Portland Harbor Superfund Site
Portland, OR
This site is the commercial harbor of Portland on the Willamette River immediately upriver from the junction with the Columbia River. The site was added to the EPA Superfund list in 2000 and since that time, EPA identified approximately 80 potentially responsible parties (PRPs). Earlier in 2008, EPA sent letters to an additional 280 parties who may also be responsible. From those, fourteen PRPs comprise the Lower Willamette Group that has taken on the cleanup and is responsible for the Remedial Investigation and Feasibility Study under an agreement with EPA.
The industrial site was originally listed because more than 6 miles of the Willamette River are contaminated with polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons, various metals (lead, zinc, mercury, tin), pesticides, dioxins and other chemicals.
The Remedial Investigation was finalized in August 2011 with the Draft Final Feasibility Study released in sections from 2014-2015. The National Remedy Review Board met in November 2015 to consider the EPA’s current cleanup plan for the site.
The Portland Harbor Superfund Site Final Feasibility Study and Draft Proposed Plan were released in June 2016. The public comment period on the Proposed Plan ends September 6, 2016.
Resources
To learn more about the Willamette Riverkeeper, click here.
For updates on the Community Advisory Group, click here.
Click here for EPA’s Portland Harbor website…
Portland Harbor Superfund Site Proposed Plan
Portland Harbor Superfund Site Feasibility Study Report
ESC Documents
ESC’s presentation to the Lower Willamette Group on the upcoming Feasibility Study, February, 2010
Burt Shepard’s presentation for EPA; April 2009 Portland Community Advisory Group meeting