By Marian Abbett, Site Manager
We have reached another milestone in the cleanup of the Rayonier Mill site in Port Angeles on schedule! On June 15, Rayonier submitted the draft Upland Data Collection Technical Memo. This memo pulls together most of the data Rayonier collected on its property between August 2010 and March 2011.
Rayonier collected soil, groundwater, and surface water samples from across the former mill property to fill data gaps from previous studies. This was done in four phases, with lab analysis between each phase. Read more about this work in earlier Rayonier blog posts.
What happens next?
Rayonier will use the information from the technical memo to draft their Upland Data Summary Report. This report, combined with information about sediment contamination, will help Rayonier develop a plan for cleaning up the Study Area—the mill property and nearby marine environment. Rayonier is still on track to complete the plan in 2013.
On a side note…
In April, we removed an old restrictive covenant from the property. A 1992 Ecology enforcement order required cleanup in the area of the Finishing Room along Ennis Creek. As part of the partial cleanup, a restrictive covenant was placed on the property to protect the remedy. In 1998 and 2002, Rayonier removed the remaining contamination from that area, making the restrictive covenant no longer necessary.
2 comments:
At what cost to taxpayers? Where's the accountability with all your legions that keep milking the system. I'm sure private industry would find a better way! Free us from this heavy burden.
Thank you for writing. Private industry is heavily involved in this effort. In fact, Rayonier Properties LLC is paying for all of the cleanup work, including the cost of Ecology’s oversight. Washington’s voter-approved cleanup law--the Model Toxics Control Act--holds companies and individuals accountable for their contamination. It actually gives companies some flexibility in choosing cleanup remedies, so long as they protect human health and the environment.
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