A public scoping session has been scheduled to review the City of Ithaca’s Cayuga Inlet dredging project and their proposed sediment management facility.
The scoping session is scheduled for 5:30-7:00 p.m. on Thursday, March 31st in the Borg-Warner West Room of the Tompkins County Public Library located at 101 East Green Street, Ithaca, NY 14850.
At the session the state DEC and the City of Ithaca will provide an introduction and brief presentation on the project, followed by ample time for all interested parties to express any issues of concern which should be addressed in a Draft Environmental Impact Statement.
The Expanded Environmental Assessment form and the Draft Scope document for the proposed project are available for review at www.ecologicllc.com/ithacadredging.html.
Comments on the draft scope will be accepted at the meeting and in writing through April 11, 2011.
A vacant City of Ithaca-owned parcel, known as the Southwest Area, has been identified as the location for a Sediment Management Facility.
The facility would be used to dewater and process dredged sediment removed from the southern tributaries of Cayuga Lake.
Dredging is necessary to maintain an adequate navigational channel and restore flood protection.
Sampling has determined that sediments can be managed as Class A, meaning they are uncontaminated.
The next step in the project is completing an Environmental Impact Statement to explore all environmental issues potentially associated with this project.
The March 31 scoping meeting allows the public to provide input on what issues should be addressed in the Environmental Impact Statement.
Additional opportunities for public involvement with this project will be announced in the future as the project moves through the State Environmental Quality Review process.
