The Bay City Times

October 25, 2004

EPA testing Saginaw River, Bay for dioxin levels in sediment

Monday, October 25, 2004

By Jeff Kart

Times Writer

A sampling project to further assess dioxin pollution in the Saginaw River and Bay is under way, while state and Dow Chemical Co. officials work "furiously" to meet a Halloween cleanup strategy deadline.

The sampling is being done using the Mudpuppy, a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency research vessel that docks in Bay City. The testing is funded by a $180,000 EPA grant to help identify "hot spots" where dioxins have settled.

A total of 135 samples of sediments, floodplain soils and beach soils are to be collected in the Saginaw River and Bay and the Shiawassee River, a tributary.

Dow Chemical in Midland has been flagged by the state as responsible for the dioxin contamination in the Saginaw River and Bay, based on past discharges from its plant to the Tittabawassee River, and previous testing.

Dioxins are toxic byproducts of chemical manufacturing and incinerating systems that have been linked to cancer, birth defects and other health problems in humans. Previous tests in the Bay City area have found dioxin concentrations well above the standard that the state considers safe for residential areas, and high enough to harm wildlife.

Dow is in closed-door negotiations with DEQ officials over how to address dioxin pollution in the watershed. A target date of Oct. 31 has been set to come up with a strategy.

DEQ spokeswoman Pat Spitzley said Friday the state and Dow officials have met twice in the past week.

"We are committed to either coming up with some sort of resolution or agreeing to go our separate ways," Spitzley said.

"They are working furiously to try to come up with something."

She said if there's no agreement by Halloween, "The DEQ will move forward on putting together a strategy that addresses the most significant areas first, and put in actions that will produce tangible results."

DEQ officials have said the contamination likely will be dealt with first in the Tittabawassee River. The latest testing will be used to address pollution in the Saginaw River and Bay in future years. But the plan being negotiated under the deadline could let Dow leave more pollution in the rivers and bay than current state standards allow.

The latest testing will run from the city of Saginaw, up the river into Bay City and about four miles out into the Saginaw Bay. The results should be out next summer.

Samples taken during the dioxin testing also will be used in a $30,000 project to test for an emerging contaminant called polybrominated diphenyl ethers, or PBDEs, a flame retardant chemical.

For additional articles like this one, go to the Tittabawasse River Watch web site www.trwnews.net for complete coverage of the Tittabawassee River Dow Chemical dioxin contamination saga. . The Newspaper / Media page of our site contains an extensive archive of media articles dating back to January 2002. The source organization's web site link is listed to the right of the article, visit often for other news in our area. The Newspaper / Media page may be accessed by scrolling down to the bottom of the CONTENTS section and clicking on the Newspaper/Media link.