Clean river advocates deliver blistering rejection of EPA's latest PCBs draft report.
A coalition of well-known organizations devoted to protecting the Hudson River from past and future pollution accuses the EPA of turning its back on cleanup goals promulgated more than 20 years ago.
The Friends of a Clean Hudson (FOCH), a coalition of Hudson River advocates including Riverkeeper, Scenic Hudson, the Hudson River Sloop Clearwater, and a number of other environmental organizations, today (July 10) issued a blistering rejection of the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) latest Five-Year Report for the Hudson River PCBs Superfund Cleanup.
The EPA report, which is still in draft form, is the third such report the agency has issued. The coalition’s statement begins as follows:
Hudson River Valley – Environmental organizations and a broad coalition of Hudson River advocates vehemently oppose the findings of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) most recent review of the Hudson River PCBs Superfund Site. Released today, the draft third Five-Year Review (FYR) report irresponsibly concluded that a “protectiveness determination” cannot be made at this time and more data is needed to determine if the dredging of PCBs in the Hudson is meeting the expectations of the original cleanup plan. EPA’s position turns its back on the clear goals set forth in the 2002 Record of Decision (ROD) and contradicts environmental justice policies intended to ensure cleanups at polluted sites like the Hudson River address decades-old environmental injustices in disadvantaged communities.
The FOCH statement goes on to provide the historical background to this sad environmental saga that has gone on for decades:
For over 30 years, General Electric (GE) dumped cancer-causing Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCBs) into the Hudson River, turning a 200-mile stretch of the waterway into one of the country’s largest Superfund sites. This toxic pollution has burdened the entire region for generations – making it unsafe to consume the river’s fish, shutting down its fishing industry, and compromising its ecological health. Communities of color, immigrants, and economically disadvantaged populations more often rely on fishing in the Hudson River as a primary source of food, bearing the burden of increased exposure to PCB-contaminated fish.
The groups point out the cleanup remedy undertaken in the Upper Hudson as part of the 2002 ROD was designed to rapidly reduce the dangerous health risks from PCBs to humans and wildlife living in and near the river and to quickly restore the ecological and economic health of the river systems. However, despite six years of dredging (2009-2015), unacceptable amounts of PCBs were left in the river.
While the EPA’s new report is still in draft form, the coalition urges the public to provide input and let the agency know its views. For how to do this:
The draft third FYR for the Hudson River PCBs Superfund Site is available for public review at the EPA’s website. Public comments on the draft report will be accepted until October 8, 2024. The FOCH coalition will prepare materials and engagement opportunities to help the public and public officials understand the results of the FYR and participate in the public comment process. Sign up here for updates and more information.
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Thank you for sharing this. I once sailed and taught environmental education on The Sloop Clearwater. I wish they were more stable and involved in the politics of the Hudson River’s health like they used to be. They were fantastic in original helping our beautiful river get cleaned up.
Please keep us posted on this situation. It’s concerning. Thanks!