The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service invites interested groups and individuals to learn more about the ongoing effort to investigate and take appropriate action to address hazardous substances released on Grassy Island, part of Detroit River International Wildlife Refuge in Wayne County, Michigan.
The meeting will take place on Wednesday, November 10, 2004, from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. at the Council Chamber at Wyandotte City Hall, located at (3131 Biddle Avenue) in Wyandotte.
During the meeting, representatives from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will explain the process the Service is taking to investigate and address any actual or threatened release of hazardous substances at the site to protect human health and the environment at Grassy Island. Officials will discuss the results of a preliminary assessment and site inspection (PA/SI) of Grassy and describe the next steps in the process. The public will have opportunities to ask questions and discuss Grassy Island one-on-one with Service representatives.
Grassy is a 72-acre artificial in the Detroit River in suburban Detroit. The was used by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers as a disposal facility for sediment dredged from the Rouge River from 1961 to 1982. The has been part of the National Wildlife Refuge System since 1961, when it was transferred by Congress to the Service as part of Wyandotte National Wildlife Refuge. In 2002, the became part of the Detroit River International Wildlife Refuge.
The preliminary assessment and site inspection conducted on the during late 2003 and early 2004 revealed the is contaminated with metals and organic chemicals, resulting from the disposal of contaminated sediments over time by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. During the 1960s, at least nine major industrial facilities discharged pollutants into the Rouge River.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service prepared the preliminary assessment/site inspection report as the initial step in the remedial action process under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act, also known as the “Superfund” law. The Service will use the Superfund process to conduct additional investigation and any cleanup that may be warranted at the site. The complete preliminary assessment/site inspection report will be available online at http://midwest.fws.gov/grassyisland after November 2, 2004. A copy can also be viewed, after November 2, 2004, at the Bacon Memorial Library (45 Vinewood St.) in Wyandotte. For more information on the preliminary assessment/site inspection and the public meeting, contact Stephanie Millsap, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (9311 Groh Rd.; Grosse Ile, MI 48138; phone: 419-692-7628).
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.
