The Lower Duwamish Waterway is south of Elliott Bay, near downtown Seattle, Washington. Boat manufacturing and repair, marina operations, airplane parts manufacturing, metals fabrication, combined sewer overflows, and over one hundred storm drains have contributed to contamination of the waterway. In addition to industry, important uses of the waterway include fishing, recreation, and wildlife habitat.
EPA added about five miles of the waterway to its list of Superfund cleanup sites in 2001. The contaminants in the waterway sediments include polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), polyaromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), mercury and other metals, and phthalates.
EPA, the Washington State Department of Ecology, and other partners are investigating and cleaning up sediment contamination under Superfund and other programs. The investigation will include an assessment of potential risk to the health of people, fish, wildlife, and the environment.
| View of northern part of Lower Duwamish Waterway Superfund site. |