Full Assessment

In Phase 3, which is ongoing, the Trustee Council is conducting additional injury assessment consistent with the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act (CERCLA) Natural Resource Damage Assessment (NRDA) regulations. The results of the Phase 3 assessment will be used to pursue claims against Potentially Responsible Parties (PRPs) who do not settle during Phase 2. The Trustee Council, working with subject matter experts, will build on data and analyses from Phase 2, updating methods and filling data gaps as needed to refine injury determination and quantification, damage determination, and restoration planning. 

The first step in the Phase 3 process was to develop a Damage Assessment Plan Addendum, which refines the studies and other assessment work the Trustee Council will conduct. The Addendum lays out the updated studies and approaches for determining and quantifying natural resource injury and corresponding ecological, recreational, and tribal damages resulting from contamination in the Assessment Area. Examples of studies described in the Addendum include:

• Juvenile salmonid exposure to and effects from contaminants in the Assessment Area through a field study.
• Forage fish exposure to and effects from contaminants in the Assessment Area through a field study.
• Outdoor recreational use of the lower Willamette River (e.g., through focus groups).
• Assess changes in the tribal services provided by natural resources in the Assessment Area as a result of contamination.