An important milestone has been achieved: The Lower Duwamish Waterway contamination investigation is complete.
Lower Duwamish Waterway Questions and Answers
The Lower Duwamish Waterway site is a 5.5 mile portion of the Lower Duwamish River which flows into Elliott Bay. The waterway lies just south of downtown Seattle and is flanked by industrial corridors, as well as the South Park and Georgetown neighborhoods.
Sediments (mud and sand on the river bottom) in and along the waterway contain a wide range of contaminants from years of industrial activity and from stormwater. The Washington State Department of Ecology (Ecology) and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) are working to clean up contaminated sediment and control sources of recontamination in the waterway.
EPA added about five miles of the waterway to its list of Superfund cleanup sites in 2001. The contaminants in the waterway sediments include polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), polyaromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), mercury and other metals, and phthalates.
EPA, the Washington State Department of Ecology, and other partners are investigating and cleaning up sediment contamination under Superfund and other programs. The investigation will include an assessment of potential risk to the health of people, fish, wildlife, and the environment. |  | Photo courtesy of Washington State Department of Ecology ©
View of northern part of Lower Duwamish Waterway Superfund site. |