Hudson River Valley – Yesterday the Friends of a Clean Hudson (FOCH), a coalition of national, state, and regional organizations led by Riverkeeper, Scenic Hudson, and Hudson River Sloop Clearwater, submitted comments on the EPA’s draft third five-year review for the Hudson River PCBs Superfund Site calling on the agency to find the cleanup is “not protective of human health and the environment.” The EPA’s draft review, released in July 2024, claims yet again that more data is needed to determine if the cleanup of PCBs in the Hudson is meeting the expectations of the original cleanup plan. However, the data available shows clearly that neither fish nor sediment are recovering at the rates needed to protect human health and the environment.

The coalition relied on the expertise of nationally recognized scientists to analyze data that concluded the 6-year cleanup in the Upper Hudson has failed to achieve the anticipated reduction of PCBs within the timeframes established to protect human health and the environment from the legacy of PCB contamination. The data is clear: PCB concentrations are currently much higher than the EPA anticipated in the original cleanup plan. The EPA’s own guidance for reviewing remedial actions indicates the agency must issue a “not protective” determination in its final third five-year review and take steps to re-evaluate the cleanup.

The five-year review process requires the EPA to identify and address problems with cleanup plans as they become apparent. However, the agency must acknowledge the failure of the plan to meet the original goals, to lay the groundwork for additional steps to address PCB contamination in the Hudson River. The continued delay by the EPA has placed the burden of protecting human health squarely on low-income families and overburdened communities who rely on the river’s tainted fish. The EPA’s position in its recent review contradicts the agency’s environmental justice policies intended to ensure cleanups at polluted sites like the Hudson River address decades-old environmental injustices in overburdened communities.

The FOCH coalition has encouraged the public to submit comments on the EPA’s third five-year review through action alerts, community candlelight vigils, and virtual and in-person public presentations. The coalition also worked with elected officials to circulate local resolutions and sign-on letters. Individuals and communities have raised their voices, calling on the EPA to do more to put the river on a real path to recovery.

The FOCH coalition’s technical comments are available here.

While we wait for the release of the final third five-year review, the FOCH will continue to review EPA data, push for additional sampling in the Hudson, and seek improvements in fish consumption advisories.

Contacts:
Hudson River Sloop Clearwater, Jen Benson, jen@clearwater.org, 585-943-7454

Riverkeeper, Lewis Kendall, lkendall@riverkeeper.org, 914-478-4501 ext. 238

Scenic Hudson, Pete Lopez, plopez@scenichudson.org, 518-378-8039

Sierra Club-Atlantic Chapter, Mallory Rutigliano, mallory.rutigliano@newyork.sierraclub.org