The Hopewell Precision Superfund siteFaced with serious and ongoing water contamination issues, U.S. Rep. John Hall [1] (19th District) is planning a House subcommittee hearing to examine the issues and potential solutions. The Field Hearing, entitled "Water Resources Contamination and Environmental Cleanup in the Hudson Valley," will be held April 11 at 9:30 a.m. at the East Fishkill Town Hall.

 

A large stretch of the Hudson River [2] has been designated a Superfund site as a result of the PCB dumping, resulting in serious downriver impacts. In addition, Hopewell Precision [3] Superfund site, located in East Fishkill, is one of seven sites in the 19th Congressional District on the Environmental Protection Agency's Superfund National Priority List, a designation of the nation's most severely polluted locations. Furthermore, many municipalities in the region are tasked with improving their sewer infrastructure to meet Clean Water Act [4] obligations and avoid polluting lakes, rivers and streams.

"Water pollution in the Hudson Valley is a serious challenge and the cleanup is going to require strong and organized cooperation," Hall said. "I've asked the Water Resources Subcommittee to hold a field hearing here so that we can examine how the EPA is currently working with New York's Department of Environmental Conservation, local governments, and private groups. I want this hearing to spur the federal government to redouble its commitment to remediation in the Hudson Valley."