Officials Urge EPA to Remove Toxic 'Forever Chemicals' from the Hudson River
U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand earlier this month stood with local leaders and environmental advocates at Albany City Hall to demand that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) take additional action to clean up polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) “forever chemicals” in the Hudson River.PCBs are toxic manmade chemicals that can linger in water and soil for decades. Exposure is associated with a variety of serious health conditions, including cancer.From 1947 to 1977, General Electric dumped 1.2 million pounds of PCBs into the Hudson River north of Albany.
The Critical Link in Hudson River Remediation Project
Approximately three times a week, for six months of the year, trains depart from upstate New York, en route to one of three EPA-approved long-term disposal facilities. The trains, which are loaded with dewatered, PCB-containing sediments, represent the last leg of a complex environmental dredging project undertaken by General Electric Co. in New York’s Upper Hudson River. To keep these trains on schedule, GE relies on two purpose-built material handlers from SENNEBOGEN, an 870 R-HD and an 870 M…
Sixth Season of Hudson River Dredging Begins
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Regional Administrator Judith A. Enck announced the start of the sixth, and final, season of dredging of PCB-contaminated sediments from the bottom of the Hudson River. The historic dredging project – one of the largest and most complex cleanups in Superfund history – began in 2009. The EPA is overseeing the dredging project that is being conducted by General Electric Company (GE) under the terms of a 2006 legal agreement. According to GE, the company has invested more than $1 billion on the cleanup project to date.
Toxics Dredging Resumes in the Hudson
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced today that dredging operations are expected to resume on Wednesday in the Upper Hudson River. In 2014, dredging will begin south of Schuylerville, New York and proceed south towards Troy. Dredging will also occur in a two-mile section of river near Fort Miller that is not easily accessed by boat. Dredging is being conducted to remove sediment from the river bottom that is contaminated with polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs).
Top Canal Crews Lock Up Honors
Peak Performance Continues. In recognition of superior performance, the New York State Canal Corporation today announced top honors for the operators of canal facilities that provide outstanding service to patrons. Among the Canal honorees are: Best Lock, Lock 4 at Waterloo on the Cayuga-Seneca Canal; Best Section, Fort Edward on the Champlain Canal; and Best Tugboat, Tug Roosevelt, based in Utica on the Erie Canal. The winners were graded during an annual inspection of the 524-mile-long Canal system in the Fall. The inspection tour was led by Canal Corporation Director Brian U.
Phase 2 of Hudson River Cleanup
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced that the dredging of sediment contaminated with polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) has resumed in the Upper Hudson River, marking the start of the second and final phase of the Hudson River cleanup. The historic dredging project targets approximately 2.4 million cubic yards of PCB-contaminated sediment from a forty- mile section of the Upper Hudson River between Fort Edward and Troy, NY. PCBs are potentially cancer-causing in people and build up in the fat of fish and mammals, increasing in concentration as they move up the food chain. The primary risk to humans is the accumulation of PCBs in the body from eating contaminated fish.
Hudson River Dredging Project Commenses
The second phase of the Hudson River Dredging Project officially began this morning. River flows having receded, two dredges began operations in the Upper Hudson south of Rogers Island in Fort Edward. One dredge is removing sediment, the other debris. Dredging will take place on a limited basis at first and gradually increase to full operation over the next few weeks. Dredging will take place 24 hours a day, six days a week through October, river flows and weather conditions permitting. As many as four dredges and four backfill platforms, 17 tugboats and more than 25 barges will be operating in the Upper Hudson during dredging and related operations. The Upper Hudson and Champlain Canal remain open for recreational and commercial use during dredging.
