Work will soon begin on an $8 million cleanup of mercury- and chromium-contaminated sediment in Tannery Bay on the St. Marys River near Sault Ste. Marie, Mich.

The removal of about 40,000 cubic yards of sediment will begin this month and will be completed by late fall, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency said.

Funding for the work includes $4.8 million from the federal Great Lakes Legacy Act, $2.6 million from Phelps Dodge, which owns a former tannery property next to the bay, and $600,000 from the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality.

The Great Lakes Legacy Act is aimed at addressing contaminated sediment at 31 locations around the Great Lakes.

Entire contents copyright 2005 by Crain Communications Inc. All rights reserved.