Portland Harbor Superfund Site Remediation

Decades of industrial activity have contaminated the lower Willamette River with PCBs, PAHs, dioxins/furans, pesticides, and metals, resulting in the designation of the Portland Harbor Superfund Site. While the affected ecosystem is vital to recreation and commerce in the Pacific Northwest, it is also culturally important to Native American tribes. IEc works on behalf of five tribes, providing technical support for all aspects of the Superfund process, with the ultimate goal of ensuring that the cleanup is protective of aquatic resources and human health. In this role, IEc drafts comments on remedial design, feasibility, sampling, monitoring, early action, and source control documents, incorporating tribal priorities and concerns. IEc also coordinates with EPA’s National Remedy Review Board and Contaminated Sediments Technical Advisory Group; presents technical findings to tribal councils; supports tribes for government-to-government consultation with the EPA, and participates in discussions and document review related to other topics affecting site cleanup (e.g., Section 404 permitting, mitigation banking).