*>EPA
United States
Environmental Protection
Agency
For more information
For questions or concerns regarding this
site, please contact:
Community Involvement Coordinator
Francisco Arcaute
312-886-7613
arcaute .francisco@epa. gov
EPA Project Manager
Mark Loomis
312-886-0406
Loomis .mark@epa. gov
GLLA Program Manager
Scott Cieniawski
312-353-9184
cieniawski.scott@epa.gov
Web: https://www.epa.gov/great-lakes-
aocs/spirit-lake-great-lakes-legacv-act-cleanup
Cleanup possible through GLRI
The Great Lakes Restoration
Initiative, or GLRI, was launched in
2010 to accelerate efforts to protect and
restore the Great Lakes. Sixteen federal
partners work together on five priorities:
• Cleaning up Great Lakes Areas of
Concern.
• Preventing and controlling invasive
species.
• Reducing nutrient runoff that
contributes to harmful/nuisance
algal blooms.
• Restoring habitat to protect native
species.
• Conducting education and outreach
for future restoration efforts.
GLRIs funds provide up to 65% of the
cost of cleanup with a non-federal entity
contributing the balance through a Great
Lakes Legacy Act partnership - under
which the Spirit Lake work is being
done. GLLA partnerships have cleaned
up 27 sites in six Great Lake states and
remediated 4.6 million cubic yards of
contaminated sediment.
Spirit Lake Environmental Cleanup
Continues Under GLRI
Spirit Lake GLLA Remediation and Restoration
Duiuth, Minnesota December
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and United States Steel Corporation
have partnered to clean up contaminated sediment and soil in the Spirit Lake
area of the St. Louis River in Duiuth, Minnesota. This project is being
conducted under the Great Lakes Legacy Act and is jointly funded by EPA and
U. S. Steel.
The site is located in the St. Louis River Area of Concern and is south of the
Morgan Park neighborhood in Duiuth. The site has in-water cleanup areas
which include Spirit Lake, Unnamed Creek, and Wire Mill Pond as well as
onshore clean up areas {see map, page 2).
This project, which began in October 2020, will address impacts from former
industrial activities in the Spirit Lake area. Chemicals of concern include
polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, or PAHs, and associated heavy metals
including lead, copper and zinc. This large environmental cleanup includes
dredging, capping and monitoring sediment and will result in the creation of
new open water and restored wetlands. The cleanup will support the eventual
delisting of the St. Louis River AOC and will benefit people who live, work
and recreate in and around the AOC and the broader ecological system.
2021 Work Activities
Hydraulic dredging activities began in the Wire Mill Delta in August 2021
and were completed in November 2021. A residual cover, consisting of a
thin layer of clean sand, was placed over the remediated dredged sediment
surface to support the reestablishment of native species. Hydraulic dredging
also took place in the North Dredge Area in November 2021 and will
resume in summer 2022. During hydraulic dredging, contaminated sediment
and water is pumped through temporary pipes to the Upland confined
disposal facility (CDF), where it is processed to remove debris and placed
in Geotubes® to dewater. The water is collected and treated on-site at the
water treatment plant before being discharged back into Spirit Lake. The
Geotubes® will be buried m place within the Upland CDF.
(Continued on reverse page)
A hydraulic cutting head is attached Dredge material from the Wire Mill
to the dredge equipment in Delta is pumped into Geotubes® in
preparation for in-water dredging the Upland CDF.
activities,
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2021 Work Activities cont.
Restoration of the upstream Unnamed Creek was completed in
earty fall 2021. Dredging in the Weir Pond and the Unnamed
Pond is also complete. Capping operations were completed in the
Weir Pond and in Unnamed Creek. Capping these areas consists
of placing protective layers of clean sand and granular active
carbon on the remediated dredge surface. To ensure noise levels
do not exceed state thresholds, EPA and U. S. Steel are
conducting monitoring at various locations.
Early 2022 Work Activities
During the winter of 2021/2022 mechanical dredging of the
Shallow Sheltered Bay will begin. Information on activities that
will occur in summer 2022 and later will be provided in an
upcoming fact sheet.
Project Outreach
EPA continues to coordinate with project stakeholders on the
development of outreach materials. Informational kiosks have
been installed at the Morgan Park Community Center and at the
88th Avenue West and Idaho Street site entrance. Weekly photos
of construction progress are also available on the EPA Spirit Lake
website.
Shallow
Sheltered Bay
Unnamed Creek
Upland
CDF and
Geotubes®
Unnamed Pond
¦ WaterTreatment Plant
Morgan Park
North Dredge
Area
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