Indian Tribes Protest Portland, Ore. Cleanup

Date: September 17, 2003

Source: News Room

A letter from six Indian tribes to Portland, Oregon leaders contends that the Portland Harbor Superfund cleanup will take more time and money than projected and will not adequately clean the Willamette River. The current cleanup effort "does not protect human health and the environment" and "is counterproductive to an expedited, efficient process," the letter charges. The six Northwest tribes that signed the letter are the Grand Ronde, Siletz, Umatilla, Warm Springs, Nez Perce and Yakama. A six-mile stretch of the lower Willamette was named a Superfund site in December 2000, as it contains elevated levels of arsenic, petroleum waste, DDT, PCBs and other toxins. More than 70 Portland businesses could be liable for the cleanup, which could exceed $200 million.

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