Contaminated Waterway Sediment Management

Managing contaminated sediments and floodplain soils associated with Wisconsin's inland and Great Lakes waters is a multi-program effort within the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources.

Below are links to sediment management work in the Bureaus of Watershed Management, Remediation & Redevelopment and Waste & Materials Management, as well as other contaminated sediment work external to WDNR.

Sediment Managment and Wisconsin DNR

• Wisconsin's Contaminated Sediment Program
  The goal of the contaminated sediment program is to restore surface waters to assure the applicable water quality standards are achieved where resource uses have been impaired or damaged by the presence of contaminated sediments and soils.
• WDNR Sediment Management Section
  The Sediment Management Section in the Bureau of Watershed Management is responsible for contaminated sediment monitoring and transportation modeling as well as contaminated sediment investigation.
• Area Of Concern (AOC) Restoration/Sediments
  The Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement between Canada and the U.S. committed the governments to develop and implement remedial action plans (RAPs) in Areas of Concern (AOCs) around the Great Lakes. AOCs are geographic areas that are severely degraded, often due to water contamination from chemicals such as PCB's and heavy metals or excessive nutrient contributions.
• The Fox River/Green Bay Cleanup Project
  News on the cleanup of contaminated sediment from the Lower Fox River and Green Bay, a project that has been underway for over a quarter century.
• Dredging
  Q & A on dredging, permit requirements, and applicable statutes and codes.
• Resources for Environmental Professionals
  Link to the Remediation & Redevelopment Program's contaminated sediment resources for environmental professionals.
• Remediation Sites
  List of specific sites in various stages of sediment management.
• Commercial Ports Dredging Guidance (PDF)
  Description of the regulatory alternatives for contaminated and uncontaminated dredged material.

Related Sediment Management Sites

• US EPA Great Lakes Contaminated Sediments Program (exit DNR)
  EPA's Great Lakes program has reported that polluted sediment is the largest major source of contaminants in Great Lakes rivers and harbors entering the food chain, including 42 Areas of Concern.