Environment DEC
From the June 2004 issue
GE to Build Tunnel System at Hudson Falls Site
General Electric Company (GE) has agreed to implement measures to address polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) contamination as part of the State's Record of Decision (ROD) for the GE Hudson Falls State Superfund site in the Village of Hudson Falls, Washington County.
Extent of Contamination
Remedial Investigations and Feasibility Studies (RI/FS) conducted by GE under the State Superfund program showed soils containing high levels of PCBs; PCB-contaminated groundwater; PCB oil in the overburdened soils and in the bedrock beneath the site; seeps of PCB oil in the bottom of the Hudson River next to the site; elevated levels of PCBs in water column samples immediately downstream of the site as compared to upstream, and impacts to the river immediately downstream.
Record of Decision
DEC's ROD, issued in March, calls for the treatment and/or disposal of the PCB-contaminated soils, enhancement of the existing groundwater and PCB oil management system through the installation and operation of a tunnel and drain system built along the western part of the site, and long-term monitoring and controls on future site use.
GE will design and build the system along the western part of the site just beneath the river, expand the existing wastewater treatment plant, develop long-term monitoring plans, and implement controls on future site use. This work will be done under an existing consent order. The project design phase is scheduled to take about one year to complete, with project construction expected to take one to two years. The estimated cost is about $30 million.
GE also agreed to develop the remedial design for the soil cleanup under a separate consent order. DEC expects this consent order to be issued later this year.
