[CPEO-BIF] Washington Gas Light site, Anacostia River, Washington, DC

[Lenny Siegel <lsiegel@cpeo.org>]

Washington Gas to clean Anacostia riverbank under new agreement

By Darryl Fears
Washington Post
December 12, 2011

Washington Gas Light Co. has agreed to clean a section of land along  
the Anacostia River that it contaminated with harmful chemicals for  
more than a century, federal officials announced Monday.

As part of an agreement involving the utility, the U.S. Interior  
Department and the D.C. government, Washington Gas will also pay for  
a comprehensive investigation of toxic contamination of soil and  
groundwater on the site. It will repay nearly $1 million to federal  
agencies for investigations that revealed how badly the river was  
fouled where the company once processed gas.

Interior Secretary Ken Salazar called the agreement "a milestone in  
our efforts . . . to transform what was once known as America’s  
forgotten river into a model urban park." A walkway is slated to  
traverse the area once when the work is done.

But the Anacostia Watershed Society said much is unknown about the  
agreement, including its cost and how the utility will be held  
accountable for its work. "How much they're committing is really  
unclear at this point," said Brent Bolin, director of advocacy for AWS.



...

For the entire article, see
http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/washington-gas- 
to-clean-anacostia-riverbank-under-new-agreement/2011/12/12/ 
gIQAc0ihqO_story.html

--

Lenny Siegel
Executive Director, Center for Public Environmental Oversight
a project of the Pacific Studies Center
278-A Hope St., Mountain View, CA 94041
Voice: 650/961-8918 or 650/969-1545
Fax: 650/961-8918
<lsiegel@cpeo.org>
http://www.cpeo.org

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