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Tuesday,
April 7, 1998 Passaic River Listed as 'Endangered'By Tina Traster There are stretches in the upper portions of the 90-mile Passaic River that are so untamed and pristine, it's easy to forget that the six-mile stretch that empties into Newark Bay is a ribbon of muddy green water contaminated with dioxins. And that portion of the lower Passaic is so severely polluted -- it contains more dioxins than any river in the nation -- that American Rivers, a Washington, D.C.-based conservation group, has named the Passaic River one of the nation's 20 most endangered rivers in 1998. "We listed the whole river, but it is because of the contaminated sediments in the lower portion of the river that the Passaic River is on the list this year," said Margaret Bowman, staff attorney with American Rivers. "We are concerned that the contaminated sediments are migrating downstream, and dioxins pose a risk to fish, wildlife, and human health." Bowman said the Passaic River, ranked 16th on the list, has been endangered for some time and was cited by the group about a decade ago. The annual list names rivers that are environmentally at risk from threats such as pollution, damming, draining, and toxic waste. Other rivers on the list include the Columbia River in Washington State, the Missouri, and the Potomac and Pocomoke rivers in Maryland. There are efforts afoot nationwide to revive rivers and to adhere to a federal mandate to make all bodies of water safe for fishing and swimming. Both environmentalists and planners agree that healthy rivers attract people for recreation and encourage waterfront development, which is especially important for struggling waterfront cities. Environmentalists say New Jersey should sue to force the polluters of the Passaic River to clean up the deadly dioxin. However, state officials say the polluters are cooperating with the federal cleanup process and that the state has no plans to sue. Ella Filippone, executive director of the Passaic River Coalition, a conservation group, says the American Rivers designation underscores the urgency of cleaning up the river, and getting former and current polluters to take their responsibility seriously. "It's time to start cleaning up," said Filippone. "It's time to remove the sediments, to dredge the river so it can cleanse itself, and [so] habitat can be restored for a healthy ecosystem." The Hackensack River was named to the list in 1996. American Rivers, a not-for-profit group, said the ranking was based on the impact planned development would have on the river. Bowman said a study on toxic sediments and the health threat they pose that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency released in January has drawn renewed attention to the Passaic River because the lower stretch is severely polluted, and it is difficult and costly to dredge contaminated sediments. "There are high levels of dioxins in the Passaic, and the concern is that it 'bioaccumulates,' or moves through the food chain," said Mary Mears, a spokeswoman for Region II of the EPA. "There's no danger with direct exposure, so we're not concerned about swimming or standing by a river. The dioxins are a persistent chemical that gets into tiny critters living in sediments, and then ends up in the fatty tissue of fish that eat the critters. The concern is with people eating fish, which is why there is a ban." Dioxins are known to cause negative health effects including reproductive and immune system disorders, impaired fetal development, and cancer. In 1984, the EPA named as a Superfund site the six-mile stretch downriver of the former Diamond Shamrock plant. The site stretches from Newark Bay to the Dundee Dam in Clifton. The Diamond Shamrock plant made Agent Orange and other herbicides during the Vietnam War era. The EPA initiated a $10 million pollution and remediation study of the site in 1994, paid for by Occidental Chemical Corp. of Dallas, which bought the plant site. "Sampling continues in the river, and we are looking at sources other than Diamond Shamrock that might be responsible for concentrations of pesticides, PCBs, dioxins, and metals," said Mears. "We have some data, and in general there are areas in the Passaic that have high levels of dioxin. It's not a surprise these areas are located around Diamond Shamrock." N. Scott Jones, a spokesman for Diamond Alkali Project Team, which handles the engineering and legal matters for Occidental, said singling out the former site as the only source of pollution is futile. "Until there's a recognition that this is an estuary-wide problem, and that there are multiple chemicals of concern, and multiple contributors, only then can a meaningful dialogue begin," he said. Efforts have been under way to clean up the Passaic and other rivers since the passage of the federal Clean Water Act in 1972. Billions of dollars have been spent on upgrading sewage treatment plants along the river. And in August, Governor Whitman and New York Gov. George Pataki signed a bi-state agreement to restore the health of the Hudson-Raritan estuary. Filippone hopes the Passaic River will be one of 10 rivers nationally to receive special designation from the Clinton administration, known as American Heritage Rivers status, to help foster environmental protection, historical and cultural preservation, and economic development. Rivers given this status -- which will be determined next month -- gain recognition of their link to the nation's history, along with help from the federal government to coordinate future activity, from cleanups to monitoring water quality to sound development. 20 MOST-ENDANGERED RIVERS The list of the 20 most endangered rivers in North America, as compiled by the conservation group American Rivers. 1. Hanford Reach of the Columbia River in Washington; agricultural development, nuclear waste contamination. 2. Missouri River in Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Iowa, Kansas, and Missouri; dams, channelization. 3. Pocomoke River in Maryland; factory poultry farms. 4. Kern River in California; small hydropower dams. 5. Blackfoot River in Montana; gold mine. 6. Colorado River Delta in Baja California, Mexico; overuse of water. 7. Chattahoochee River in Georgia, Alabama, and Florida; development, polluted runoff, sewage overflows. 8. Lower Snake River in Washington; dams. 9. Apple River in Wisconsin and Illinois; factory hog farms. 10. Pinto Creek in Arizona; copper mine. 11. Wolf River in Wisconsin; zinc, copper sulfide mine. 12. Potomac River in West Virginia, Virginia, Maryland, District of Columbia, and Pennsylvania; factory poultry farms and cattle feedlots, development. 13. Rogue-Illinois river system (including Elk Creek and Rough & Ready Creek) in Oregon; dams, nickel laterite mine. 14. Taku River in Alaska and British Columbia; copper, gold mine. 15. Crooked Creek in Arkansas; in-stream gravel mining. 16. Passaic River; contaminated sediments. 17. Mattaponi River in Virginia; dam and reservoir. 18. Walla Walla River in Oregon and Washington; agricultural pollution, low flows, channelization. 19. Uinta River in Utah; dam. 20. Kansas River in Kansas; agricultural and municipal pollution. Copyright © 1998 Bergen
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