Mohawk Valley Voice | November 10, 2026
By David Laguerre
A $43 million state cleanup plan calls for a soil-and-plant cover, demolition of old structures and nearly 12 acres of new wetlands.
New York’s Department of Environmental Conservation has outlined a roughly two-year cleanup of the former Utica City Dump, a 126-acre site at Incinerator Road and Leland Avenue. The estimated $43 million project will be paid for through the State Superfund Program and performed through contractor Kubricky-Jointa Lime, LLC, according to a newly available DEC fact sheet.
The site sits between Leland Avenue, the Erie Canal and the Mohawk River. DEC says the work is intended to protect public health and the environment and prepare the property for possible commercial or industrial use. The plan does not mean the cleanup has been completed or a new development has been approved.
What the cleanup would change
DEC plans to consolidate waste beneath a cover made of soil and plants. This “evapotranspiration” system is designed to reduce the amount of water passing into the waste. Materials dredged from state canals will be used in the cover, according to the department.
The former incinerator stack and pump house are slated for demolition. The plan also calls for restoring wetlands and creating nearly 12 acres of wetlands along the Mohawk River. Native plants, bluebird nest boxes and a stormwater collection system for watering plantings are among the restoration measures described in the fact sheet.
A legal restriction called an environmental easement will control future land use and require compliance with a site management plan. DEC identifies commercial use as the cleanup standard. That is different from saying the site will be suitable for unrestricted residential use.
Why the state says action is needed
The dump is a Class 2 site on New York’s registry of inactive hazardous waste disposal sites. DEC says this designation means a significant threat to public health or the environment exists and action is required. It does not establish that any particular nearby resident has been harmed.
DEC identifies lead, copper, PFOS, PFOA and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons as the main contaminants of concern in soil and debris. The agency says the incinerator stack and pump house are presumed to contain asbestos.
The site’s history reaches back to the 1930s, when municipal dumping began at its western end. That portion closed in 1972. Hazardous waste was disposed of in the eastern section as recently as 1984, according to DEC. Later areas used for construction debris and other waste received temporary covers in the 1990s.
Air monitoring and construction safeguards
The work is to follow both a site-specific worker safety plan and a Community Air Monitoring Plan. DEC says the latter requires monitoring within work zones and around the site’s perimeter. Dust levels would trigger suppression measures when specified action levels are reached. The plan also describes dust and odor controls.
Other planned practices include limiting disturbed areas, reducing equipment idling and consolidating waste on site where possible to limit hauling. Solar- and battery-powered equipment will be used where practical, the agency says. These are planned safeguards, not a report of measured air quality during construction.
The start date needs clarification
The fact sheet is labeled November 2026 and its online filename is dated November 4. It says action is “about to begin,” but also says work was expected to begin in October 2026. WKTV has separately reported that cleanup is underway. Those statements do not establish an exact confirmed start date.
Residents should use DEC’s project updates for changes to the work schedule. The agency estimates approximately two years of work; the material reviewed does not provide a firm completion date. After cleanup, DEC says it will prepare a Final Engineering Report documenting the work and whether cleanup requirements have been or will be achieved.
Where to get answers
Project questions can go to DEC project manager Brianna Scharf at 518-402-5987. Project-related health questions can go to the state Health Department at 518-402-7860. Use site number 633015 when looking up records or asking about this project.
DEC lists Utica Public Library, 303 Genesee Street, as a document location. Online records and email-update information are available through the links below. Residents who cannot receive electronic notices may ask the project manager about paper copies.
Sources: DEC’s November 2026 construction fact sheet; DEC project document collection; WKTV’s cleanup report; DEC email updates.
Featured image: AI-generated editorial illustration for Mohawk Valley Voice. Fictional restoration scene, not the Utica City Dump site or a depiction of completed work.