Sen. Arlen Specter’s hard-fought battle to win approval of the Delaware River dredging project over a period of some 25 years has included numerous feasibility and environmental studies. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is currently testing the safety of dredged materials for use in abandoned mines around Hazleton (letter to the editor, March 18.

Meanwhile, the state’s Department of Environmental Protection plans to conduct its own tests on the dredged materials.

The Hazleton mine sites themselves are subject to extensive groundwater and surface monitoring systems. These tests will be repeated quarterly for the life of the dredging project, estimated to last between three and five years, and at least 10 years after the project is completed. On a positive environmental note, the dredged materials will reduce or eliminate up to 200 million gallons a year of acid mine runoff into mine pools or surface waters.

The commonwealth has more than 250,000 acres of unreclaimed, abandoned mine sites that present long-term public safety and environmental threats. The deepening of the Delaware River and recovered dredged materials offer an opportunity to restore these scarred lands and bring them back to productive use with sustainable jobs and economic opportunities for the residents of Northeastern Pennsylvania.

Times-Leader, 3/24/2010