FOX RIVER INTERGOVERNMENTAL PARTNERSHIP CONTINUES EFFORTS TO CLEAN UP AND RESTORE FOX RIVER ENVIRONMENT

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Press Release
FOX RIVER INTERGOVERNMENTAL PARTNERSHIP CONTINUES EFFORTS TO CLEAN UP AND RESTORE FOX RIVER ENVIRONMENT
The Fox River Intergovernmental Partnership (Partnership) is continuing its efforts to clean up and restore the Fox River/Green Bay environment in collaboration with the Fox River Group and to avoid the costly delays and expense of litigation.

The Partnership consists of the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR), United States Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), Oneida Tribe of Indians of Wisconsin, Menominee Indian Tribe of Wisconsin and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

The Partnership’s primary concern at this time is to move forward with the remedial investigation and feasibility study (RI/FS) which analyzes the costs, risks, benefits and feasibility of options for cleaning up the Fox River. The RI/FS will be conducted by EPA and DNR in order to streamline the process and ensure its completion in a timely manner. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service expects to complete its work on the Natural Resource Damage Assessment (NRDA) by the end of this calendar year. The NRDA will be coordinated with EPA’s and the DNR’s activities and will culminate in a report of assessment after a cleanup alternative has been selected.

Additionally, EPA is continuing with its plans to pursue placement of the Fox River on the Superfund National Priorities List (NPL).

The Fox River Group consists of the seven paper mills previously identified as Potentially Responsible Parties (PRP) for PCB contamination of the Fox River environment. The seven paper mills identified as PRPs are Wisconsin Tissue Mills, Inc., Fort James Corporation, Appleton Papers, Inc., P.H. Glatfelter Company, Riverside Paper Corporation and U.S. Paper Mills Corporation. The Partnership expects to continue its negotiations with the Fox River Group.

The Partnership has sponsored several public meetings in the Fox Valley to inform the community about the remedial and restoration decision-making process and each Partner’s role in the process. Additional public meetings will be scheduled as this process continues.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is the principal Federal agency responsible for conserving, protecting and enhancing fish, wildlife and plants and their habitats for the continuing benefit of the American people. The Service manages the 93-million-acre National Wildlife Refuge System which encompasses more than 530 national wildlife refuges, thousands of small wetlands and other special management areas. It also operates 66 national fish hatcheries, 64 fishery resource offices and 78 ecological services field stations. The agency enforces Federal wildlife laws, administers the Endangered Species Act, manages migratory bird populations, restores nationally significant fisheries, conserves and restores wildlife habitat such as wetlands, and helps foreign governments with their conservation efforts. It also oversees the Federal Aid program that distributes hundreds of millions of dollars in excise taxes on fishing and hunting equipment to state fish and wildlife agencies. For further information about the programs and activities of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in the Great Lakes-Big Rivers Region, please visit our home page at: http://midwest.fws.gov

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