Agency says levels have since subsided
The Environmental Protection Agency says that a recent spike in the level of PCBs on the Hudson River was an isolated incident caused by river conditions.
The EPA announced on Monday, Aug. 3, that a monitor at Thompson Island Dam indicated PCB levels had exceeded 500 parts per trillion, which is what the EPA considers to be the safety threshold, sometime between Saturday and Sunday. Subsequent samples taken on Sunday and Monday mornings showed 337 and 434 ppt, leading the agency to conclude that a fast moving river caused the spike.
The spike was the first time PCB levels have exceeded the threshold since dredging operations began in May.
Coincidentally, dredging operations were suspended Monday because the current was too strong, a condition brought on by heavy rainfall. Dredging has since resumed.
Tests taken at Schuylerville, the next testing site downstream, on Sunday and Monday registered a high of 196 ppt. Thompson Island Dam is just below Fort Edward, where the dredging operation is ongoing.
It was a spike of PCBs in the water that went by the station at that particular time, said EPA Spokeswoman Kristen Skopeck. `But when we took subsequent samples they were well below it.`
The EPA has agreed to pay for alternative drinking water sources for towns along the Hudson when the PCB level exceeds the threshold, and Skopeck said the agency will likely pay for a 24-hour supply in light of the spike. The towns of Waterford and Halfmoon have been drawing water from the City of Troy since the dredging began at their own expense.
Halfmoon Supervisor Mindy Wormuth said the gap between the spike and notification proves the town was right to avoid river water altogether during the dredging.
`It definitely affirms the decision we made,` said Wormuth. `This exceedance happened sometime on Saturday, and we’re finding out about it on Monday morning.`
She went on to say that it would take hours or days to start a flow of water from Troy and test its safety. The town feels that water left to sit in the 4.5-mile pipeline would probably be stagnant, even if it was left to `trickle` when not in use.
Skopeck said that the agency recently adopted the `Green Bay` test method instead of the Aroclor 508 method. It’s more expensive and time consuming, with a 24-to-48-hour turnaround instead of 12, but it provides more information.
Skopeck said that since all towns downstream are on alternative water sources, a timely test result is not necessary for safety.
`The issue here is the payment of the water, the turnaround time doesn’t matter,` she said. `We can do a much quicker turnaround, but we would get a lot less information.`
Halfmoon has maintained that the EPA should pay for the cost of alternative water for the duration of the project, disagreeing with the assessment of 500 parts per trillion as a safe threshold. Along with other municipalities, the town is pursuing legal avenues.
`We hope eventually, whether it’s with the help of a judge or some further reasoning of their own, they [the EPA] come to the same conclusion we have,` said Wormuth.
The cleanup is to run until Nov. 1, when the Champlain Canal closes. The results will be evaluated and a decision will be made whether to continue dredging further downstream. If that larger `Phase II` goes forward, the entire operation could cost GE $780 million.
Monday was not the first time a strong current halted dredging. During the first 45 days of operations, 18 were lost. Still, over 100,000 cubic yards of riverbed have been dredged, and the goal of 200,000 cubic yards is within reach, said Skopeck.
`Even with the rain and conditions in the river, we’re only a week behind and we think we’ll make that up,` she said.
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