Great Lakes
Site Information
- Muskegon, MI (Muskegon County)
- Muskegon Lake AOC
- Status: Cleanup Completed, 2006
Contact
Marc Tuchman
(tuchman.marc@epa.gov)
Great Lakes Legacy Act Program Manager
312-353-1369
Ruddiman Creek Legacy Act Cleanup
The $13.5 million dredging and cleanup project for Ruddiman Creek and Ruddiman Pond finished on schedule in 2006 and resulted in the removal of about 90,000 cubic yards of contaminated mud. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Great Lakes National Program Office and the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality oversaw the cleanup effort, which lasted about nine months.
Contaminants present in the creek and pond posed potential health risks to humans and wildlife exposed to the pollution. The cleanup project should help speed the lifting of fishing and recreation bans in effect on the main branch of Ruddiman Creek.
EPA and Michigan DEQ, in partnership with the citizen groups Muskegon Lake Public Advisory Council and the Ruddiman Creek Task Force, developed a contaminated sediment removal and site cleanup project for the creek and the pond.
The main contaminants of concern at Ruddiman Creek included lead, cadmium, chromium and polychorinated biphenyls, usually called PCBs. The project removed 126,000 pounds of lead, 2,800 pounds of cadmium, 204,000 pounds of chromium and 320 pounds of PCBs. After dredging was completed, the creek and pond were reconstructed and water flow patterns restored.
You will need Adobe Reader to view some of the files on this page. See EPA's PDF page to learn more.
Documents
Report
- Remediation of the Ruddiman Creek Main Branch and Pond Muskegon County, Michigan (PDF) (125 pp, 7.8MB) March 2011
News releases
- Ruddiman Creek cleanup finished on schedule May 15, 2006
- Ruddiman Creek sediment cleanup underway Aug. 25, 2005
- Ruddiman Creek cleanup receives Great Lakes Legacy Act funds Aug. 5, 2005
- Public can learn more about proposed Ruddiman Creek cleanup at June 21 meeting June 14, 2005
Fact Sheets
- Great Lakes Legacy Act Cleanup of Ruddiman Creek Finished on Schedule (PDF) (2 pp, 946K) May 2006
- Ruddiman Creek cleanup finished on schedule – May 15, 2006, news release
- Statewide Public Advisory Council Press Advisory (PDF) (2 pp, 136K) May 15, 2006
- Engineering drawings (PDF) (3 pp, 824K) – Three aerial-view images showing the locations of the sediment remediation (site divisions A-F) and major streets (Lakeshore Drive, McGrath Park Road, Glenside Blvd)
- Ruddiman Creek Sediment Cleanup Project Photo Journal (PDF) (30 pp, 1.02MB)
- Ruddiman Creek/Pond Updated (7 pp, 546K)
- Ruddiman Creek/Pond Dredging Project Will Remove Contaminants (PDF) (2 pp, 1.07MB) July 2005