Northern Wisconsin Gas Operator Agrees To Clean Up Toxic Waste Site Off Lake Superior
September 5, 2012 Kyriaki (Sandy) Venetis 
Paul Miller with a 28 1/2” Walleye from Chequamegon Bay in Lake Superior. Photo courtesy of Angling Adventures at anglingadv.com.
Northern States Power Co. has agreed to clean up the Ashland/ Northern States Power Lakefront Superfund Site in Northern Wisconsin under a settlement with the Department of Justice and the Environmental Protection Agency.
Image courtesy of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.The 40-acre site is located on the shore of Chequamegon Bay in Lake Superior. While the site has been used at various times throughout its history by industries, including sawmills, railroads, and a city wastewater treatment plant, most of its pollution has come from Northern States Power.
To clarify, the largest source of the pollution at the site came from the manufactured gas plant operated by Northern States’ predecessor company between 1885 and 1947. The site contains volatile organic compounds such as benzene, and semi-volatile organic compounds such as naphthalene.
The pollution from the manufactured gas plant contaminated both the land portion of the site and sediment in the bay.
EPA, fishing industry, pollution, river systems | tagged Ashland/ Northern States Power Lakefront Superfund Site, Bad River Band of the Lake Superior Chippewa Indians, Red Cliff Band of the Lake Superior Chippewa Indians, land conservation and preservation, polluting Chequamegon Bay, toxic waste site