Around the Sound: Ecology reviewing a draft report on the Rayonier Mill upland

By Marian Abbett, Site Manager, Toxics Cleanup Program

On November 15th, on schedule, I received Rayonier’s draft Upland Data Summary Report. This report pulls together all the contamination data we have for contamination on the Rayonier Mill property.


Why is this report important?
We call this report “Volume One” for short. It is the first of four volumes that will make up the cleanup plan

Tacoma Smelter Plume: Eating from your garden

By Hannah Aoyagi, Public Involvement Coordinator, Toxics Cleanup Program

Growing your own fruits and veggies can be rewarding and healthy...even if you may have arsenic and lead in your soil. Many gardeners in the Tacoma Smelter Plume have asked us whether they can still eat from their gardens.

The answer is yes, but you should still take precautions.


Most plants don't take up arsenic and

Multiple agencies respond to gasoline spill in Bellevue

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – 2:30 a.m., November 28, 2011BELLEVUE – The state Departments of Ecology and Transportation, Washington State Patrol, Bellevue Fire Department, a private cleanup contractor and other teams are responding to a gasoline spill after a tanker overturned on Interstate 405 on Sunday evening in Bellevue.Up to 3,400 gallons of gasoline is believed to have spilled to the roadway,

Ecology, SPU and Coast Guard responding to gasoline release at south end of Lake Union

UPDATE: Nov. 24, 2011 (11 a.m.)On Wednesday evening (Nov. 23, 2011), Ecology and Seattle Public Utilities worked closely with the owner of the property with the old gasoline storage tank. The property owner quickly hired a private cleanup contract to secure the site to keep any more gasoline-contaminated surface water runoff from further reaching the city's storm drain system — including stacking

Ecology Volunteers Harvest for Families in Need

By Johanna Ofner, Carbon Smart Initiative, Washington Conservation Corps (WCC) internOn a recent cloudy Saturday, 35 volunteers – Ecology employees, St. Martin’s University students, Evergreen State College students, Kiwanis Club members, and Washington Conservation Corps members – came together to harvest potatoes and winter squash from the food bank garden located on the grounds of Ecology’s

Tacoma Smelter Plume: Questions about arsenic and lead in soil

By Amy Hargrove, Soil Safety Program Coordinator, Toxics Cleanup ProgramAt all three of our recent public meetings — Tacoma, Vashon Island, and University Place — we heard similar questions about arsenic and lead in soil. This blog goes through a little of the science of the Tacoma Smelter Plume...Will the arsenic and lead in soil leach out or decrease over time?In general, no. Arsenic and lead

Our Changing Climate: More floods, drought on the way?

By Seth Preston, Communications Manager, Air Quality ProgramThe U.N. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has released a new report that concludes climate change will cause more flooding and drought conditions.This Washington Post story notes:“The report — the culmination of a two-year process involving 100 scientists and policy experts — suggests that researchers are far more confident

Ecology’s Director Sturdevant tells D.C. panel why federal chemical policy needs updating

By Ken Zarker, Hazardous Waste and Toxics Reduction Program

Ecology Director Ted Sturdevant testified on Nov. 17 at the U.S. Senate Environment and Public Works Committee on the Safe Chemicals Act of 2011 . In conveying his views, Ted outlined the reasons why states care about modernizing Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). He talked about what states have had to do faced with an outdated and

Cleaning Up: Celebrating in Skykomish

By Seth Preston, Communications Manager, Toxics Cleanup ProgramThe town of Skykomish has gone through an amazing transformation in the past five years. Today (Friday, Nov. 18, 2011), the town’s residents and others will celebrate an historic pollution cleanup and their plans for the future.A railway maintenance and fueling facility operated in Skykomish — located along Stevens Pass — from the

Tacoma Smelter Plume: University Place Public Meeting Recap

By Hannah Aoyagi, Public Involvement Coordinator, Toxics Cleanup ProgramLast night, we held our third of four public meetings for the Tacoma Smelter Plume cleanup plan in the cafeteria at Curtis High School. The crowd was smaller than our group on Vashon last week, with 32 in attendance.People came from all over the Pierce County part of the plume. We heard many of the same concerns voiced at the

Air Time: Snuffing out smoke problems

By Seth Preston, Communications Manager, Air Quality ProgramI’ve written fairly often about the health risks associated with breathing wood smoke.Here’s the latest news on that front – Ecology is providing money to our clean-air partners to help get rid of old, high-polluting wood-burning devices.Fine particles in smoke are so small they can easily get into your lungs. Once there, they can cause

Tacoma Smelter Plume: Public Meeting in University Place November 16

By Hannah Aoyagi, Public Involvement Coordinator, Toxics Cleanup ProgramTomorrow night we will be at Curtis High School for our third public meeting on a draft cleanup plan for the Tacoma Smelter Plume.Wednesday, November 16, 6:30 – 8:30 p.m.Curtis High School cafeteria8425 40th Street West, University Place6:30 - 7:00 p.m. Open house session7:00 - 8:00 p.m. Presentation, question and answer8:00

Tacoma Smelter Plume: Vashon Island Public Meeting Recap

By Hannah Aoyagi, Public Involvement Coordinator, Toxics Cleanup ProgramLast Wednesday, Vashon Island set a record for the largest public meeting any of our staff had ever witnessed. We had nearly 200 island residents in attendance, prompting a run for extra coffee cups!We already had a large crowd by 6:00 p.m. and a lively open house session. After many good one-on-one conversations, we began

UPDATE: Agencies to monitor slow release of ammonia on Tulalip Reservation

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – 2:30 a.m., November 14, 2011News release #2Media contact: Dieter Bohrmann, Department of Ecology, 360-701-7401TULALIP RESERVATION – The Washington Department of Ecology, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, U.S. Coast Guard, and Tulalip Fire Department remain on the scene of a tank leaking ammonia on a marine beach on the Tulalip Indian Reservation. Ammonia is a corrosive

Multiple agencies respond to ammonia release on Tulalip Indian Reservation

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – 12:05 a.m., November 14, 2011Media contact: Dieter Bohrmann, Department of Ecology, 360-701-7401TULALIP RESERVATION – The Washington Department of Ecology, Environmental Protection Agency, U.S. Coast Guard, Tulalip fire and fisheries departments and a cleanup contractor are responding to an ammonia release from a tank on a marine beach on the Tulalip Indian Reservation.

