For more information, the community is invited to a public information meeting on Thursday, June 14 in the Martha Eddy Room of the Art and Home Center at the New York State Fairgrounds. An open house will run from 5:00 to 6:00 p.m. where the community is invited to stop by any time to interact one-on-one with project managers and ask questions. The formal information session will follow at 6:00 p.m. and include a presentation. Topics to be discussed are what the public can expect to see and experience during the project; how the community is being protected; who the public can call if they have any questions or concerns; and how interested community members can stay informed about progress. The presentation will be followed by ample time for questions and discussion.
Project design documents, fact sheets, the Community Health and Safety Plan, and how to sign up to receive DEC’s Onondaga Lake News email updates, are all available on DEC’s website at www.dec.ny.gov/chemical/37558.html.
DEC: $451 MILLION CLEANUP OF ONONDAGA LAKE ENTERS DREDGING PHASE
June 14 Informational Meeting Scheduled for Community to Learn More
Dredging and capping of contaminated sediments in Onondaga Lake is set to begin this summer, New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) Commissioner Joe Martens announced at an event in Syracuse today. The $451 million Superfund remediation project has undergone five years of design and engineering, with preparation for dredging and capping now underway. Honeywell International is conducting the project with oversight by DEC, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the New York State Department of Health (DOH).
“The cleanup of Onondaga Lake has made tremendous progress over the past several years through cleaning up industrial pollution sites and Onondaga County’s state-of-the-art wastewater treatment projects,” said DEC Commissioner Joe Martens. “Onondaga Lake will now undergo perhaps one of the largest, most complex and advanced dredging projects in the nation that will benefit the environment and public health while helping the community through increased economic activity. Today has been a long time in the making and was made possible through the cooperative efforts of DEC, EPA, DOH, Honeywell, SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry and the local communities surrounding the lake.”
“This lake dredging is an important step in restoring this beautiful natural resource,” said Judith A. Enck, EPA Regional Administrator. “By removing some of the most contaminated materials, we will see a reduction in pollution that will benefit our communities and the ecosystem. Through this effort, and our active involvement with the Onondaga Lake Partnership, EPA is committed to a healthier future for Onondaga Lake and its watershed.”
The dredging project is scheduled to be fully operational later this summer. Activities such as debris removal and equipment testing will be taking place over the next several weeks. Honeywell estimates more than 500 Central New York scientists, engineers and skilled craft laborers are working on the project, and Honeywell plans to hire more local workers as the project continues.
Industrial activities located on or near Onondaga Lake contributed to a variety of industrial contaminants affecting the lake, including mercury and other metals, chlorinated benzenes, benzene, toluene, xylene, ethylbenzene and PCBs. This resulted in risks to the ecological community and potentially to people who consume fish caught from the lake.
Dredging will be performed in 185 acres of the lake, which represents approximately 6 percent of the 3,000-acre lake bottom. In addition, dredging will be performed in 21 acres in three areas adjacent to the lake. The estimated volume of materials to be removed is approximately two million cubic yards.
Dredging and capping operations in Onondaga Lake are anticipated to be completed in 2015 and 2016 respectively. Habitat restoration activities to be performed in all remediated areas are anticipated to be completed in 2016.
The Onondaga Lake Superfund cleanup plan includes the following components with the goal of protecting human health and the environment:
- · removing material from the bottom of the lake by hydraulic dredging;
- · capping 417 acres of the lake bottom, or approximately 14 percent, to isolate the underlying contaminated materials from the environment;
- · restoring habitat in areas where dredging or capping occurs;
- · addressing the deeper portion of the lake by measures such as thin layer capping over 27 acres, nitrate addition and monitored natural recovery; and
- · implementing a long-term operation, maintenance and monitoring program to ensure the effectiveness of the remedy.
In 1994, Onondaga Lake and upland source areas were added to the EPA’s Superfund National Priorities List. The dredging, capping and habitat restoration work that is about to begin in Onondaga Lake is a major component of a larger, comprehensive remedial program that encompasses 11 additional sites around the lake. These sites are in various stages of cleanup in order to eliminate or reduce contaminant sources to the lake as well as clean up the sites themselves. This includes remedial work in some of the lake’s tributaries (including Geddes Brook, Ninemile Creek, and Harbor Brook), remedial work at former plant sites (including the former LCP/Bridge Street Plant, which was the largest source of mercury to Onondaga Lake), and remedial work along lakeshore areas where groundwater collection systems have been installed.
Sediment will be hydraulically dredged and transported by a double-walled pipe to the lined consolidation area where it will be pumped into geotextile tubes for drying. Once the dredging has been completed, the geotextile tubes will be capped in a manner protective of human health and the environment. Water removed from the sediment will be collected and treated to meet water quality standards before being returned to the lake. Dredging and capping activities are scheduled to take place 24 hours a day, six to seven days a week for five years from early spring to late fall, weather permitting. Lake habitat will be re-established and improved on dredged and capped areas.
Protection of public health and the environment has been incorporated into all phases of the project. Additional safety measures are outlined in the Community Health and Safety Plan. Air quality monitoring results are available at www.lakecleanup.com/health-and-safety/air-monitoring.
For more information, the community is invited to a public information meeting on Thursday, June 14 in the Martha Eddy Room of the Art and Home Center at the New York State Fairgrounds. An open house will run from 5:00 to 6:00 p.m. where the community is invited to stop by any time to interact one-on-one with project managers and ask questions. The formal information session will follow at 6:00 p.m. and include a presentation. Topics to be discussed are what the public can expect to see and experience during the project; how the community is being protected; who the public can call if they have any questions or concerns; and how interested community members can stay informed about progress. The presentation will be followed by ample time for questions and discussion.
Time Warner Cable is offering regents review assistance through its On-Demand cable service. For complete details go to www:regentsreview2.net. It is available on Cable channel 1000.
