FRIENDS OF A CLEAN HUDSON

 

                                                                For Immediate Release: July 30, 2001

 

                                                                  Contact: Marion Trieste, Scenic Hudson: 518-584-7817

                                                              Andy Mele, Clearwater 845-454-8209;7673

                                                              Jean McGrane, Scenic Hudson 845-473-8209;4440

                                                                           David Higby, Environmental Advocates 518-462-5526 ext 239

 

River Groups Release Report Showing a Comprehensive PCB Cleanup

Would Mean Hundreds of Millions to Local Communities

 

(Troy, NY) - Friends of a Clean Hudson (FOCH), a broad coalition of groups supporting a thorough cleanup of the Hudson River PCBs, today released a professionally authored financial report outlining the economic benefits of the EPA's Proposed Plan for environmental dredging in the upper river.   The report, "The Hudson River Regional Economic Impact Analysis," which was commissioned by FOCH members Hudson River Sloop Clearwater and Scenic Hudson, examines in detail the near term implications of the EPA’s proposed $460 million cleanup project and the long term ramifications of a clean river, for 12 Hudson Valley counties from Washington in the north to Westchester in the south.

 

Among the findings by KLIOS, Inc., a New Jersey economics and management consulting firm are:

 

* Of the $460 million in cleanup project expenses (which are the responsibility of the polluter, the General Electric Company), nearly half - $225 million - would be expended locally.

 

* 3,543 jobs, with $88 million in wages, would be added to the local economy by the initial project - i.e. the construction, operation, and monitoring components.

 

* 1,028 indirect jobs, paying $53 million in wages, would be created by the multiplier effect, the ripple of economic activity generated by the exchange of project-related goods and services.

 

* Between 3,700 and 8,900 jobs, bringing with them payrolls totaling between $144 and $346 million, would be created in the long term.  These projected employment numbers were reached by studying the twelve affected counties for the potential in waterfront activities that would resume because of a cleaner river.

 

* 300 direct and 150 indirect jobs, worth $18 million in wages, would likely result from the restoration of commercial fisheries, wiped out by PCB contamination 25 years ago.

 

* The largest beneficiaries would be Washington and Saratoga Counties, the locales contiguous to the actual cleanup project.  The economies of these two upriver communities would realize a windfall of an estimated $800 million in the near and long term.                                                               

 

 "This report shows that the PCB cleanup will provide important economic opportunities for Washington and Saratoga counties, as well as for the rest of the Hudson Valley,” said Andy Mele, Clearwater’s Executive Director. “We're talking new jobs, increased demand for local goods and services, and an improved economic climate for local communities."

 

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Representatives of Clearwater and Scenic Hudson were joined by river valley congressmen, local business people, and labor leaders, in highlighting the economic advantages to river communities to be gained by significant removal of PCBs.  PCBs are a class of synthetic chemical toxic chemicals universally recognized as among the world’s most potent and persistent threats to human health.

 

"The findings of this report boost the argument for a thorough removal of PCBs from the Hudson River ‑  not a scaled‑back or demonstrative project.  One can, simultaneously, improve the environment and strengthen the economy,” said Congressman Michael McNulty, who represents Troy.  “As you can see from the variety of interests represented here today ‑  some of whom don't always agree ‑ support for the original Region II plan is as widespread as it is strong."

 

“Justifiably, the attention lately has focused on the emerging evidence of PCB-related illnesses in the Upper Hudson,” remarked Ned Sullivan, Executive Director of Scenic Hudson, “but we should be mindful of the fact that local businesses and property values upriver, and throughout the 200 miles of the Superfund site, have also been stricken by this pollution.  A genuine cleanup is the only thing that can restore good health to the watershed, its people and their economy.”

 

Maurice Hinchey, another congressman whose district runs along the river added:  "People often make the mistake of thinking we need to choose between protecting the environment and improving the economy.  Almost always, this is simply not the case.  A healthy environment and a strong economy go hand‑in‑hand.  This is certainly true with the Hudson River.  We need to remove the PCB's from the Hudson because they are hazardous to the ecology of the river and to human beings.  But there are economic benefits as well.  The cleanup operation itself will create many jobs in the short‑term and will pump over $200 million into the local economy.  More important, tremendous long‑term economic benefits will result from having a clean Hudson River.  Tourism will increase, the fishing industry will be revived, thousands of jobs will be created and property values will rise."

 

KLIOS reviewed data from the EPA's Feasibility Study and Proposed Plan and assessed regional economic impacts using an economic model calibrated for the region by Regional Economic Models, Inc. (REMI).  The economic impact of EPA's proposed environmental dredging project on Saratoga and Washington Counties is defined as the difference between forecasts of local economic activity with and without the recommended intervention.  Among other findings, the study shows that navigation in the Champlain Canal and access to local marinas would be greatly improved, significantly enhancing tourist and commercial access along the Hudson River.

 

"Never has it been more obvious that Fort Edward needs an end to the PCB pollution issue,"  said Fort Edward businessman and former town supervisor, Terry Seeley.  "In the short run, the boost to the local economy by a cleanup project would be more than welcome; in the long run, a clean river is absolutely essential.  Fort Edward's economy cannot expect to recover so long as we sit at the top of the world's largest Superfund site."

 

FRIENDS OF A CLEAN HUDSON is a coalition of national, state and regional organizations including the Appalachian Mountain Club, Arbor Hill Environmental Justice Corporation, Coast Alliance, Environmental Advocates, Hudson River Sloop Clearwater, Natural Resources Defense Council, New York Public Interest Research Group, New York Rivers United, Riverkeeper, Scenic Hudson, and the Sierra Club.  The coalition supports restoration of the Hudson River through the aggressive removal of PCB‑contaminated sediments.

For more information, visit: www.cleanhudson.org or www.clearwater.org/epa/public-comment/index.html#appen

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