CDF Construction History

Indiana Harbor and Canal Confined Disposal Facility (IHC CDF) construction, dredging, and facility operation timeline.

Milestone	Date	Description
IHC Comprehensive Management Plan (CMP)	January 1999	Included a Feasibility Report and Environmental Impact Statement that described conceptual design of the CDF and was used as the basis for incremental regulatory approval.
IHC Maintenance and Dredging Design Documentation Report	March 2000	Outlined preliminary design of CDF to support federal cost estimate and project partnership agreement.
Air Monitoring	Ongoing (started 2001)	Monitoring of atmospheric conditions at the CDF and East Chicago High School for CDF chemicals of concern to evaluate the effect of CDF operations on surrounding community.
Subsurface Investigation and Cutoff Slurry Wall Construction	2002 - 2004	Installation of soil-bentonite slurry wall along west, north, and east sides, and keyed into the clay layer below.
CDF Dike Construction	2004 - 2010	Installation of clay dikes to contain dredged material. Construction took place in three phases based on availability of funds and real estate consideration.
South Cutoff Wall Construction	2007 - 2009	Installation of approximately 2,000 linear feet of sealed sheet pile wall along the canal and keyed into the slurry wall and clay layer.
Interim Wastewater Treatment Plant Operation	2007 - 2012	On-site groundwater treatment and off-site discharge. Groundwater extracted from temporary well points, treated, and discharged to Lake George Branch.
Gradient Control System (GCS) Construction	2007 - 2012	Installation of 88 groundwater extraction wells, 42 monitoring wells, 2 ultrasonic sensors, and associated components for groundwater control at the site. Final calibration was conducted during the Performance Calibration Test in April, 2012.
CDF South End Feature Construction	2010 - 2012	Construction of CDF support facilities and infrastructure including administrative building, storage facilities, access roads.
Dredging and Facility Operations	Ongoing (started 2012)	Contract includes dredging and offloading operations as well as operation of the GCS and wastewater treatment plant.
Additional Extraction Wells Construction	2015	Installation of eight additional extraction wells to GCS.
Phase 2 Dike Project	2021-2024	Expansion of the CDF exterior dikes began in July 2021. Construction was completed in June 2024.