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Waste Site Reports: Connecticut
NOAA trust species in Connecticut include anadromous and catadromous species such as blueback herring, hickory shad, alewife, American eel, American shad, striped bass, rainbow smelt, and sea lamprey. Marine and estuarine species include some commercially important species such as Atlantic herring, winter flounder, bluefish, and Spanish mackerel. Invertebrate resources include blue crab (fished recreationally), and quahog and lobster (fished commercially). Several pinnepeds inhabit Long Island Sound during winter including the harbor seal, which has been observed in the Housatonic River. Other marine mammals include the federally endangered fin whale, northern right whale and humpback whale, among other cetaceans.
Military Sites in Connecticut
Connecticut is dotted with 73 military installations and formerly used defense areas, comprising 170 DoD sites. The nature of defense-related activities involves chemicals that are highly toxic and persistent in the environment. In Connecticut, military-related contaminants of concern in coastal sites include dredge spoils, incinerator ash, petroleum / oil / lubricants, PCBs, spent acids, pesticides, solvents, construction debris, metals, and VOCs. NOAA conducted a coastal hazardous waste sites review for New London Submarine Base in 1990, participating on the Technical Review Committee, discussing the planned Ecological Risk Assessment, and reviewing the site inspection and remedial investigation report. DoD has 106 sites yet to be studied in Connecticut. NOAA's input is needed now to ensure that cleanups are protective of coastal natural resources as well as human health. NOAA offers technical expertise and a neutral perspective valued by both the military and the local public.
Areas of Special Concern in Connecticut
The NOAA CRC program works to protect and restore natural resources throughout Connecticut. However, the Thames River constitutes a major corridor for anadromous species and is therefore an area of special concern for NOAA. The Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection is attempting to restore the historical Atlantic salmon run in the Thames watershed. Currently, eggs are stocked in upstream tributaries and for that reason they become especially sensitive areas. NOAA CRCs have conducted waste site reviews for two Superfund sites affecting the Thames River.
Another area of concern is the Housatonic River, which is habitat for numerous migratory and estuarine fish and invertebrate species of interest to NOAA. Many cetaceans also use areas offshore of the site, including some federally endangered species. The Raymark Industries, Inc. site is in the Housatonic River basin. Although a covenant not to sue (CNTS) was granted in 1995, this site continues to be of high priority. NOAA is currently involved in developing remediation goals and proposing restoration options.
Waste Site Reports
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- CT: Broad Brook Mill (Reviewed 2003); CERCLIS No.= CT0002055887
(Document format: PDF, size: 187.9 K)
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- CT: Gallups Quarry (Reviewed 1989); CERCLIS No. = CTD108960972
(Document format: PDF, size: 20.1 K)
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Other pages in this series
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