BUILDING STRONG®

Buffalo River Dredging Success USACE Authorities

Section 312 WRDA 1990

Environmental Dredging

Interagency Support Great Lakes Legacy Act

Great LakesRestoration Initiative

Collaboration:

BNRKPR

USEPA – GLNPO *

Region 2

NYSDEC

Honeywell

NYSAG

USFWS

Stakeholders

Operations and Maintenance

(O&M) Dredging Section 204

WRDA 1992 Beneficial

Use of Dredged Material

GLRI

$

BUILDING STRONG®

Buffalo River Operations and Maintenance (O&M) Dredging

• Dredged Material Management Plan (DMMP)• Confined Disposal Facility (CDF) #4

~2.1M cubic yard capacity 20 years of O&M dredging

• Private tipping fees and cost shares for use• O&M dredging is commonly biannual event adding up to

150,000 CY per event

BUILDING STRONG®

Buffalo River EnvironmentalDredging Plans

• First Model: Ashtabula Harbor• Initially studied under Corps’ 312 Authority

• Defined dredge areas and methodologies• Potentiallyy Responsible Party (PRP) issues • Becomes an unfunded Corps Authority

• USEPA implemented dredging under GLLA

• Paved way for collaborative inter-agency goals:1. “Clean up the Buffalo River”

• Federal solution across Agencies2. “Do not duplicate efforts”

• Effectively use limited funds

BUILDING STRONG®

Buffalo River Dredging Collaboration

• USACE 312 Authority• Existing Conditions Report

• Shoreline Structural Stability Inventory• Buffalo River Library – UB and BSC collection of knowledge (2008)• Summarization of existing reports and sampling database

GIS of historical sampling locations = planning tool• USACE/NYSDEC/BNRK phased sampling strategy (> 400 locations)

• Results of USACE and NYSDEC Sampling• Lessened uncertainties associated with contamination depths,

contaminant accumulation areas, and volume estimates• Provide visualization of “where to dredge”• Combined “Operations” & “Toxicology” thought processes• Defined RISKS from sediment integral to GLLA and GLRI actions

BUILDING STRONG®

Interagency Support - Great Lakes Legacy Act and Great Lakes Restoration Initiative

• Sediment sampling and analysis support (boats and boots)• Cold Regions Research & Engineering Laboratory

• Ice Scour Analysis • Permitting Process

• EA/FONSI• Expert Technical Support

• Toxicology, Hydrogeology, & Public Outreach• Water quality modeling for dredging material disposal and

dredging strategy (minimize cross contamination)• Support sediment remedial goal development

Four indicator contaminants capture 90%+ of 11• Intermediary between USEPA/Honeywell and

BNRK/NYSDEC teams – GOAL FOCUSED

BUILDING STRONG®

Interagency Support - Great Lakes Legacy Act and Great Lakes Restoration Initiative

• FY11-12 GLRI Actions - Leverage Corps’ O&M Authority• Strategic maintenance dredging (below Federal Channel)• CDF Improvements by EPA (sediment sequestration)• Dredging nearly 625,000 cy in 2011 under GLRI• Deeper dredging provides future sediment storage• Future dredge material will reflect cleaner basin inputs• Eventual dredge material disposal to open lake• Delisting of BUIs

BUILDING STRONG®

Interagency Support - Great Lakes Legacy Act and Great Lakes Restoration Initiative

• FY12-13 GLLA Actions• Target risk-based contamination outside of Federal Channel• Majority of sediment to CDF – modeling shows long-term

containment and no environment al risk; some TSCA• Dredging remaining contamination in next two fiscal years• Side-of-channel dredging also provides sediment storage for

cleaner basin inputs• Remedy performance monitoring for 10 years • Final Goal: Delisting of most (all?) detrimental BUIs

Insert picture or something.

BUILDING STRONG®

Buffalo River Section 204 Beneficial Use

• Post Remedial Dredging activities • Clean Dredged Material will be available in 5-7 years

• Open Lake Placement as first option (delist BUI)• Beneficial use takes 3 – 5 years of planning

• Opportunities for beneficial use is based upon toxicological risk assessments – “Best Use”

• Harbor Habitat Restoration (islands) and alike options• Sandy dredge material in upper river has wider uses• Walk the riparian corridor with key stakeholders