Honeywell dredging

April 4, 2017 - 11:45am
The dredging phase of the lake wrapped up in 2014, but as the process of capping the lake bottom nears completion, Onondaga Nation still has concerns about the cleanup.

The Onondaga Lake cleanup has moved on to the next phase in the project.

The dredging process – where tons of contaminated sediment from the lake bottom are moved to another location in the lake to ease coastal erosion, was completed in 2014. The work on capping the lake, which involves covering 579 acres of the lake's bottom with a layer of sand to keep the underlying mercury and other toxins in place, is still underway. However, not all parties are satisfied with the cleanup process.

October 16, 2012 - 5:44am
Syracuse companies begin four year process of dredging toxic waste from Onondaga Lake.

Before the dredging on Onondaga Lake began this past summer, Monday nights were bocce nights at the lake’s park. There was gossip, laughter and the clicks of metal hitting metal.  As soon as the wind blew, however, the air became pungent, giving the lake away. 

The stench made the bocce players’ noses wrinkle, but they kept playing. 

Far across on the west and southwest shores, the waters began to stir.