Tacoma Smelter Plume Yard Program

Work on Vashon-Maury Island moves ahead

If you live in the North end of Tacoma or the southern tip of Vashon-Maury Island, you have likely heard about the Tacoma Smelter Plume. However, if you just moved here, the following information may be new.


The former ASARCO smelter stack.



For nearly 100 years a smelter operated in the small town of Ruston. Air emissions from the smelter were carried by the wind to areas in King, Pierce and Thurston County. These air emissions contained heavy metals including arsenic and lead, which settled on surface soils. The highest levels of soil contamination are seen closest to the former smelter and decrease with distance.

 

Soil replacement work

Through our Residential Yard Sampling and Cleanup Program, we are working on 14 yards and a community-park in the southern end of Vashon-Maury Island. Work started on the first yard in early March 2019.

If you live in this neighborhood, you will likely see construction-related traffic. You may notice orange fencing, closed sidewalks, and Ecology’s Yard Program banner. The contractor usually works on a few yards at a time, which means workers may travel between yards with equipment. Construction can be noisy, and it is important to pay attention to trucks and large machinery that are coming and going. This construction will likely go through July 2019.    

Please call us if you see:

• Dust in the air from construction.
• Soil on the sidewalk or street.
• Mud or water running off the property.
• Dump trucks without covers.

 

Soil sampling

If you live on the southern end of Vashon-Maury Island it is likely that your property has already been sampled. To find out if your property has soil sampling results, go to our public database and enter your address. Soil sampling is for existing, residential properties. If you are a new homeowner, and your soil hasn’t been sampled, you can fill out an access agreement and get your yard sampled, too. Soil sampling is free and completely voluntary.

Future soil replacement

Currently, 53 properties qualify for soil replacement on Vashon-Maury Island. By the end of 2019, we will have removed and replaced soil on 35 of these properties. Unfortunately, we are not able to remove and replace soil on all the properties that qualify. Some properties have steep slopes or are located in areas we don’t work, like forests or vacant lots. And, sometimes, we are unable to coordinate with the property owner. At the end of the program, we will offer one last opportunity for residents with qualifying properties to participate in our Yard Program.
 


By the end of 2019, we will have removed and

replaced soil on 35 properties on Vashon-Maury

Island.

Soil left behind

The main objective of the Tacoma Smelter Plume project is to reduce human health risks from arsenic and lead in soils. Soil replacement is focused on the high-use areas around homes and in areas where children play. Soil contamination may remain in undeveloped and forested areas. It is important to practice healthy actions like taking shoes off at the door and washing hands after working or playing in the dirt no matter where you live within the Tacoma Smelter Plume.

 

Questions

If you have any questions about the Yard Program or construction in your neighborhood, please call our project line 360-407-7688 x 2. We are always available for questions and are happy to help you find the information you need. 

Follow our yard cleanup work:

• Follow our blog!
• Visit our webpage on the Tacoma Smelter Plume.
• Sign up for email updates on our listserv.
• Look up soil sampling or soil replacement records on our public database.

By Crescent Calimpong, Toxics Cleanup Program

 

Historical photo of the ASARCO smelter, courtesy of the Tacoma Public Library Northwest Digital Collections for historical photos.

 

New Online Map: Dirt Alert

The new map is mobile friendly, making it easy to access.

from your home computer or your phone.  

This month we launched a new online Dirt Alert map. The map focuses on the Tacoma Smelter Plume, but also covers areas in the state where soil contamination may exist from arsenic-related contamination: 

·        Everett Smelter cleanup

·        Upper Columbia River Lake Roosevelt cleanup site 

·        Five Washington counties where soil contamination may exist in former orchard lands

By putting both information and data in one place, we hope to make it easier for residents to find out about arsenic-related soil contamination and resources. The new web application replaces two older, online maps, the Arsenic in Soil Database and the Everett and Tacoma Smelter Search. 

New look- Same data

The upgrade means faster downloading times and the ability to access the map by phone. The map also visually displays soil sampling data. Within the Tacoma Smelter Plume and Everett Smelter cleanup area, the map provides access to:

·        Soil sampling maps

·        Soil replacement paperwork

For yards outside of the Everett Smelter cleanup area or Tacoma Smelter Plume Yard Program service area, the map links to our Healthy Actions webpage that teaches you how to protect yourself from arsenic and lead in dirt, and provides contacts for more information.

