In a 2007 study sponsored by the EPA entitled “Sediment Dredging at Superfund Megasites: Assessing the Effectiveness,” dredging was highlighted favorably. See some relevant quotes below.
Note: The EPA’s contractor used a Mud Cat MC-2000 for the Massena River PCB clean-up.
-“The committee concludes that dredging is one of the few options available for the remediation of contaminated sediment and that it should be considered, with other options, to manage the risks that the contaminated sediments pose.”
-“The ability to dredge to a specified cut line in the sediment has been greatly improved by the advent of electronic positioning technologies, such as differential global positioning systems (DGPSs) and kinematic differential global positioning systems ( KDGPSs).
-“Experience at a variety of sites has shown that dredging is effective at removing contaminated mass.”
-“Dredging, however, remains one of the few options available for the remediation of contaminated sediments and should be considered, along with other options, for managing the risks that they pose.”
