Welcome to the Grasse River remediation site. This online resource provides both technical detail and answers to commonly asked questions for the Grasse River area community. If this is your first time visiting www.thegrasseriver.com, these points should provide a quick overview to the project and its key details.
Elevated levels of PCBs (polychlorinated biphenyls) have been found in the Grasse River. PCBs were historically used in many hydraulic and other systems, as was common in many industrial companies and processes across the nation during the 1950s and 1960s. The EPA found that consumption of fish with elevated PCBs levels from the Grasse River presented a potential risk. There is currently an "eat no fish" NYSDOH advisory on the Grasse River from the Power Canal down to the mouth where it enters the St. Lawrence.
Read more about the project in the project overview.
EPA began the Superfund program in 1980 to eliminate potential threats to human health and the environment from hazardous substances that had been released as a result of historic disposal practices. The EPA works closely with communities, the companies responsible for the releases, scientists, researchers, contractors, and state, local, tribal, and federal authorities.
See more about the history of this process in the project timeline.
On April 5, 2013, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA) issued a Record of Decision (ROD) for the Grasse River which outlined the cleanup plan. The ROD is consistent with the plan proposed in October 2012. The plan called for dredging of some near-shore sediments, capping in the main channel, and armored capping in ice scour prone sections of the river.
The ROD is available at EPA's website. (By clicking this link, you will leave the Alcoa Grasse River Project website.)
The in-river remediation portion of the EPA selected remedy for the lower Grasse River began in spring 2019 and the major elements were completed at the end of 2021. The next step includes overall monitoring. The overall goal of the project is to reduce polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) levels in fish and other organisms in the river for the long-term protection of human health and the environment.
The process of studying the plant and animal life that lives in the river to determine how it uses the resource so that usage can be taken into consideration in the design of the habitat restoration component of the remediation project.
Elements are incorporated into the project design to support re-establishment of plants and animals that live in the river following the completion of the cleanup. Specific examples include restoring near shore area to pre-cleanup depth, re-planting aquatic vegetation in certain areas, and using materials of construction in the cap and backfill materials that can be re-colonized by aquatic organisms.
Future plans for the staging area are under evaluation and include maintaining the area in the near term (at least the next 5 years) for project related support needs.
The fish consumption advisory established by the New York State Department of Health for the lower Grasse River will remain in effect until PCB concentrations in fish are reduced to the point where the advisory is relaxed or lifted by the state. The time for this to occur cannot be predicted with certainty but is expected to take a number of years. PCB levels in fish will be monitored on a regular basis as part of the long-term monitoring program for the project.