Questions?

If you have questions or comments about the map, please call the project line at 360-407-7688 and press 2 for Tacoma Smelter Plume. You can also email the Yard Program Outreach Coordinator at Crescent.Calimpong@ecy.wa.gov.

Get the latest updates:

·       Follow our blog!

·       Visit our webpage on the Tacoma Smelter Plume.

·       Sign up for email updates on our listserv.



The home page of Ecology's new, online map, Dirt Alert.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

By Crescent Calimpong, Toxics Cleanup Program

Tacoma Smelter Plume Yard Program progress

Steady movement forward

We are breaking ground, removing dirt, and moving forward on cleanup of 39 yards in north Tacoma, and 16 yards on Vashon-Maury Island.  This work is part of Department of Ecology’s (Ecology) larger efforts to address soil contamination left behind by the former Asarco smelter.

For nearly 100 years, the former Asarco Company operated a copper smelter in north Tacoma.  Air pollution from the smelter settled on surface soils over more than 1,000 square miles of the Puget Sound.  Arsenic, lead, and other heavy metals are still in the soil as a result of this pollution.

We have been working on soil replacement in Tacoma
since 2013.  Our work has been focused in Area 1 and 2
 of the Study Area.  The Study Area is colored green.

Ecology’s Yard Program is offering soil replacement to the most highly contaminated yards.  To date, we have found 1,186 yards that qualify for the program.  We have completed soil replacement on 224 of those yards in the Tacoma area (see map), and 245 yards in our Yard Program Service Area.  Our Yard Program Service Area includes parts of North Tacoma, Ruston and the southern end of Vashon-Maury Island.

Work underway

Our funding was put on hold when a capital budget was not passed during the 2017 legislative session.  As a result, last year we scaled back, and worked on a small group of 17 yards in Tacoma.  In early 2018, the capital budget passed, freeing up funding to continue work.

This year we are working on 39 yards in the Tacoma area.  We break the work into groups of yards.  The largest group is 25 yards located in Area 2 of the study area (see map).  The remaining 14 yards are located outside of the study area. To date, yards that we worked on outside of the study area in Tacoma have levels of arsenic over the EPA action level and are funded by the EPA.

If you live in Area 2, you will likely see construction-related traffic.  You may notice orange fencing, closed sidewalks, and Ecology’s Yard Program banner.  The contractor usually works on a few yards at a time, which means they may travel between yards with equipment.  Construction can be noisy, and it is important to pay attention to trucks and large machinery that are coming and going.  Construction in this area will likely start in mid-July.  We hope to start work on Vashon-Maury Island in the fall of 2018.  
   

Questions?

If you have any questions about the Yard Program or construction in your neighborhood, please call our project line (360) 407-7688 x 2.  We are always available for questions, and are happy to help you find the information you need.

By Crescent Calimpong, Toxics Cleanup Program

Tacoma Smelter Plume: New Outreach in Spanish

*Blog en Español*

Ecology launched new Spanish language outreach in Federal Way, last month. In partnership with Public Health Seattle King County and the Latino Community Fund we developed a Facebook advertisement post for the Dirt Alert Program pictured at right.

Based on community feedback, we focused on taking off your shoes. This is an easy way to reduce the risk from arsenic and lead that may be in the dirt that is tracked into your home. The former ASARCO smelter left arsenic and lead in the soil in King, Pierce, and North Thurston counties (see map of affected area here, in English).

The Dirt Alert program has a website with a list of more Healthy Actions (in Spanish and English).  

 We Recommend:

We also created a new page on www.DirtAlert.info (the Dirt Alert Partner website) in Spanish that gives people some basic information and links to more resources about the Dirt Alert program.  

This is not our first Dirt Alert outreach in Spanish. In 2014, Ecology translated several webpages about the Tacoma Smelter Plume into Spanish (see picture below) to reach the Spanish speaking community in the Plume.

