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Removal of contaminated soil from the Housatonic River in Pittsfield is 60 percent completed, according to the Army Corps of Engineers. The project is jointly financed by the Environmental Protection Agency and General Electric, under terms of a Consent Decree entered into in October 2000.
Under the terms of the Consent Decree, General Electric was responsible for the cleanup of the first half-mile of the river beginning at the GE plant that covers 300 acres along the north bank of the Housatonic in Pittsfield. It was determined in the proceedings leading up to the Consent Decree that GE's past operations caused pollution at this site, including the groundwater, soil and the buildings, with PCBs and other compounds.
GE's work on the first half mile started in 1999, and was substantially completed in September 2002. The EPA determined that more work was necessary for an area covering 1.5 miles below the original half mile. Its plan called for the excavation and disposal of 95,000 cubic yards of contaminated sediment and riverbank soils. The excavated areas are being backfilled with clean materials. A system designed to have the river bypass the area being worked on was developed. Habitat restoration includes a combination of regarding, vegetation, bioengineering and the potential installation of habitat improvements.
The project is scheduled to be completed in June 2007. The total cost is $88 million.