Tacoma Smelter Plume: Construction gets underway for Yard Program cleanup work in 2015

By Crescent Calimpong, Yard Program Outreach Coordinator, Toxics Cleanup Program

Ecology started construction to clean up contaminated soil in 75 yards in Tacoma and 17 on Vashon Maury Island. This work is part of Ecology’s Residential Yard Sampling and Cleanup Program. The program cleans up arsenic and lead from the former Asarco copper smelter in Tacoma.

Contractor moves soil on a property in Tacoma, 2015.

Construction Schedule

Work hours are from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. The work will be completed in phases. Multiple crews are working on five to 10 yards at a time over the next few months. Construction on an individual yard will take up to six weeks to complete.

Follow our yard cleanup work in 2015 …

• Fact sheet for soil cleanup in Tacoma in 2015.
• Check out the Yard Cleanup updates page for updates on completed work.
• Sign up for email updates on our listserv.

Questions about the yard cleanup work?

Please call the project line at (360) 407-7688 and press 2 for Tacoma Smelter Plume or email the Yard Program Outreach Coordinator at Crescent.Calimpong@ecy.wa.gov

Questions about the soil in your yard?

If you live in Ruston or north Tacoma, we may already have sampling results for your yard. To check, visit our online database. If you do not find results on the database, you can sign up for free soil sampling by contacting the Tacoma Pierce County Health Department at (253) 798-3503 or DirtAlert@tpchd.org.