Site history: The site was in operation from 1961 to 1988.
Location: Little Elk Creek, Elkton, Maryland.
Trustees:
Case status: Draft Restoration Plan
and Environmental Assessment released April 2008.
This draft plan has been released for public review and comment. The comment
period ends April 30th. See the Public
Notice for details on how to submit comments.
Overview: The Galaxy/Spectron, Inc., (Spectron) site is an
abandoned solvent recycling facility located approximately six miles northwest
of Elkton, Maryland. The site covers approximately eight acres adjacent to
Little Elk Creek, a tributary to the Elk River and the upper Chesapeake Bay.
Past operations at the recycling facility resulted in contamination of the site
soils and groundwater with volatile organic compounds (VOCs). The primary
contaminant migration pathway to trust resources was VOC discharge to Little
Elk Creek. Fish surveys conducted on Little Elk Creek have identified trust
resources including alewife, blueback herring, white perch and the American
eel. The Creek provides aquatic and benthic habitats supporting trust
resources. The Trustees determined injuries were primarily to anadromous fish
such as herring and alewife.
The Trustees considered numerous restoration alternatives to compensate the
public for injuries to natural resources. The number of sites considered
includes 72 possible fish blockages and 11 stream restoration sites in both
Little Elk Creek and the overall Elk River watershed. The Trustees have
evaluated the alternatives and have identified Scotchman Creek as the preferred
restoration alternative based on the anticipated ecological benefits to
anadromous fish, project cost-effectiveness and overall need for restoration
within the Elk River watershed. This project involves the removal of a partial
fish blockage and stream restoration at Scotchman Creek at Mill Lane in Cecil
County, Maryland. This area is documented spawning ground for striped bass,
white perch, alewife, and blueback herring. Historically, Scotchman Creek and
the Bohemia River produced some of the highest counts of striped bass juveniles
in the Chesapeake Bay. Fish blockage removal and stream restoration at
Scotchman Creek will restore 1000 linear feet of stream and open an additional
2.2 miles of habitat for anadromous fish and the American eel.
The Draft Restoration Plan and Environmental Assessment for the Galaxy/Spectron
Site has been released for public review and comment.
