ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) – A $1.7 billion cleanup of the Hudson River is working so far and while PCB levels in fish remain high, more dredging doesn’t seem necessary for now, federal regulators said Thursday in a review that drew harsh criticism from New York officials and environmental groups.
Boston-based General Electric has removed 2.75 million cubic yards of contaminated sediment from a 40-mile stretch of the upper Hudson through 2015. Until the mid-1970s, GE factories discharged more than 1 million pounds of polychlorinated biphenyls into the river. The probable carcinogen, used as coolants and lubricants in electrical equipment, was banned in 1977.
On Thursday, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency said the river’s rebound appears on track after six years of dredging by GE – a stance at odds with elected officials and environmentalists who claim the cleanup is incomplete and want the EPA to order barges back in the river.
EPA acting regional administrator Catherine McCabe told news reporters that data collected from the river’s fish, water and sediment so far do not support calls for yet more dredging.
“At this time, we do not believe that the data, the science or the law support the EPA imposing a requirement on GE to do more dredging,” she said.