March 2nd, 7pm, Mead Library EPA Public Meeting for 2 Sheboygan River Clean Up Plans

[Glacial Lakes Conservancy]

Dear Friends of Glacial Lakes Conservancy,

Some of you have asked me about the cleanup plans for the Sheboygan
River in the City of Sheboygan. In response, I would like all
interested parties to know that on Wednesday night in Sheboygan,
representatives from the U.S. EPA will make formal presentations and
answer questions from the audience about the cleanup actions about to
begin this year.

Many organizations like our land trust, Glacial Lakes Conservancy, and
the watershed group, Sheboygan River Basin Partnership, are profoundly
interested in seeing the Sheboygan River restored and improved. The
Sheboygan River is considered an Area of Concern (AOC) and a Superfund
site. The goal of these restoration efforts are to remove contaminated
sediment and restore the site and shoreline in order to improve the
overall health of the river. For web links, see the end of this
posting.

U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL AGENCY'S MEETING about the Sheboygan River

Wednesday, March 2, 7 p.m.
Mead Public Library
710 N. 8th St, Sheboygan 53081

CLEAN-UP PLANS AND UPDATES PROVIDED FOR TWO SITES

(1) WPSC CAMPMARINA MGP SITE

At the Campmarina site, the main pollutant is polynuclear aromatic
hydrocarbons, known as PAHs, which is present in what EPA calls NAPL,
or non-aqueous phase liquid. NAPL does not mix well with water.

EPA considers the cleanup of the Campmarina site to be an EMERGENCY.
Integrys, the company responsible for the contamination, will build a
coffer dam and "wet excavate" by using a backhoe on a barge to dig up
contaminated sediment. Integrys will also remove contaminated soil
from the shoreline and river sediment toward Boat Island. EPA will
oversee the company's work.

Once the contaminated sediment and shoreline soil have been removed,
Integrys will treat the water behind the coffer dam before removing
the structure. The cleanup should be completed by the end of 2011, and
EPA plans to have Integrys restore the shoreline, where a Sheboygan
City Park is located.

BACKGROUND: The 1.5-acre WPSC Campmarina MGP Site is located on the
north bank of the Sheboygan River at 732 N. Water St and extends out
to Boat Island.

The site was owned and operated as a manufactured gas plant by WPSC
from 1872 to 199. Coal and waste from the MGP was usually dumped into
nearby ravines and ditches or used as construction fill. The upland
portion of the site was cleaned up according to a state-issued
decision in 2002.

The site is currently owned by the city of Sheboygan and used as a
park and marina with a riverwalk.

(2) SHEBOYGAN RIVER AND HARBOR SITE

The main pollutant at the Sheboygan River and Harbor site is
polychorlinated biphenyls (PCBs). A final design for the cleanup plan
was approved November 2010. It calls for dredging contaminated
sediment (mud) in the Lower River and Inner Harbor areas, and
monitoring in the Middle River segment. The upper portion of the river
from the Sheboygan Falls Dam to the Walderhaus Dam, as well as the
former Tecumseh Products property, was cleaned up in 2007.

EPA expects to begin dredging in the spring, with most of the work
being done this summer. The work should be completed by the end of
2011. Details of the project will be discussed at the March 2nd public
meeting.

BACKGROUND: The Sheboygan River and Harbor Superfund Site includes the
lower 14 miles of the Sheboygan River downstream from the Sheboygan
Falls Dam to the Inner Harbor, and the entire harbor and near-shore
waters of Lake Michigan. In 1977, Wisconsin DNR detected PCBs during
routine sampling of fish in Sheboygan Harbor and the lower Sheboygan
River. Highest concentrations of PCBs were detected in sediment
immediately downstream from Tecumseh Products, a die-casting plant,
with PCB amounts decreasing farther downstream from the plant.

More ON THE WEB: You can find more information about the cleanup at
these sites online.

WPSC Campmarina MGP Site:
www.epa.gov/region5/campmarina

Sheboygan River and Harbor Superfund Site:
www.epa.gov/region5/sites/sheboygan

Sheboygan River Area of Concern:
www.epa.gov/greatlakes/aoc/sheboygan.html

Great Lakes Legacy Act:
www.epa.gov/greatlakes/sediment/legacy

Great Lakes Restoration:
www.greatlakesrestoration.us


Vickie Hall
Glacial Lakes Conservancy, Executive Director