It was once known as one of the the most polluted lakes in the country. But since 2012, a major cleanup of Onondaga Lake has been underway.
It’s an effort the Onondaga Nation claims is fundamentally flawed.
“Cleanup is not really the right term for what’s happening here at the lake,” said Onondaga Nation’s attorney, Alma Lowry. “The remedy here is a containment strategy.”
Lowry says the current plan allows for about 9.5 million cubic yards of contaminated sediment to sit at the lake’s bottom. But the layer of sand that contains that toxic soil has failed three times since 2012. That’s according to documents filed by Honeywell with the state DEC.