The Environmental Protection Agency announced a $93.4 million remediation plan for the Heckathorn Superfund site in Richmond, California. The 53‑page proposal calls for dredging contaminated sediment from the east, west and north sections of the Lauritzen Channel, covering the dredged material with a carbon‑sand mixture, and installing an active cap on the northern shoreline.
Local groups voice concerns
Richmond Shoreline Alliance coordinator Janet Johnson told Richmondside that the plan does not meet the community’s demand for a complete cleanup. The RSA and partner agencies drafted their own comprehensive plan last year, which the city of Richmond and State Senator Jesse Arreguín have endorsed. Johnson said the EPA never engaged the public in a two‑way dialogue and therefore did not address the community‑proposed plan.
Critics also question the carbon‑sand solution, arguing that carbon only holds contaminants temporarily before they can leach back into the environment. They note that the EPA’s plan caps only the north end of the channel, leaving other boundaries exposed to further contamination.
Funding and responsibility
The EPA indicated that the cleanup will be financed by the private companies responsible for historic pollution, though the plan does not name the specific polluters. In the failed 1990s effort, companies such as Montrose Group, Rhone Poulenc, Stauffer Management, and Christ‑Craft Industries were identified as contributors. The agency says the new approach is the most effective long‑term option, aiming to reduce human health and ecological risks, improve surface‑water quality, and lessen reliance on institutional controls.
Previous attempts left significant contaminants in the channel, shoreline and embankment. A 2022 study found DDT levels in central channel sediments up to 3,800 times the target goal set in the 1990s. DDT, a cancer‑causing pesticide banned in 1972, along with dieldrin, pose ongoing risks to fish, mussels, and birds, prompting the area to remain fenced off and closed to fishing.
Community health concerns
EPA risk assessments based on a 2010 seafood consumption survey estimated a lifetime cancer risk of more than one additional case per 1,000 people who eat fish from the Lauritzen Channel. The agency also cited non‑cancer health effects such as immune system changes, respiratory irritation and neurotoxicity.
Local residents, many from low‑income Black and Latinx neighborhoods, worry that sea‑level rise and groundwater intrusion could undermine the proposed cap. No mention of climate‑related impacts appears in the EPA’s draft.
Next steps
The EPA will hold an open house on Oct. 21 to present the plan and solicit public comments. Meanwhile, the RSA, the Sierra Club and SF Baykeeper continue to push for a full‑removal strategy that would drain the channel and eliminate all contaminated soil, sediment, rocks and industrial debris in a dry environment, arguing that underwater dredging could spread DDT further.
“Why not do a complete removal, especially since the prior cleanup failed?” Johnson asked, underscoring the community’s frustration after more than three decades of delayed action.
Original reporting: Alexandria, VA News – WTOP News — read the source article.
