People want to feed their families locally-caught fish from one of the most popular recreational fishing areas in the Mid-Columbia — but the Oregon and Washington health departments warn the fish are too toxic to eat.
Indigenous people have fished on Bradford Island and in surrounding waters since time immemorial. Today, Indigenous people and diverse communities use the area for subsistence and recreational fishing despite advisories warning not to eat resident fish such as bass, carp, walleye, and other fish that live in the area year round.
For more than 40 years, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Army Corps) dumped toxic pollution in and along the Columbia’s shorelines at Bradford Island, located near Bonneville Dam. Resident fish caught near the island contain the highest levels of cancer-causing PCBs in the Northwest.
It doesn’t have to be that way. The federal government has known for years that this toxic waste dump encompasses an incredibly popular fishing area. Now the momentum for effective cleanup is finally picking up steam.
After years of leadership by Confederated Tribes and Bands of Yakama Nation (Yakama Nation) and Columbia Riverkeeper, this spring the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) designated Bradford Island and the surrounding waters as a Superfund cleanup site. Simply put, this is a huge victory — and it happened because of Tribal and state government leadership, and thousands of people raising their voices to support listing.
Now is the time to roll up our sleeves and advocate for meaningful, timely cleanup. Here’s the reality: the cleanup presents complex challenges, but it is achievable and does not have to take generations to complete. We are counting on EPA and the Army Corps to negotiate a timely and protective Federal Facilities Agreement that will guide the cleanup efforts. We will continue to count on the leadership of Yakama Nation, committed partnerships, and the consistent community engagement that earned this victory.
What’s the moral of this story? Never give up fighting for environmental justice. It has been 15 years since the Army Corps completed any meaningful cleanup, and continued efforts to protect the area are finally paying off. Whether it’s the federal government or private companies, we must hold polluters accountable for cleaning up their mess.
If you care about environmental justice, clean water, and safe fish to eat, stay engaged and stay with us in this fight for a clean Columbia. Next up: On Sept. 29, Columbia Riverkeeper will host a free webinar featuring experts from Yakama Nation, EPA, and the Army Corps. Later this fall the Army Corps will hold a public meeting (in-person and virtual). Visit bit.ly/BradfordIslandCleanup for more information. Together, we can restore the Columbia for all people who rely on locally-caught resident fish and clean water.
Kate Murphy is a community organizer and Ubaldo Hernández is senior organizer with Columbia Riverkeeper, a nonprofit organization that unites people to protect and restore the Columbia River and all life connected to it.
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