Quote:
Originally Posted by Pearlstreet
..and then what? Would there be potential of a leak from this structure they plan to contain all the sediment in? All the effort and cost, but no way to recycle or clean it?
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I've had similar concerns. The best option would be complete removal, but I don't think cleaning/destroying the pollutants is feasible. In Sydney, they apparently "contained" the contaminants by making them a component of a concrete layer which was then capped.
Having a double-walled structure should help minimize risks. I suppose if further work is required in future it would involve additional barriers around the new pier, but those contaminants will still be locked in there.
This toxic hotspot seems to have been caused mostly by Stelco. I have to wonder if Dofasco's decades of operations have caused a localized problem too somewhere near their site, or was it just the way harbour currents interacted with the coal dust/runoff that produced the Randle Reef problem.