Hunt Valley, Maryland (11 September 2024)—The State of Michigan Department of Technology, Management and Budget (DTMB) has awarded EA Engineering, Science, and Technology, Inc., (MI) PLC and its affiliate EA Science and Technology, a leading provider of interdisciplinary environmental services, a series of contract orders to complete environmental investigations and studies in five areas of the Detroit River that include two canal systems and three shorelines located in the Detroit River Area of Concern (AOC) [link to EPA opens in a new window] in Wayne County. The work will be completed in support of the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE) Water Resources Division. Together, the contract orders are valued at more than $6 million and will be executed over 3 years with a potential 2-year extension, if needed.
EA will be responsible for investigating the nature and extent of chemical contamination and associated sources in surface and subsurface sediments, evaluating sediment thickness, and determining contaminated sediment volumes in the five areas, to include the Harbortown, Riverbend, and River Rouge-Ecorse shorelines, and the Elizabeth Park and Gibraltar canal areas.
“For more than a decade, we have been completing similar studies on the Detroit River through previous and ongoing work to support the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Region 5 Great Lakes National Program Office (GLNPO) as well as under our current contract with DTMB and EGLE,” said Kevin Kowalk, EA Vice President and Project Manager for this work. “We have a passion for the Great Lakes—in both protecting the environment and developing engineering solutions to mitigate the effects of contaminated sediments on coastal communities.”
The Detroit River is a 32 mile long waterway connecting Lake Erie and the upper Great Lakes. Heavily industrialized for nearly 100 years, it has primarily served as a water source for industry and human consumption. A Stage 1 Remedial Action Plan for the river was completed in 1991 under the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement. It identified 11 beneficial use impairments, which can be caused by urban and industrial development, bacteria, polychlorinated biphenyls, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, metals, oil, grease, combined sewer overflows, and municipal and industrial discharges. The work to be completed under these contract orders will aid in identifying future activities to address and remove these impairments and eventually delist the AOC.
The EA Team has unparalleled experience in both urban and rural watersheds, streams, and floodplains, and most importantly, within the Detroit River AOC. Our interdisciplinary team of scientists, engineers, and related professionals has completed more than 200 contaminated sediment projects over the past 5 years. These projects have included contaminated sediment investigations; remedial and habitat restoration design services; and construction oversight throughout the Great Lakes region.
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