Brian A. Pounds / Brian A. Pounds
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) pledged roughly $30 million on June 2nd toward environmental remediation efforts at former industrial sites in Connecticut. These sites will include the ongoing clean-up of asbestos, lead, and other toxic contaminants at dumping grounds once used by local auto-parts manufacturer Raymark Industries. This federal investment is part of an overall plan to spend $5.4 billion over the next 7 years cleaning up brownsfields and Superfund sites as part of Congress’ Bi-partisan Infrastructure Bill.
$23 million, the largest amount of money given by the EPA, was dedicated to the 34-acre site of the former Raymark plant in Stratford, referred to as “one of the most complex” remediation projects under the agency’s Superfund program. The Army Corps of Engineers, the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, and the EPA have helped manage the cleanup efforts for three decades after the plant was closed in 1989.