News Releases from Region 01

EPA GE Housatonic River Public Meeting Scheduled in Falls Village, Conn. for April 27

BOSTON - The next meeting of the Connecticut Subcommittee of EPA's Citizens Coordinating Council for the General Electric/Housatonic River site will be on Wed. April 27 from 5:30 to 7:45 p.m. The meeting will be held at the Housatonic Valley Regional High School in Falls Village, Conn. Members of the public are welcome to attend. See the location information and agenda details below.

Representatives from the US EPA, the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, the Housatonic River Initiative, and the Connecticut Sub Council, Housatonic River Natural Resource Trustees will update the CCC and the public on various aspects of the cleanup project including an update on the Status of EPA's proposed cleanup plan for Rest of River, and the status of Restoration Projects and Fish & Duck consumption advisories in Connecticut.

Pursuant to a 2000 Consent Decree signed by the United States, Connecticut, Massachusetts, and the General Electric Company, GE is required to address PCB contamination from its Pittsfield, Mass. facility. To date, nearly all of the 28 separate PCB response actions have been completed. Currently, EPA is overseeing GE's work on the Unkamet Brook cleanup in Pittsfield, and EPA is proposing a cleanup for the Rest of River area, as outlined below.

In June 2014, EPA issued a Proposed Cleanup Plan (also referred to as a Draft Modification to GE's Reissued RCRA Permit) for the remaining areas, known as Rest of River, to be cleaned up at the GE Pittsfield/Housatonic Site. In October 2015, EPA, as required by the Consent Decree, issued an Intended Final Decision (intended final remedy) to GE. Both the Proposed Cleanup Plan and the Intended Final Decision estimate that the cleanup will require 14 years of active remediation.

On Oct. 29, 2015, GE issued a "Notice of Dispute" to EPA, invoking a dispute resolution process under the Consent Decree. The parties then attempted to mediate the dispute but did not reach an agreement on the final cleanup.

From January through March 2016, EPA and GE have exchanged legal position papers as part of the dispute resolution process. The statements of position are currently under review by an EPA decision maker.

The meeting space is fully accessible. Should you have special needs or questions about the meeting, please contact Kelsey O'Neil at (617) 918-1003.

Additional information on the Housatonic "Rest of River" cleanup can be found at: https://www.epa.gov/ge-housatonic

EPA Housatonic River Citizens Coordinating Council
Connecticut Subcommittee

Housatonic Valley Regional High School
Room 133
246 Warren Turnpike Road
Falls Village, CT 06031

April 27, 2016, 5:30 PM to 7:45 PM

Agenda

5:30 Introductions and Agenda Review

5:40 TAG Grant Recipient Update
Update, Tim Gray, HRI, TAG Recipient

6:00 Rest of River Update, US EPA
Update on status including decision process, summary of changes in Connecticut proposed actions from the 2014 proposed plan and the 2015 Intended Final Decision
Discussions

6:20 Status of Restoration Projects Under the Natural Resource Damages (NRD) Program
Presentation, Molly Sperduto, US Fish and Wildlife Service
Discussions

6:45 Fish Consumption Advisories in Connecticut
Presentation, Susan Peterson and Mike Humphries, CT DEEP; Sharee Rusnak, CT DPH
Discussion

7:10 Duck Consumption Advisories in Connecticut, Rick Jacobson, CT DEEP
Discussion

7:20 General Updates and Issues from Connecticut Subcommittee Members

7:30 Public Comment Period

7:45 Adjourn