EPA selects new site for Lower CDA Basin cleanup waste
SEATTLE (Aug. 27, 2025) – After several years of study, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency selected the Dredge Road property as the location of a new waste consolidation area for cleanup projects in the lower Coeur d’Alene River Basin.
EPA announced the final decision at the August 27, Basin Environmental Improvement Project Commission meeting. EPA expects to design the waste consolidation area from 2026 to 2027, begin construction in 2028 and start accepting waste in 2029.
Waste consolidation areas are sites where contaminated material – mostly soil – is stored. These secure impoundment areas are carefully engineered to reduce the chance of exposure to people or the environment over time. The material destined for waste consolidation areas come from the specific cleanup site. When waste consolidation areas are full, they are capped with clean material and routinely monitored to make sure they remain protective.
In 2022, EPA narrowed its search for the next waste consolidation area to the Dredge Road property and the South River Road property. Both sites were found to have adequate capacity and to provide significant protections for surface water, fish and wildlife. Technical analyses conducted by the Coeur d’Alene Trust also confirmed that either property would be suitable as a waste consolidation area.
About the Dredge Road site
Deeded to the Coeur d’Alene Basin Trust through the ASARCO bankruptcy, the 186-acre Dredge Road property lies in the Mission Flats two miles west of Cataldo. From 1932 to 1968, a suction dredge operated in the Coeur d’Alene River near the boat launch. Over its life, the dredge removed about 34.5 million tons of sediments contaminated with mine tailings from the Coeur d’Alene River. These contaminated sediments were deposited broadly across Mission Flats, covering an area of about 2,000 acres to a depth of 25-30 feet. The Dredge Road property is within this area, which contains high levels of lead and other metals.
EPA’s decision-making process
EPA and the Idaho Department of Environmental Quality worked with the community to develop criteria to guide the waste consolidation area site selection process (pdf), including:
- Impacts to people and businesses nearby.
- Impacts to wetlands and floodplains.
- Impacts to surface water, fish and wildlife.
- Potential for economic redevelopment once construction is complete.
- Storage capacity.
To learn more about the cleanup, visit Bunker Hill Superfund site.