February 25, 2004
Friends of a Clean Hudson

Second Annual Hudson River PCB Report Card

(Albany, NY) – Friends of a Clean Hudson (FOCH), the environmental coalition that is monitoring the progress of the Hudson River PCB cleanup, today issued its second annual Hudson River PCB Report Card. It has been approximately two years since the federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ordered General Electric (GE) to clean most of the remaining toxic PCBs frm the Hudson River. Grades were issued for Governor Pataki, the EPA, Congressman John Sweeney and upriver elected officials.

Overall, the report card shows that progress is still being made toward the goal of cleaning up the Hudson River and protecting the public from the hazards of PCB contamination. Both the Governor and the EPA earned good grades for the second year in a row. GE and local elected officials received very low marks, while Congressman Sweeney missed too much class to earn a grade at all ths year.

Governor George Pataki was recognized for the Department of Environmental Conservation’s progress in cleaning up an on-shore source of PCB contamination at the old GE plant in Fort Edward. He was also recognized for the Department of Health’s public health work with upriver residents. He was marked down from last year’s A- because of the DEC’s failure to make progress on cleaning up another ongoing source of PCB contamination to the river, the old GE plant in Hudson Falls. As a result, his grade fell from an A- to a B.

The EPA improved its grade from a B to a B+. The agency was rewarded for keeping to its revised schedule, which should see the actual cleanup begin in 2006. The EPA’s grade improved in recognition of its ongoing attempts to inform and involve the local upriver community in the design phase. Improvements still need to be made in communicating with the public about facility siting.

General Electric’s grade also improved, from a D to a D+. Although the polluter is working with the EPA in designing the cleanup, it has still not yet committed to carrying out that project and it continues to challenge the federal Superfund law in court.

Congressman John Sweeney, who last year received a D, did not even earn a grade this year due to repeated absences. To get back into class, the Congressman must become involved in cleanup planning in a positive way that is transparent to his constituents.

Local Elected Officials, as a group, received a failing grade of F. It continues to be a source of amazement and concern that this class of politicians repeatedly try to block the cleanup of toxic contaminants that are harming the families they are elected to represent.

To view a PDF version of the report card, click here.

Friends of a Clean Hudson is a coalition of national, state and regional organizations fighting for the restoration of the Hudson River through the aggressive removal of PCB-contaminated sediments. The coalition comprises: the Appalachian Mountain Club, Arbor Hill Environmental Justice Corporation, Coast Alliance, Environmental Advocates of New York, Hudson River Sloop Clearwater, Mount Sinai School of Medicine-Center for Children's Health and the Environment, Natural Resources Defense Council, New York Public Interest Research Group, New York Rivers United, Riverkeeper, Scenic Hudson, the Sierra Club and the U.S. Public Interest Research Group.