Edfu arrives safely at Port of Tacoma

By Jim Sachet, Spills Response Manager, Southwest Regional OfficeThe M/V Edfu arrived safely in Tacoma shortly after 3 a.m. Saturday. The Edfu lost both of its anchors during a maneuver on the Columbia Bar on Thursday evening. Because sailing with no anchors is dangerous and the recent history of this vessel, the U.S. Coast Guard required that it be escorted by tug boats from Astoria through the

UPDATE: Emergency response tugs escorting cargo vessel to Port of Tacoma

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – 3:45 p.m., November 11, 2011News release #2 Contact: Dieter Bohrmann, Department of Ecology media relations; 360-701-7401OLYMPIA – The Department of Ecology is coordinating with the U.S. Coast Guard to escort a cargo vessel to the Port of Tacoma for inspection and repairs. The M/V Edfu is currently in the Strait of Juan de Fuca near Neah Bay.The M/V Edfu briefly lost

Emergency response tugs deployed to escort cargo vessel to Port Angeles

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – November 10, 2011, 9:50 p.m.Contact: Dieter Bohrmann, Department of Ecology media relations; 360-701-7401OLYMPIA – The Department of Ecology is coordinating with the U.S. Coast Guard to escort a cargo vessel from Astoria to Port Angeles after it briefly lost propulsion Thursday evening as it was crossing the Columbia River bar. The M/V Edfu has since regained power and is

Around the Sound: Creosote stains the Sound

By Seth Preston, Communications Manager, Toxics Cleanup ProgramFor decades, creosote was used for coating wood pilings for docks and other structures built in and over Puget Sound waters.While many of those structures have deteriorated or fallen into disrepair, the chemicals from creosote-treated materials continue to leach into the Sound’s water and sediments and onto its beaches.Ecology removes

Tacoma Smelter Plume: How do we tackle such a large cleanup site?

By Hannah Aoyagi, Public Involvement Coordinator, Toxics Cleanup ProgramThis blog follows up on my recap of our public meeting in Tacoma last week.At over 1,000 square miles, the Tacoma Smelter is our state’s largest cleanup site. It is also one of our more complex sites because it impacts places where people live and where children play.A $94 million settlement from Asarco will cover a great

Our Changing Climate: Pine beetles and other news

By Seth Preston, Communications Manager, Air Quality ProgramHere are some links to some recent news articles related to climate change: The Seattle Times reports on the continuing advance of the pine beetle and the threats it poses to Northwest trees. The Seattle Times also published this guest column on how ocean acidification threatens marine conservation and resource management. This piece

Air Time: Ecology helps school districts reduce bus pollution

By Seth Preston, Communications Manager, Air Quality ProgramLast week, Ecology’s Air Quality Program announced the latest round of funding that we’re providing to Washington school districts looking to cut fuel costs and harmful emissions from school buses.Ecology helps school districts pay for idle-reduction technology. The devices allow drivers to warm school bus cabins, defrost windows, and

Everett Smelter cleanup work is under way

By Meg Bommarito, Project Manager, Toxics Cleanup ProgramEcology has started cleanup work in an area of the Everett Smelter cleanup site.Ecology’s contractor, Clearcreek, is removing contaminated soil from residential properties on Balsam Lane and Hawthorne Street. Cleanup this year will include 24 properties north and south of Broadway. Construction work will continue through the winter and

Tacoma Smelter Plume: Public meeting November 9 on Vashon Island

By Hannah Aoyagi, Public Involvement Coordinator, Toxics Cleanup ProgramJoin us on Vashon Island to learn more about our plan for cleaning up the Tacoma Smelter Plume! McMurray Middle School cafeteria9329 Cemetery Road, Vashon(206) 463-91686:30 – 7:00 p.m. Open house session7:00 – 8:00 p.m. Presentation, question and answer8:00 – 8:30 p.m. Open house sessionYou can review the plan and submit your

Around the Sound: New report looks at toxic pollution

By Seth Preston, Communications Manager, Toxics Cleanup ProgramOn Thursday (Nov. 3, 2011), Ecology and the Puget Sound Partnership released the latest look at what’s known about toxic chemical pollution in the Puget Sound region.The new Puget Sound Toxics Assessment is the final component of a multi-year, multi-agency effort that started in 2006 to understand where toxic chemicals come from, how

Tacoma Smelter Plume: Tacoma Public Meeting Recap

By Hannah Aoyagi, Public Involvement Coordinator, Toxics Cleanup ProgramWednesday night, we held our first of four public meetings on a draft cleanup plan for the Tacoma Smelter Plume. Around 45 community members attended the event at Point Defiance Elementary School in Tacoma. After our slide presentation, we had a lively question and answer session that lasted nearly an hour!We received a

When carpet cleaning, where should the wash water go?

By Brook Beeler, watershed education coordinator, Eastern Regional OfficeKnow how to dump smartMy mother-in-law pulled up to our house recently with my daughter, a huge pan of barbecued ribs, and a problem. Luckily the problem was not related to my six-year-old. It had to do with that delicious pan of ribs steeped in rich barbecue sauce and the carpet in her truck. It spilled and she was left