Grasse River Cleanup Meeting
Community Interest Waning
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Located directly across from the St. Lawrence Mall, construction continues as they prepare a roadway, a docking facility and staging area for the unloading of sediment dredged from the Grasse River. The starting date for the in-river clean up has not yet been determined. Photo by MJKS.
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Department of Conservation (DEC), representatives from Arconic, the Saint Regis Mohawk Tribe Environment Division and others were present at the Office of the Aging building for a public meeting on the New York State Superfund Site; The Grasse River on Wednesday, July 12, 2017.
Prior to this meeting EPA and DEC held two other meetings, one on Tuesday, May 9, 2107 and another on Wednesday, May 10, 2017 which was well attended by many community members and plenty of SRMT candidates for chief and sub-chief.
Two Akwesasne community members and four Massena residents attended the meeting held on Wednesday, July 12, 2017.
They asked the EPA, Arconic, DEC and other representative questions related to the health of the river, the health of the Grasse River fish and its relation to the community of Akwesasne.
Construction continues on the facility located across from the St. Lawrence Mall in Massena, NY to support the estimated $243 million cleanup of the Grasse River Superfund Site. When constructed, the multipurpose facility will be used as a staging area to support dredging and capping operations and should be completed by November 2017.
The cleanup plan requires dredging and capping of contaminated sediment in a 7.2-mile stretch of the river. Approximately 109,000 cubic yards of contaminated sediment will be dredged from near-shore areas of the river, which will then be filled in with clean material. Dredged sediment will be disposed of at an on-site permitted, secure landfill. In the river's main channel, approximately 59 acres of contaminated sediment will be covered with an armored cap and another approximately 225 acres of contaminated sediment will be capped with a mix of clean sand and topsoil to isolate the contamination from the surrounding environment. Habitat that is impacted by the cleanup will be reconstructed. The plan requires long-term monitoring of the capped areas to ensure that the caps remain intact, and monitoring of fish, water and habitat. The engineering plans and other design work necessary for the dredging and capping work are under development. At this time, the schedule for the start of in-river cleanup work has not yet been determined.
The construction work also includes expansion of the permitted, licensed on-site Alcoa (now Arconic) Massena West landfill so that it can store dredged sediment and other materials. The NYSDEC is the lead agency overseeing the landfill expansion.
Based on current estimates, dredging, backfilling, and capping will take approximately four years to complete.
The fish consumption advisories established by the New York State Department of Health will remain in effect until PCB concentrations in fish are reduced to the point where the advisories may be relaxed or lifted by the state. The fish consumption advisory for the Grasse River is not to consume any fish at all.
EPA plans to hold monthly public meetings to update the community on work at the cleanup support facility, alternating between Massena and Akwesasne. The next meeting will be held at a Massena location. Previous meeting were held on May 9th and 10th and June 12 and 14th.
They will continue to hold meetings throughout the Fall, while the 2017 construction work is underway.
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