Project Status and Community Involvement
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) awarded a $17.6 million contract in September 2023 to install a 22-acre engineered cap to cover Areas A, B, & C of the Seaway Site in Tonawanda, NY. The site is included in the Formerly Utilized Sites Remedial Action Program (FUSRAP).
In March and April 2024, USACE engaged with the community and stakeholders regarding details of the engineered cap installation. This included a public information session in the Town of Tonawanda on 18 April 2024.
In late April, the staging of equipment, site preparation, and implementation of safety measures was completed. Safety measures included air monitoring that began 30 days prior to start of remedial work and continued through the completion of the radon attenuation layer in August 2024.
Construction of the engineered cap began on 30 April 2024 and is anticipated to be complete in 2025. No FUSRAP materials will be removed from the site as part of the current cap construction effort.
The protection of human health and the environment is of paramount importance to USACE. The safety of workers and the community is our number one priority. We will continue to communicate with the community and stakeholders to keep you informed of monitoring and remedial work through the duration of the project.
About the Seaway Site
The Seaway Site is located north of Buffalo and just south of the Niagara River along River Road in Tonawanda, NY. It is within the 100-acre Seaway Industrial Park. The site was operated as a landfill by Browning-Ferris Industries (BFI) through 1993. After ceasing operations, most of the landfill was capped by BFI in accordance with the requirements of the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation.
The Seaway Site was created when materials containing low levels of residual radioactivity were disposed of on the adjacent leased federal government property Ashland 1 Site. These radioactive residues were the result of activities conducted at the former Linde Site to support the nation’s nuclear weapons program. This material was later relocated by Ashland Oil to the Seaway Site (Areas A, B & C) and the Ashland 2 Site.
The site is being addressed under the authority of the FUSRAP. USACE is the lead federal agency for the program, which is conducted in accordance with the governing federal law – the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA), as amended, and the National Oil and Hazardous Substances Pollution Contingency Plan (NCP).
Under FUSRAP, USACE remediates contamination resulting from the Nation's early atomic energy program. FUSRAP was initiated in 1974 to identify, investigate and, if necessary, clean up or control sites throughout the United States contaminated as a result of Manhattan Engineer District (MED) or early Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) activities. Both the MED and AEC were predecessors of the U.S. Department of Energy.
More information on the USACE Buffalo District FUSRAP projects is available at https://www.lrd.usace.army.mil/FUSRAP/
Seaway Timeline
1974 to 1997 - The former AEC, and subsequently the US Department of Energy (DOE), had the responsibility for executing and administering FUSRAP. The DOE conducted surveys and investigations of four properties located in Tonawanda including the Seaway Site.
1993 - DOE conducted surveys and investigations of four properties located in Tonawanda, including the Seaway Site, and in 1993 issued a remedial investigation (RI) report that described the nature and extent of contamination at the sites.
1993 - DOE issued a feasibility study (FS) identifying and evaluating alternative means for remediating the Tonawanda Properties.
1993 - DOE prepared a proposed plan for public comment describing the preferred remedial action alternative for each property. The proposed plan recommended that the contaminants from all four properties be disposed of in an engineered on-site disposal facility to be located at Ashland 1, Ashland 2, or the Seaway Site.
1994 - DOE suspended the decision-making process on the 1993 proposed plan and re-evaluated the alternatives that were proposed due to community concerns.
1998 – The 1998 Energy and Water Development Appropriations Act, Public Law 105-62, transferred responsibility for administration and execution of FUSRAP from the DOE to USACE. Thereafter, separate proposed plans and records of decisions were issued for the other portions of the “Tonawanda Site.” USACE remedial actions at these other sites have all been completed.
2008 – USACE Buffalo District issued a feasibility study addendum and a revised proposed plan for the Seaway Site. These documents summarized the historic and more recent field investigations performed at the Seaway Site and recommended a remedial alternative for the FUSRAP-related contaminants. USACE identified areas where FUSRAP-related contaminated soils exist in Areas A, B, and C; Seaway Northside; and Seaway Southside. USACE field investigations also concluded that groundwater and leachate were not being impacted by FUSRAP-related contamination and are not likely to be impacted over the next 1,000 years if left as is. The comment period for the proposed plan was from August 25, 2008, to November 28, 2008. A public meeting to receive public comments was conducted on September 24, 2008.
2009 – The record of decision for the Seaway FUSRAP Site was approved. Alternative 6 from the proposed plan - Containment with Limited Off-Site Disposal, was identified as the selected remedy for the site. The selected remedy requires the capping of Investigative Areas A, B, & C within the landfill boundaries. The cap for the FUSRAP-related material will be constructed of multiple layers of various types of soil, fabric, and geomembranes at least 4.5 feet thick. The selected remedy also includes excavation of FUSRAP-related material outside the landfill boundaries in the Seaway Southside and Northside areas that exceeds the cleanup criteria and requires shipping the excavated material off-site for disposal.
2016 – USACE Buffalo District completed excavation and off-site disposal of contaminated soil located beyond the landfill leachate containment system on the Seaway Northside area. A total of 1,121 cubic yards of material was excavated and shipped off-site for disposal in a properly permitted facility.
2017 – USACE Buffalo District completed an investigation to delineate the extent of FUSRAP-related contamination within Seaway Southside.
2020 – USACE Buffalo District completed the first five-year review of the Seaway Site selected remedy, which is required under CERCLA.
2021 – USACE Buffalo District awarded a contract to design the Seaway Site Areas A, B, and C engineered cap, develop the engineered cap construction plans and specifications, prepare a cost estimate for the engineered cap construction, and develop an operations and maintenance plan.
2023 – USACE Buffalo District awarded a contract to install the engineered cap over Seaway Site Areas A, B and C.
2024 – Installation of the engineered cap began and is expected to be complete in 2025.
News from the Corps
News from the Corps emails are sent periodically when we have new information regarding the Seaway FUSRAP Site. To receive News from the Corps, please email us at fusrap@usace.army.mil and ask to be added to our list.
Contact
1-800-833-6390 (Option 4)
fusrap@usace.army.mil
478 Main Street, Buffalo, NY 14202