Thea Foss Waterway Remediation and St. Paul Waterway Nearshore Fill Design

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has selected a remedy involving environmental dredging as well as natural recovery capping in this 2,440-meter (8,000-foot)-long waterway in Tacoma, Washington. The dredged material will be disposed of in a nearshore confined disposal facility (CDF) in the nearby St. Paul Waterway to create substantial new upland and intertidal habitat on the bayward face of the CDF closure berm. The dredging design calls for cuts of as much as 4.6 meters (15 feet) and intricate slope and waterfront rehabilitation. The design was completed in early 2002. This work is expected to be the first major in-water Superfund remediation project in Commencement Bay since the dredging of the Sitcum Waterway and filling of the Milwaukee Waterway in 1994.