Available for Public Comment Starting April 28!
The United States Environmental Protection Agency is requesting public comment on the Proposed Cleanup Plan for the 157-acre East Waterway Operable Unit of the Harbor Island Superfund Site in Seattle, Washington.
EPA will accept public comments on the Proposed Plan for 60 days, starting on April 28, 2023.
Please visit EPA’s Harbor Island website for updated information about the East Waterway Proposed Plan, including how to provide public comments: www.epa.gov/superfund/harbor-island
What is EPA’s Preferred Cleanup Alternative in the Proposed Plan? EPA’s primary objective is to reduce contaminant concentrations in the sediment of the East Waterway to levels that are protective of human health and the environment. As a result, EPA is proposing an aggressive remedy that includes a combination of technologies to address the entire East Waterway Operable Unit and would actively clean up approximately 121 acres of contaminated sediments over a period of about 10 years. This would be an interim remedy, meaning that EPA will select cleanup levels after active cleanup activities have concluded and source control efforts can be evaluated.
This preferred alternative aligns with EPA’s long-term vision for the East Waterway Operable Unit, which is to obtain the lowest contaminant levels possible in sediments to reduce contaminant concentrations in fish tissue, to include achieving sediment PCB concentrations equivalent to the concentrations measured in the non-urban background for Puget Sound (i.e., 2 parts per billion PCBs). Achieving this will rely both on an effective cleanup of the East Waterway Operable Unit and robust source control efforts throughout the Green/Duwamish River watershed using a range of federal, state, and local regulatory authorities.
Documents: The Proposed Plan and administrative record are on EPA’s website at www.epa.gov/superfund/harbor-island
Questions? Contact Laura Knudsen, EPA Community Involvement Coordinator at 206-553-1838 or knudsen.laura@epa.gov
Comments