Federal trustees assess PCB damage to Hudson River fish with final season of dredging planned

The government trustees who will assess the scale of damage to the Hudson River from prolonged PCB contamination say the waterway's recreational and commercial fisheries have been severely harmed.

The updated fisheries report released Thursday by the Natural Resources Trustees will be used as they assess the broader damages of polychlorinated biphenyl contamination in the river.

General Electric Co. discharged about 1.3 million pounds of PCBs from its upriver capacitor plants until 1977. Fishing has been limited on parts of the river for decades.

Fairfield, Connecticut-based GE is scheduled to begin its sixth and expected final season of PCB dredging next month as part of a $2 billion federal Superfund project.

Under Superfund rules, the trustees' damage assessment could be reached either through a settlement with GE over the company's liability or through litigation.