Buffalo, New York
The Buffalo River Cleanup Project, in Buffalo NY, required the cleanup of PCB-contaminated sediments along the lower Buffalo River and the City Ship Canal (CSC) in the Buffalo River AOC. In 1946, Allied Chemical initiated a mercury cell process which resulted in the discharge of waste streams containing mercury and heavy metals. As a result of chemical production and discharge from the municipal wastewater treatment plant, the site’s surface water, sediments, and groundwater were contaminated. Primary COCs included PCBs.
Sevenson performed in-situ capping of 10 acres of the City Ship Canal. Crews placed approximately 122,000 tons of subaqueous capping material in 41 days. The thickness of the subaqueous cap varied from 5.5–12 ft. Habitat restoration across 8-acres, encompassed five areas of the site, which included the planting of aquatic vegetation plantings; installation of emergent and sub-aquatic plants; placement of topsoil; and plating of trees and seeds along the shoreline.