SHELLEY TERRY
Star Beacon
July 31, 2007 05:23 pm
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ASHTABULA - - The Ashtabula River dredging project is half-way done and the people involved have much to discuss, Rick Brewer, coordinator of the Ashtabula River Partnership, said Friday.
The $50 million cleanup is being paid for by the Great Lakes Legacy Act, the Ashtabula City Port Authority and it's partners. By the end of this year, more than 500,000 cubic yards of contaminated sediment is expected to be removed from the river.
The Ashtabula River Partnership meeting is set for 2 p.m. Aug. 22 at the Ashtabula Yacht Club, where attendees will hear dredging details of the past year. A picnic will follow the meeting.
The dredging of the contaminated sediment in the Ashtabula River is a joint partnership of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and Ashtabula River Partnership.
Frank Lichtkoppler of the Ohio Sea Grant Extension of Ohio State University has said the dredging will generate economic development in northeast Ohio.
The river was last dredged in 1962.
The Ashtabula river is polluted with polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). In addition, the river bottom is polluted with low-level radioactive materials, heavy metals, and oil and grease, according to Scott Cieniawski, an Environmental Protection Agency Great Lakes National Program Office environmental engineer.
The sediment is being removed from the river by a hydraulic dredge, which creates a slurry of mud and water. The mixture is then pumped through a 3-mile double-lined pipeline to a disposal and water treatment facility on State Road.
The EPA is paying $25 million toward the cleanup, with the state paying $7 million and companies that polluted the river, paying $18 million.
City leaders believe the dredging will bring more recreational boating and fishing to the area.
Contaminated sediment is one of the reasons many Lake Erie fish are no longer safe to eat in large quantities. This has been a problem throughout all the Great Lakes.
Star Beacon Print Edition: 7/28/2007
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