Dioxin hot spot cleanup to begin
By Tony Lascari, Midland Daily News
11/29/2007

Divers will use an underwater vacuum to remove dioxin-contaminated sediment in the Saginaw River.

A dioxin hot spot adjacent to Wickes Park in Saginaw was found to have 1.6 million parts per trillion of dioxin in a preliminary test done by consultants to The Dow Chemical Co.

Todd Konechne, a project leader with Dow, said sediment removal work could begin as early as this week.

"This is a very targeted emergency removal that we're going to be completing in the coming weeks," he said.

The material will be taken to Dow's Salzburg Landfill after removing it from the river and filtering the water at the old boat launch at Wickes Park, which is no longer in use. Dow received approval from the Saginaw City Council to use the site last week.

A submersible suction system, or vacuum, will be operated by divers underwater, working from a 40- by 50-foot barge that already has been placed on the river.

"We anticipate a removal capacity of about 80 to 120 yards per day of sediment," Konechne said.

He said the work could begin Friday and be completed by Dec. 15.

On the Tittabawassee River, Dow has completed cleanup work at two dioxin-contaminated sites, also called reaches, that are downriver from its Michigan Operations site in Midland. The company expects a third reach to be finished next month.

Brian Schlieger, with the U.S. Environmental protection Agency Region 5, said the Saginaw River project is being guided by a Nov. 15 consent order to clean the site.

"As with the other reaches, we will continue to do oversight of that area," he said.

Ralph Dollhopf, associate director of EPA's Regional Superfund Division, said that while the EPA commends Dow for doing the cleanup, it's done in coordination with the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality and EPA, which are still in the process of deciding on approval of a work plan Dow submitted.

He said EPA officials want to make sure the work follows state and federal laws and solves all issues involved.

"EPA intends to continue to exercise its Superfund authority to help Dow and DEQ maintain an accelerated pace of cleanup and response," he said.

One way that could happen is under an agreement being negotiated between the EPA, Dow and the MDEQ. Dow accepted the EPA's invitation to enter negotiations this fall and the parties have a Dec. 10 deadline for completing discussions.

As the EPA's involvement continues, the agency will look for public input on its own through meetings that are yet to be scheduled.

©Midland Daily News 2007
 

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