Dredging at the Indiana Harbor Ship Canal

Site near EC Central won't be used for PCBs from ship canal

Contributed By:The 411 News

State and federal environmental agencies say they have heard the voices of the community and will find another way to store sediment loaded with PCBs that is being dredged from the Indiana Ship Canal.

Thursday, the Indiana Department of Environmental Management (IDEM) and the United States Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA) announced an agreement to investigate an option for off-site disposal and capping PCB contaminated sediment “hot spots” at the Indiana Harbor Canal.

In 2014, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers sought approval from the U.S. EPA and IDEM to store sediment dredged from the canal in a confined disposal facility (CDF) at 3500 Indianapolis Blvd. in East Chicago.

In a prepared press release, Rev. Cheryl Rivera of the Community Strategy Group East Chicago (CSG) said she is cautiously optimistic over yesterday’s announcement. CSG has led protests and petition drives against the storing of PCBs from the ship canal at the facility because it is close to East Chicago Central High School. The group had asked Congressman Pete Visclosky to intervene in the permitting process, without success.

CSG still has concerns about the disposal, “particularly whether sediments will be detoxified or instead dumped on another frontline community.”

EPA and IDEM said, “If the off-site disposal option is determined to be feasible, the projected schedule is to complete the remedial design by spring 2018 and complete all dredging and construction activities by the end of 2018.”

Story Posted:09/22/2017