NEW YORK CITY-A year after proposing Newtown Creek as acandidate for its list of severely polluted sites, the USEnvironmental Protection Agency on Monday confirmed that theheavily contaminated waterway will be designated a Superfund site.The move had the backing of community activists as well as theBloomberg administration.

“Newtown Creek is a key urban waterway, which providesrecreational and economic resources to many communities,” JudithEnck, EPA regional administrator based in New York City, says in astatement. “Throughout the investigation and cleanup, we will workclosely with the communities along the creek to achieve arevitalization of this heavily-contaminated urban waterway.”

The Newtown Creek Alliance, one of the most active local groupsseeking Superfund designation for the 3.8-mile creek separatingBrooklyn and Queens, says it supports the EPA’s decision. However,the group adds that “we want to adamantly reinforce our concernsthat the planning and remediation process be conducted in a mannerthat minimizes negative impacts for the businesses andcommunity-supported development projects near the creek.”