The US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) is conducting work at Iona Island Naval Ammunition Depot Formerly Used Defense Site (FUDS) using the processes under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA), which was enacted by Congress in 1980. This law provides broad federal authority to respond directly to releases or threatened releases of hazardous substances that may endanger public health or the environment. The FUDS program addresses only Department of Defense (DoD)-generated eligible contamination, which occurred before the transfer of the property to private owners or federal, state or local governments.

The former Iona Island Naval Ammunition Depot FUDS consists of approximately 100 acres of land. The Depot was actively used by the U.S. Naval Department for ammunition storage for approximately 50 years, from 1900 to 1947. During Navy use, site activities reportedly included preparing, assembling, maintaining, inspecting, testing, and issuing ammunition, but did not include manufacturing activities. Historical DoD activities at the former Iona Island Naval Ammunition Depot may have resulted in the release of contaminants to environmental media (surface soil, subsurface soil, sediment, and groundwater) at concentrations that may pose a risk to human health and ecological receptors.

Iona Island is currently under the administration of the Palisades Interstate Park Commission (PIPC) and maintained by staff of Bear Mountain State Park. Site access is limited to authorized employees of Bear Mountain State Park who use a few of the remaining buildings for storage, and to researchers who work in the marsh areas. There are no current plans to develop the island for recreational purposes and no anticipated future use of the island other than its current use as a conservation area.

Iona Island is part of the much larger Hudson River National Estuarine Research Reserve and Significant Coastal Fish and Wildlife Habitat Area, managed under New York’s Coastal Management Program. In addition, the Iona Island Marsh became a registered National Natural Landmark in 1971. The island is also considered a bald eagle sanctuary.