancing regional tourism and
commercial opportunities. Removing PCBs will improve commercial and
recreational fisheries and increase property values in the cleanup
area.
- Cleaning up the Hudson has broad support. Governor Pataki has
endorsed the EPA´s Proposed Cleanup of PCBs in the river. A bipartisan
group of thirty five members of New York and New Jersey´s Congressional
delegation, including all four Senators, have signed letters supporting
the EPA´s proposed PCB cleanup. Sixty-nine municipal governments and
legislatures from the City of Albany to the City of New York have
endorsed removing PCBs from the Hudson, along with more than 180
organizations, including the NY State AFL-CIO. The EPA´s Public Comment
period for the proposed PCB cleanup began in December, 2000 and ended
April, 2001. Thousands of cleanup supporters wrote to the EPA and spoke
at public meetings during this period despite GE´s unprecedented
advertising campaign against dredging.
- The EPA is scheduled to announce their Final Record of Decision
(ROD) on this issue in September, 2001. EPA Administrator
Christie Whitman has
indicated her support for the full proposed cleanup in a draft decision
announced at the end of July, recommending that the project be done in
phases. The Final Rod will be issued after review of the draft by NY
State officials.
For further information, please contact:
Hudson River Sloop Clearwater
Manna Jo Greene, Environmental Director
112 Little Market Street
Poughkeepsie, NY 12601
(845) 454-7673
mannajo@mail.clearwater.org
Or Visit:
www.epa.gov/hudson
www.cleanhudson.org
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