03-26-2023, 04:52 PM
RgrF wrote:
other ocean bottom disturbances would presumably mean any attempts to siphon, dredge or otherwise remove the contaminant.
Yep! Any attempt to remove the contaminated sediment would have to take that into account and take measures to minimize further spreading.
I am reminded of the arguments GE made against cleanup of the PCBs they contaminated both the Hudson and Housatonic RIvers from their manufacturing operations in the region. They argued with the EPA that the riverbed locations contaminated with PCBs should be left alone, the PCBs would remain in the sediment. The counterargument that finally was followed was that Spring floods and other changes in water flow would disturb the sediments anyways, so better to remove as much as feasible. Environmentally PCBs are not as persistent as DDT, so breakdown of the remaining PCB contamination will take much less time.