U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has announced that habitat for mink and bottom-dwelling aquatic plants and animals has improved to the point where the Degradation of Fish and Wildlife Populations Beneficial Use Impairment can be removed from the Rochester Embayment Area of Concern.
The AOC is a 35-square mile portion of Lake Ontario. Over the last decade, EPA and its federal, state and local partners have completed several projects through the GLRI to improve the condition of sediment, restore wetlands and improve habitat throughout the AOC. Environmental monitoring shows that the removal criteria set by the State of New York has now been met. Removing this BUI brings the Rochester Embayment AOC one step closer to delisting.
Launched in 2010, the GLRI is a results-driven program to protect and enhance the Great Lakes. EPA and its partners have now removed 102 BUIs from AOCs in the U.S.