Big Lake Site
Holy Cross, Alaska
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Contaminant
Petroleum, Solid Waste
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Current Use
Abandoned
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Problem Severity
7
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In DEC Database?
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Location
Corner of Cross Road and Big Lake Road, Adjacent to the City Shop
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Size
100 x 500 ft
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Redevelopment Plan
Yes, still use as recreational site. it is currently used for canoe races in the summer and a spring ice-picking contest.
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Past Work on Site
First entered into YRITWC database in 2006. The site was used as a recreation site for swimming and fishing. Big Lake was used as a dumping ground for 20 years or more. A sawmill was located there in the 1960s and when it broke down it was shoved into the lake. Refuse is estimated to include vehicles, motors, batteries, and general household garbage. A shop building located north of the lake (City Shop)(see attached photo) has fuel and hazardous substances and a "distinctive diesel smell." The community is concerned that the contamination in the lake could damage their subsistence fishing resources and water quality of surrounding sloughs and rivers.