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THE WHITE HOUSE

Office of the Vice President

For Immediate Release August 31, 1997

                      STATEMENT BY VICE PRESIDENT GORE 
               On The Closure of the New Jersey Mud Dump Site

Today (8/31), Kathleen McGinty, Chair of the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ), is joining Governor Christine Todd Whitman and a host of environmental and community groups to celebrate a major milestone in environmental protection: closure of the Mud Dump Site and creation of a Historic Area Remediation Site (HARS).

Shore communities and fishermen can now celebrate the end of toxic dumping at the Mud Dump Site, and can be assured that the toxic hot spots created by more than a century of dumping in the vicinity of the Mud Dump will be remediated and made safe.

On this Labor Day weekend, it's important to note that we achieved this milestone while protecting the jobs that depend on the health of the Port of New York and New Jersey. Since July 24, 1996, when the Administration announced its plan to close the Mud Dump, the Corps of Engineers has authorized dredging of 6.8 million cubic yards of material for maintaining channels and berthing areas that serve the Port of New York and New Jersey. This is more maintenance dredging than was authorized in the previous three years combined, and more maintenance dredging than has ever been authorized in a twelve-month period.

I want to express my gratitude to all of the industry, labor, community, and environmental groups that have contributed to this success. I also would like to thank Governor Whitman and Governor Pataki, for their continued leadership in working with the Administration to protect the region's economy and its Environment.