The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Buffalo District, recently partnered with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to begin work dredging contaminated sediment in a 7-mile stretch of Otter Creek which extends through Toledo and Oregon.
Sediment in the lower 1.7 miles of Otter Creek is contaminated with elevated levels of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and diesel range organics. Dredging work started approximately 1/4-mile downstream of Millard Avenue and will finish at its mouth in Maumee Bay.
A hydraulic vacuum-like dredge is being used to remove approximately 57,000 cubic yards of contaminated sediment from the creek’s bottom. The dredged sediment is pumped through a submerged pipeline to the nearby Toledo-Lucas County Port Authority’s confined disposal facility.
EPA anticipates the cleanup to be complete in the late summer of 2021. Afterwards, the dredged area will be covered with a foot of sand to create a barrier against any remaining contamination.
J.F. Brennan, the company responsible for the cleanup, is undertaking dredging operations on the Otter Creek.