SOUTHWEST MICHIGAN, MI (WKZO AM/FM) — A technology company implicated in polluting sections of the kalamazoo River watershed will now be paying $245 million dollars after reaching a deal with federal and state regulators.
On Wednesday, December 11th it was announced that NCR corporation agreed in federal court to fund clean-up efforts for an 80-mile stretch of the river after reaching an agreement with the U.S. Department of Justice, State government, and Environmental Protection Agency.
The decontamination efforts will involve dredging toxic sediments from the riverbed and removing the aging Trowbridge dam in Allegan County.
The river is polluted with a hazardous compound known as polychlorinated biphenyls, also known as PCB’s, which originate from paper recycling mills. The chemical was leaked into the river from the 1950’s into the 1970’s when environmental agencies began banning the practice and increased oversight.
Since 1998 EPA officials say about 450,000 cubic yards of sediment linked to contamination has been released from the watershed. The removed sediment has been buried in landfills insulated to prevent further leakage into groundwater.
The agreement also covers efforts to stabilize a tributary of the river called Portage Creek which has suffered from it’s proximity to mill property and contains toxic discharge near it’s riverbanks and floodplains.
$135.7 million dollars will be spent by the company for clean-up work predicted to take up to 15 years, And the company will additionally pay more than $110 million dollars to compensate federal agencies and the state government for past cleanup, continual oversight, and future costs.
The Kalamazoo River has recently been designated a priority Superfund site by the federal government.
