Source: Alcoa's Point Comfort, TX facility

Release: Mercury and hydrocarbon compounds from manufacturing processes

Injury Assessment: Because the science required for the remedial investigation/feasibility study (RI/FS) was similar to what was required for the natural resources damage assessment, the Trustees helped EPA and Alcoa develop remedial study investigations that yielded both thorough ecological risk assessments and protective clean-up decisions, as well as much of the data needed to evaluate and assess natural resource injuries. In the cooperative injury analyses, the Trustees and Alcoa used a reasonable worst-case (RWC) approach. The RWC approach favored the use of conservative values or inputs as a means of resolving areas of scientific uncertainty in the assessment without undertaking further data collection or field studies. The approach results in more conservative, environmentally protective estimates of resource injuries and losses.

The Trustees and Alcoa evaluated the potential for injuries to benthic resources, birds, fish, terrestrial organisms, groundwater, and surface water using the RWC approach. These analyses indicated that benthic resources, fish, and birds were or were likely injured by Site releases. These injuries were used to identify the acres of habitat restoration needed to replace or restore these losses. The injury analyses are documented in a series of Joint Technical Memoranda. These Memoranda are serving as roadmaps for future cooperative, restoration-focused NRDAs.