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News and Activities
Draft Restoration Plan: General Electric - Housatonic River, Pittsfield, MA Date Posted: August 8, 2007 The Service's New England Field Office Natural Resource Damage Assessment and Restoration (NRDAR) Specialist and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts' Trustee Representative for the General Electric/Housatonic River NRDAR case of Massachusetts, held a public meeting in Lenox, Massachusetts, on July 9, 2007, to hear comments on the draft Restoration Plan /Supplemental Environmental Assessment for Round 1 of the restoration.The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is one of the "trustees" for this NRDAR. Trustees seek to identify the natural resources injured, determine the extent of the injuries, recover damages from those responsible, and plan and carry out natural resource restoration activities. Natural resources of the Housatonic River Basin were injured by the release of chemical wastes, primarily polychlorinated biphenyls ("PCBs"), from the General Electric facility in Pittsfield, Massachusetts. The contamination affected aquatic organisms and their habitats, as well as water-related natural resources such as waterfowl and predators that consume contaminated aquatic organisms. In addition to the harm done to natural resources, natural resource services, such as providing opportunities for people to fish or for birds to nest, have been impaired. The Trustees will implement 10 projects using $4 million to address aquatic resources, wildlife, and their habitats; recreational uses of natural resources; and environmental education and outreach in the Massachusetts portion of the Housatonic River watershed.
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