Cuomo on PCB Dredging: Protect the Environment, Protect the Hudson River

NY Governor Andrew M. Cuomo yesterday introduced the second proposal of the 2018 State of the State and the first part of a comprehensive environmental program: New York will immediately take action against the U.S. EPA if they accept the Upper Hudson River dredging of PCB as complete.

Under this plan, Governor Cuomo and Attorney General Eric Schneiderman will sue the federal government to ensure the dredging is completed once and for all.

New York is also prepared to withdraw from the 2002 Record of Decision which guided the cleanup and removal of millions of tons of PCB-contaminated sediment from the Upper Hudson River.

The EPA’s decision is expected to be announced later this month, and indications are they will deem the cleanup complete.

“The Hudson River is a critical economic engine and environmental treasure and New York will not allow PCB contamination to continue wreaking havoc on this vital resource,” Governor Cuomo said.

“The data is clear: the job is not done and the EPA cannot declare that this remediation is complete. If they do, New York will take any action necessary to hold them accountable for ensuring our waterways are protected and properly restored.”

With this proposal and in cooperation with the state Attorney General, New York will file a lawsuit if the EPA, despite data to the contrary, finds that the Hudson River cleanup of PCBs is complete.

General Electric filed a request for a Certificate of Completion on December 23, 2016, and EPA has 365 days to respond to the request pursuant to the Consent decree between GE and the EPA.