What are the goals of the City's Alternative Cleanup Plan?
The essential elements of the alternative plan are: 1)cleaning the canal to the same standard as a Superfund cleanup; 2) a commitment of resources by those responsible for contaminating a particular site; 3) well-defined milestones; and accountability for meeting them. The City's Alternative Cleanup Plan meets all of these goals

What are the fundamental components of the Alternative Cleanup Plan?

The City is developing an alternative cleanup plan that includes four fundamental components to the cleanup process:

1. Water Quality Restoration - A $175M capital development project that has already been funded by DEP, and would include:
   • Modernizing a flushing tunnel to directly improve water quality and circulation within the Gowanus Canal;
   • Up-sizing a pump station at the head of the Gowanus Canal to reduce the discharge of combined sewer overflow to the canal by 34%; and
   • A near-term dredging project aimed at the upper 750 feet of the Gowanus Canal to improve local water and air quality.
2. Canal Sediment Cleanup - Extensive dredging by the US Army Corps of Engineers along the full length of canal, which would have the added benefit of 1) reintroducing navigable depths to the waterway for commercial and pleasure boating, 2) capping the newly-dredged canal with a permanent cap to prevent remaining contaminants from re-entering the waterway and 3) securing additional federal funding in the form of 35%/65% matching commitments to offset the cost of the cleanup.
3. Responsible Party Engagement - Engaging Potentially Responsible Parties (PRPs) to support the City's cleanup plan on a voluntary basis, thus mitigating the likelihood of complex, expensive, and extensive litigation that is the often associated with Superfund cleanups.
4. Remediation of Land - Utilizing strategies from the PlaNYC brownfields remediation program to generate voluntary commitments from developers and PRPs for the cleanup of upland sites.

Will the City's Alternative Cleanup Plan clean the Gowanus to a different standard than Superfund?
No.  The Alternative Cleanup Plan will clean the Gowanus Canal to the same standard as would be attained under a Superfund listing.  The Alternative Cleanup Plan would proceed under EPA oversight and would have to demonstrate to the EPA at each milestone that the City is achieving the agreed upon goals. If at any time the EPA is dissatisfied with the City's efforts, the EPA can list the Gowanus Canal as a Superfund site.