By Connie Footman,Special to the Sun Journal

LISBON – Mobile Dredging and Pumping Co. of Chester, Pa., has been hired by Rockwell-Collins Inc., the parent company of the now-defunct Maine Electronics Plant, to remove contaminated sediment from the bottom of the Sabattus River.

Maine Electronics, which manufactured circuit boards, is blamed for groundwater contamination in the area.

Dredging, which is scheduled to get under way late this week, is part of the Maine Electronics site cleanup that began in October 1989, according to Diana McKenzie of the Maine Department of Environmental Protection. The river was dredged once before in the early to mid-1990s to remove sediment that contained copper and nickel.

Two years ago, the DEP did an overall assessment. Samples were taken of the river sediment and groundwater, which revealed the continued presence of metals such as copper, lead, silver and tin, which were used in the circuit board manufacturing process.

Currently the dredging firm is conducting initial readings of the depth of the river and sediment. The former Maine Electronics building houses a system that removes contaminants – volatile organic compounds, specifically trichloroethylene – from several groundwater extraction wells on the property, McKenzie said.

Groundwater has been monitored since 1999 and is expected to continue indefinitely. The Maine Electronics building is scheduled to be demolished and will be replaced by a new building to house the pumping equipment, which is now under construction.

Rockwell-Collins is financially responsible for all aspects of the contamination.

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