MARQUETTE PARK, Ind. – Indiana Governor Joe Kernan, Assistant Secretary of the Interior Lynn Scarlett and Deputy Assistant Attorney General John Cruden announced today that eight companies have agreed to pay nearly $60 million to restore natural resources in the Grand Calumet River and Indiana Harbor Canal.
Kernan, Scarlett and other officials announced details of the agreement today at Marquette Park in Lake County along the Calumet River corridor, one of the most heavily industrialized areas of the country. In addition to the payments that will be made to fund restoration projects in the waterway, the companies have agreed to set aside for habitat protection 233 acres of land that contains important fish and wildlife habitat.
“This is a great day for the Grand Calumet River because it’s the first step in restoring globally rare habitat and bringing wildlife back to this area,” said Kernan. “It’s also a great day for Hoosiers because those responsible for polluting are stepping up to finance that clean-up. The work that will result from this settlement will fit perfectly into the other important work going on along the Marquette Greenway – and ultimately it will result in a better quality of life for Hoosiers in Northwest Indiana.”
“This settlement is an example of unprecedented cooperation with companies to achieve restoration results,” said Scarlett, Interior’s assistant secretary for Policy, Management and Budget. “The agreement is the result of a significant partnership effort to restore natural resources and enhance an urban environment.. We look forward to working with the private firms that are party to this agreement as full partners in the continued stewardship of this valuable river resource.”
Led by the Indiana Department of Environmental Management (IDEM) and the U.S. Department of Interior through its Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), a team of seven federal and state agencies has been working since 1996 to determine the extent of natural resource damages from a century of industrial releases of oil and other hazardous substances into the waterway. Studies showed that the releases contaminated the river’s water and streambed, affecting migratory birds, fish, invertebrates and aquatic insects. The settlement with the Indiana and U.S. governments, lodged by the U.S. Department of Justice, calls for:
- Cash payment of $53,653,000;
- Permanent protection of 233 acres; and
- $2.7 million to repay IDEM and USFWS for their damage assessment work.
Settlement funds will be used to clean up, restore and protect the waterways and surrounding area, which includes globally rare dune and swale habitat.
Kernan, Scarlett and other officials complimented the legal teams from federal and state agencies who worked through highly complex federal and state laws and negotiated for years.
“This settlement will bring substantial benefits to communities along the Grand Calumet River and help restore areas contaminated over a century of industrial activity. Todays action demonstrates the hard work of both the federal and state governments to correct the environmental problems associated with the river and the willingness of those responsible to settle this matter using their resources for restoration rather than litigation," said Deputy Attorney General John C. Cruden of the U.S. Department of Justice.
The settling companies are Atlantic Richfield Co. (and ARCO Environmental Remediation, L.L.C.); BP Products North America Inc.; E.I. Du Pont De Nemours and Co.; Exxon Mobil Corp.; GATX Corp.; Georgia-Pacific Corp.; ISPAT-Inland Inc.; and United States Steel Corp.. LTV Steel Co. was also a part of those discussions before declaring bankruptcy, and a substantial portion of the company’s cost share was paid through the bankruptcy.
The governmental agencies involved are U.S. Department of the Interior through USFWS, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency; Department of Homeland Security through the U.S. Coast Guard; U.S. Department of Commerce through the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration; IDEM; Indiana Department of Natural Resources; U.S. Department of Justice; and Indiana’s Attorney General’s office.
For details on the settlement and additional information, visit http://midwest.fws.gov/GrandCalumetRiver/ or call:
Gov. Kernan’s office – Lisa Sirkin, 317-232-4578 or lsirkin@gov.IN.gov
USFWS -- Georgia Parham/Charles Traxler, 812-334-4261 or georgia_parham@fws.gov
IDEM – Cheryl Reed, 317-233-5965 or
DNR – Stephen Sellers, 317-232-4003 or
Indiana Attorney General, 317-232-6351 or
U.S. EPA – Phillippa Cannon, 312-353-6218 or cannon.phillippa@epa.gov
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 95-million-acre National Wildlife Refuge System, which encompasses 544 national wildlife refuges, thousands of small wetlands and other special management areas. It also operates 69 national fish hatcheries, 64 fishery resources offices and 81 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 and Native American tribal governments with their conservation efforts. It also oversees the Federal Assistance program, which distributes hundreds of millions of dollars in excise taxes on fishing and hunting equipment to state fish and wildlife agencies.
