CERCLA Support
Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation
EI is currently working with the Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation (CCT) to address contamination of tribal lands and waters, including upland sites and contaminated sediments and waters of the Upper Columbia River (UCR). EI is coordinating efforts of tribal representatives, consultants and government agencies to ensure that contamination issues are effectively addressed, including having assisted CCT with the navigation of the National Priorities List (NPL) listing process and providing ongoing assistance for all phases of the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act (CERCLA) process.
Tribal lands have been contaminated by current and historic discharges from mine and mill sites, smelters and a pulp and paper mill. Tribal fisheries resources also have been impacted by the bioaccumulation of toxics, and several fish consumption advisories have been issued. EI has provided support to CCT including reviewing existing site data, reviewing sampling and quality assurance plans, providing analysis of sediment, soil and water data collected by US EPA and others, meeting with and negotiating with regulators, recommending studies to complete a thorough ecological and human health risk assessment, and providing advice on the remedial investigation data collection process to set the stage for a natural resource damage assessment (NRDA). Specifically, EI is providing support addressing potential ecological and human health risks from contaminants such as polychlorinated biphenyls, polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and furans and metals and possible impacts to tribal subsistence living, including collecting, evaluating and analyzing existing data to identify sites for potential damages and areas of critical importance.
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