GM: Superfund site will be cleaned despite closure of plant

MASSENA — As the end of operations at the General Motors Powertrain plant here looms, some are worried that a mess of pollutants may be left behind.

Land around the plant was designated a Superfund site by the Environmental Protection Agency in 1984 and cleanup efforts have been ongoing since 1987, according to EPA's Web site. Since the announcement the plant will close May 1 and the uncertain future of the facility itself, people are concerned the cleanup will not be completed.

"It affects a lot of people, sport fishermen, subsistence fishermen," said David T. Staddon, director of public information for the St. Regis Mohawk tribe. "People out in Massena and in Akwesasne are concerned. It's an issue that really crosses a lot of borders."

Tribal officials are concerned that additional areas around the plant are contaminated and will not be cleaned.

"We're concerned that there may have been leakage and contamination under the plant," director of the Environment Division Kenneth L. Jock said. "We don't know."

Any contamination that may be under the plant from polychlorinated biphenyl-laden fluids is not included in the current plans to clean the site. The tribe was told that the EPA will be dealing with all the contamination at the site, including anything that may be under the plant itself, according to EPA spokeswoman Elizabeth A. Totman.

From 1959 until 1980, the plant used PCBs — a group of chemicals linked to cancer and other illnesses — as part of its die-casting operations. Now it is working to clean them up in accordance with two plans drafted by the EPA in 1990 and 1992.

"Despite the fact that we're closing the plant, GM will continue to clean up the site," GM spokesman Daniel J. Flores said. "Our obligations are not affected and do not change."

GM has spent millions of dollars removing PCBs from the St. Regis Mohawk Reservation over the past 20 years, including dredging a large section of the contaminated St. Lawrence River.

In 2007, GM excavated more than 800 cubic yards of soil at five separate locations on the western end of the St. Regis Mohawk Reservation, comprising a total area of about one acre.

"They signed a consent decision. They are aware that they are the responsible parties," Ms. Totman said. "All contamination will be addressed, GM's standing notwithstanding."

Nor will the corporation's current financial difficulties prevent the site from being cleaned up, though those problems have not been factored into estimates of how long the cleanup will take, Ms. Totman said.

"It's premature to talk about that," she said. "They're not bankrupt. They're solvent."

If the site is sold, GM will remain responsible for cleanup, unless the buyer agrees to take on responsibility for the burden, GM officials said.

The future of the plant has yet to be decided, according to GM spokeswoman Lynda A. Messina.