Public Meeting Scheduled on Natural Resource Damage Assessment Process for Fox River/Green Bay Environment

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) invites residents of the Fox River/ Green Bay community and any interested parties to a one hour presentation on the Natural Resource Damage Assessment process (NRDA) at 7:00 p.m. on Wednesday, May 21, at the Brown County Public Library, Green Bay, Wisconsin. The NRDA is being conducted to assess the level of injury to fish, wildlife and their habitats resulting from PCB (polychlorinated biphenyl)- contaminated sediments in the Fox River. The goal of the NRDA process is both to restore those resources for the public’s future use and to compensate the community for their loss.

“The citizens of the Fox River/Green Bay community deserve to live in an environment that is healthy for fish, wildlife and people, and to be compensated for natural resource losses that have occurred.” stated William Hartwig, the Service’s Regional Director. “We are strongly committed to working together with all parties to achieve these goals within a healthy local economy.”

The Service is conducting a natural resource damage assessment which is authorized under legislation such as Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA, aka "Superfund"), the Clean Water Act (CWA), and the Oil Pollution Act (OPA). Other parties who have asserted trusteeship include the Oneida Tribe, Menominee Tribe, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the State of Wisconsin. The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources is the State trustee for natural resources.

DIRECTIONS TO BROWN COUNTY LIBRARY: From Highway 41: Take the Shawano Avenue (Highway 29) Exit, and turn right at the stoplight. Proceed east on Shawano Avenue into the city of Green Bay. Shawano Avenue becomes Walnut Street. Continue across the Fox River to Monroe Street. Turn left and proceed two blocks to Pine Street. Turn left on Pine Street where the Library occupies the block between Madison and Monroe Streets. Parking is available on Pine Street, behind the Library and in the Pine Street Parking Ramp.

From I- 43: Take Webster Avenue Exit and turn left at the stop sign. Proceed south on Webster Avenue into the city of Green Bay. Turn right onto University Avenue and proceed across the East River. University Avenue will become Monroe Street. Turn left on Pine Street where the Library occupies the block between Madison and Monroe Streets. Parking is available on Pine Street, behind the Library and in the Pine Street Parking Ramp.

Contact Joan Guilfoyle at 414/655-0950 or 612/725-3582 for more information.

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