Peer Review Report Calls for Significant Changes in Hudson Dredging Project (USA)

GE applauds the work of the seven independent scientists who evaluated the first phase of the Hudson River dredging project. We agree with the unanimous conclusion in their draft report that the performance standards established by EPA to govern the dredging project could not be met in Phase 1 and cannot be met in Phase 2 without significant changes.

We agree, too, that resuspension and redeposition of PCBs resulting from the dredging process itself pose significant concerns and warrant additional analysis; that limits should be established on the quantity of PCBs that dredging is permitted to resuspend and send downstream; that additional data should be collected and analyzed, and that a state-of-the-art, quantitative computer model should be jointly developed by EPA and GE to guide decisions about future dredging.

We welcome the Peer Review Panel’s suggestion that a public meeting be convened to discuss their recommendations. We look forward to working with EPA to determine how best to apply the recommendations of the peer reviewers to improve the dredging project.

(businesswire)

[mappress]

Source: businesswire, August 17, 2010;