EPA confirms cleanup plan for groundwater at Niagara Mohawk superfund site

The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has finalised its plan to clean up contaminated groundwater and soil at the Niagara Mohawk Power superfund site in Saratoga Springs, New York.

The groundwater and soil in and around the site, which used to house a gas from coal manufacturer, contain harmful substances such as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and other by-products.

PAHs, VOCs, and other harmful pollutants can cause serious health issues and even increase the risk of cancer.

EPA is supervising the cleanup of the Niagara superfund site by National Grid and is expecting the utility to execute and pay $6.5m the final phase of the cleanup.

Environmental Protection Agency regional administrator Judith A Enck said the final phase of the cleaning programme will remove the remaining contaminants from the site.

"The completion of the cleanup will ensure that the local environment and health of the people living in the area is protected," Enck added.

EPA has divided the decontamination programme for the site into two phases. In 1995, the first phase of the cleanup plan was executed and pollutant soil and sediment were removed from groundwater and soil at the site, containing coal tar waste.

In addition, underground barriers were installed to restrict the flow of contaminated groundwater.

The agency installed a protective cap to cover the contaminated soil and monitor it, and also built a system to extract and treat contaminated groundwater.

The agency has so far removed more than 68,400t of contaminated soil and 16,700t of contaminated sediment from the site.

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Image: The US Environmental Protection Agency headquarters. Photo: Courtesy of Coolcaesar.