APRIL 1, 2016--The Hudson River Superfund site has been contaminated with millions of pounds of toxic PCBs since the 1940's. At 200 miles long, it is one of NOAA's largest natural resource damage assessment (NRDA) cases.

Remedial dredging removed more than twice the mass of PCBs than anticipated but significant amounts of PCB in the river remain bioavailable. Scientists in OR&R recently published a modeling analysis that incorporated updated data on higher sediment concentrations and slower rates of natural recovery in the Upper Hudson that indicated that post-dredging, fish in the Lower Hudson will remain contaminated with PCBs above human health consumption thresholds for decades longer than predicted under the remedy. The study results, published in Science of the Total Environment, will be incorporated into the NRDA to ensure that the public is appropriately compensated. A fact sheet providing additional details is also available.

For more information, contact Jay.Field@noaa.gov.

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