RACETRACK — The next phase in the massive project to remove contaminated soils along the Clark Fork River basin is beginning this year in the Racetrack Pond area near Deer Lodge, and officials feel good about the positive impact it will have on this ecosystem.
“I’m an eternal optimist, so I’m always optimistic,” said Department of Environmental Quality Project Manager Jessica Banaszak.
They will begin excavating about 130,000 cubic yards of contaminated soil this month from along the riverbank that runs adjacent to the Racetrack Pond and should be completed by October.
“And that is a rather aggressive schedule, so Mother Nature usually dictates, so if we’re lucky we’ll make that schedule,” said DEQ Project Manager Logan Dudding.
This phase of the project will restore just over a mile of mostly public land at a cost of $3.7 million. This is part of an overall project to clean more than 20 miles of the river basin that suffered mining contamination from Butte and Anaconda.
“The ultimate goal is to remove the contaminates down to a level that is safe for the environment and humans and reestablish a functioning flood plain,” said Banaszak.
This project started from a settlement in 2008 with the Atlantic/Richfield Company. Mine tailings waste will be transported from the site to the repository between Opportunity and Anaconda.
DEQ officials say it takes a few years for the area to recover.
“And it really does take a few years for the willows to take over and it starts to look like a bomb didn’t go off, you know, but once you finally start getting it coming in, it’s really exciting,” said Banaszak.
