Upstream of Calkins Dam to Kalamazoo, PCB concentrations are generally in the 10 to 30 ppm range, and Portage Creek concentrations are in the 100 to 300 ppm range. The Kalamazoo River Superfund Site has sediment PCB concentrations of over 1,000 ppm, and the site is still actively releasing PCBs into Portage Creek. Allied Paper, Inc., a subsidiary of SCM Corporation, has operated paper mills on an 80-acre property in Kalamazoo since 1925. From 1957 to 1971, the company recycled and de-inked paper, including carbonless copy papers, which contained 3.4 percent PCBs by weight. In 1986, MDEQ detected PCBs in several places in the 80-mile stretch of the Kalamazoo River between Kalamazoo and Lake Michigan.
Contamination is primarily in the sediments, although the water column and fish are also affected.
The contamination begins at the point were Allied's Bryant Mill Pond discharges to Portage Creek. Since the PCB contamination was first identified as a problem in 1971, several actions have been taken to improve conditions. However, contaminated sediments in the upstream areas still serve as a source of PCBs to the Kalamazoo River. The complaint called for Allied Paper and SCM Corporation to stop the release of hazardous substances into the environment and pay cleanup costs. In response, the companies have undertaken studies of the extent of the PCB contamination, the quantities of PCBs in Bryant Mill Pond, and possible remedial actions.