106-Mile Site Characterization Update

The 106-mile ocean waste disposal site (106-mile site) is located in a physically dynamic zone characterized by periodic shifts in water masses. The major shifts consist of the extension of shelf water onto the site area or conversely the movement of more saline slope water from the site onto the shelf. In addition, the site is periodically overrun by warm Gulf Stream rings. Because of the great water depth, slowly sinking waste would reach the bottom only after a lengthy period, ranging from days to weeks depending on the nature of the waste; water soluble wastes would not reach the bottom unless they were absorbed by particles, ingested by organisms, or precipitated with other constituents in the water column. The oceanographically dynamic location of the 106-mile site extends the potential area of influence (PAI) of dumped wastes over a wide area off the northeast coast encompassing approximately 116,000 km2

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