Notice of availability of the draft Assessment Plan for the St. Louis River U.S. Steel Site Duluth, MN

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, on behalf of the Department of the Interior, along with co-trustees for natural resources, the 1854 Treaty Authority, Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa, Minnesota Pollution Control Agency, Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (Trustees), invite public comment on the draft Assessment Plan to assess natural resource damages resulting from the release of hazardous substances from the St. Louis River U.S. Steel site.

This plan describes the Trustees’ proposed approach for assessing natural resource injuries and any resulting damages associated with these injuries.

The U.S. Steel Superfund Site is located in Duluth, Minnesota, bounded by the Morgan Park residential neighborhood to the north, the Canadian National Railway to the west and south, and the St. Louis River (Spirit Lake) to the east. From the early 1900s until 1986, operations at the Site included coke production, iron and steel making, casting, primary rolling and roughing, hot and cold finishing, and galvanizing. These activities released hazardous substances, including heavy metals, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), into aquatic and terrestrial habitats.

Public participation is an important part of the Natural Resource Damage Assessment and Restoration process. Comments will be accepted for 45 days after the release of the plan. After the comment period closes, the Trustees will review the comments and prepare the Final Assessment Plan. Members of the public should submit written comments on or before March 23, 2023 to:

Email Address:
USSteelNRDAR_comments@fws.gov

or

Mailing Address:

Ms. Reena Bowman
US Fish & Wildlife Service
3815 American Blvd. East
Bloomington, MN 55425

To obtain a paper copy of the draft Assessment Plan, send an email to:

USSteelNRDAR_comments@fws.gov or use the mailing address above for the request. To learn more, visit the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s St. Louis River US Steel NRDAR website or the NOAA St. Louis River US Steel Site.