Cleanup of NJ's Passaic River inches forward

It’s been 42 years since New Jersey’s Passaic River landed on the federal Superfund list. Those are the locations the EPA designates as contaminated sites most in need of cleanup.

The river is one of the most toxic waterways in America, tainted by decades of heavy industry including pollution from the production of the notorious pesticide, Agent Orange. And the journey from contamination to cleanup has been painfully slow. Almost all of the known pollution remains on the riverbed today. But a new settlement announced by the Trump administration is being hailed as a major step towards remediation.

Michael Sol Warren covers New Jersey for WNYC. He joins Weekend Edition host David Furst to discuss what's happening on the Passaic River.