A stretch of city-owned land connected to the New Bedford Harbor Superfund cleanup could move closer to housing under a new EPA proposal — but only after contaminated soil is removed and the property is placed under strict use restrictions, the New Bedford Guide reported.
Here's what to know
On Oct. 28, 2026, the Environmental Protection Agency plans to present a draft eighth Explanation of Significant Differences during a 6:00 p.m. public meeting on Microsoft Teams.
The draft would update the current cleanup remedy for the upper and lower portions of the New Bedford Harbor Superfund Site.
Under the proposal, the EPA would excavate any area where PCB contamination exceeds 1 part per million. The digging would go three feet deep, and the removed material would be replaced with clean fill.
The EPA also wants to place land use controls on the property as part of the change.
Those restrictions would allow the City of New Bedford to pursue housing there while requiring a soil management plan if future work disturbs PCB-contaminated soil deeper than three feet.
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Residents would have from Oct. 30 through Nov. 28 to comment on the draft.
During that 30-day period, the public can review both the proposed document and the Administrative Record before the EPA decides whether to finalize the approach.
More background
This is the eighth formal change to an existing remedy, signaling a later-stage adjustment at a longtime Superfund site rather than a new cleanup plan.
The land in question is connected to the city's Sawyer Street property.
"The City of New Bedford has been a key partner during [the] EPA's implementation of the Superfund remedy, allowing [the] EPA to perform remedy support work at the City's Sawyer Street property since the 1980s," said EPA Regional Administrator Mark Sanborn, per the New Bedford Guide.
"This proposed work is an important step as we near completion of the New Bedford Harbor Superfund Site cleanup."
The plan would not handle all contamination the same way. The plan would remove soil above the 1 part per million PCB threshold, while deeper contaminated soil would remain under a management plan if later construction disturbs it.
Turning a long-managed city property into land that could be used for homes may shape how the city expands housing while keeping safety requirements in place.
What's being done?
Before the Oct. 28 virtual meeting, the EPA says it will post attendance information and related materials on epa.gov/new-bedford-harbor.
From Oct. 30 onward, the draft ESD and Administrative Record will be available on regulations.gov under Docket ID No. EPA-R01-SFUND-2026-6304.
Residents can use that docket to review cleanup details and submit comments to the federal record. If the EPA decides a final approach is needed, the agency says it will respond in writing to all submitted comments first, the New Bedford Guide reported.
The proposal being reviewed involves a combination of excavation, clean soil replacement, land use controls, and future residential development.
Where can I learn more?
These stories explore the same tensions around EPA oversight, pollution risks, and development beyond New Bedford Harbor. They cover stricter water pollution permits in Massachusetts, climate risks at Superfund sites, and housing disputes in California.
• In Massachusetts, the EPA moved toward stricter water pollution permits for towns affecting Boston waterways.
• Across federal facilities, officials warned climate threats to Superfund sites could complicate cleanup work.
• In California, worsening climate pressures left future housing decisions increasingly constrained by risk.
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