In this massive project, where dredging was performed from 2009 to 2015, 100 percent of the areas in the Upper Hudson that EPA identified for remedial action were addressed. More than 75 percent of the PCBs in the Upper Hudson were removed – twice the amount of PCBs as had originally been anticipated. In 2021, 99.9% of the sediment samples collected in the Upper Hudson showed PCB levels that were below EPA's dredging criteria.  (See this and more data documenting dredging’s success here)

Based on the data, EPA has concluded that the project effectively reduced PCB levels as designed, said the declines are expected to continue, and determined that additional dredging would not so significantly accelerate the decline of PCB levels in fish that it could be justified.

After the river-bottom areas were dredged, habitat was reconstructed through one of the largest aquatic replanting programs ever undertaken. Approximately 1.4 million new plants were planted, including wild celery, American pondweed and broad-leaved arrowhead plants, among other species. They were planted in wetland areas along the river shoreline and in river-bottom areas as part of a comprehensive plan approved by EPA, New York State, and other agencies.

In addition to removing the majority of PCBs from the Upper Hudson, dredging produced the following environmental improvements:

• PCB levels in sediment have dropped as much as 92%.

• PCB levels in water are down as much as 79% at the five monitoring stations between Fort Edward and Poughkeepsie.

• PCB levels in sportfish, as weighted by species and river section, have dropped by 91% since the 1990s as a result of the dredging project as well as GE’s control of PCB releases from its former Upper Hudson plant sites and natural recovery. Since dredging has been completed, PCB levels in Upper Hudson sportfish have declined 65%, comparing a five-year average prior to dredging (2004-2008) to a three-year post-dredging average (2020-2022).

See all the latest Hudson River recovery data here.