Ecology's Spanish Tacoma Smelter Plume Website

For more information: Visit www.DirtAlert.info

Email: preguntas@ecy.wa.gov

Call: Latino Community Fund - 206.397.2440

Additional links to Spanish resources:

• Take off shoes sign in Spanish
• Healthy actions poster in Spanish and English
  
  

By Stacy Galleher, Toxics Cleanup Program

Tacoma Smelter Plume: 2016 Yard Program Construction Update

September marks the fast approaching arrival of fall, and a halfway point for this season’s Yard Program work in the Tacoma Smelter Plume.  This year we will be working through the winter, but the sunny, fall days in September have given us lots to be cheerful about. The good weather has helped keep our contractors on pace replacing soil in residential yards.

As we near the end of September, we are wrapping up soil replacement on Group 3 (21 yards) and beginning construction on Group 5 (10 yards) (see map). We removed soil on half of the residential yards in Group 4 (50 yards) and are on track to finish construction on these properties by February 2017.  

Heavy equipment in front of a yard receiving soil replacement.

 

Prioritizing work on yards with the highest risk

This year, we are mostly working on yards within the Study Area (see map). However, ten (Group 5 on map) of the 81 yards scheduled for this year are located outside of the Study Area.  These properties have the highest levels of soil contamination that we have found within the plume (arsenic over 230 parts per million).

The yards that qualify for soil replacement may appear to be randomly scattered throughout the Yard Program service area. However, we are prioritizing these yards because the levels of arsenic or lead pose a higher risk than other yards. The soil replacement work on these ten yards is partially funded by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

A map of properties receiving soil replacement in 2016.

 

Working with hundreds of property owners each year…

We are working with nearly 300 property owners at any one time.  Each year, we continue to communicate with the previous year’s participants, work with residents currently receiving soil replacement, and plan with residents for next year’s construction. All this planning allows us to remove and replace soil on 80-100 properties annually. For more information on our soil replacement sequence you can go to our Yard Program Updates page.

The Yard Program cleans up arsenic and lead from the former Asarco smelter in Tacoma.  It is a voluntary program that’s offered at no cost to the homeowner.  This work is part of Ecology’s efforts to sample and replace contaminated soil in the Tacoma Smelter Plume.  The plume is a 1,000 square-mile-area of arsenic and lead contamination from the former Asarco smelter in north Tacoma.

 

Follow our yard cleanup work:

·        Follow our blog!

·        Visit our webpage on the Tacoma Smelter Plume.

·        Sign up for email updates on our listserv.



Stacked sod awaiting placement.

The contractor crew laying down sod.

 

 

 

 

 

Questions about the Yard Program?

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

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

Tacoma Smelter Plume: 2016 Yard Program Construction Underway

The Tacoma Smelter Plume Residential Yard Sampling and Cleanup Program work is well underway for 2016.

We started construction on the first yards in early June. Currently our contractors are actively working on 16 yards. The contractors generally work on several properties at a time, removing and replacing the soil in groups to pool resources and localize the construction activity.

Properties receiving soil replacement in 2016.

In 2016, Ecology will remove contaminated soil on a total of 80 residential yards in Tacoma (see map at right). Work hours run from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday and some Saturdays with permission from Ecology. With so many properties, you will likely see construction related activity in those neighborhoods through February 2017.

The Yard Program cleans up arsenic and lead from the former Asarco smelter in Tacoma. It is a voluntary program that’s offered at no cost to the homeowner. This work is part of Ecology’s efforts to sample and replace contaminated soil in the Tacoma Smelter Plume. The plume is a 1,000 square-mile-area of arsenic and lead contamination from the former Asarco smelter in north Tacoma.

Follow our yard cleanup work

• Follow our blog!

• Visit our webpage on the Tacoma Smelter Plume.

• Sign up for email updates on our listserv.

Questions about the Yard Program?

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


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

Tacoma Smelter Plume: Recap of Tacoma Public Meetings

By Jill Reitz, Environmental Planner, Toxics Cleanup Program



This map shows the estimated highest arsenic levels

in the plume. A property is likely to have higher or

lower levels than what is shown on the map. The only way to know for sure is to sample the soil.

Last week, Ecology held two public meetings on the progress of the Tacoma Smelter Plume project.  We had a turnout of over 50 people who came out to learn about yard sampling and cleanup in Tacoma neighborhoods. Please see our slideshow presentation to learn more about the topics we covered. Here are a few of the common questions and answers that were discussed:

How do I sign up for soil sampling?

If you live in the most impacted areas of the plume (see map right), you likely qualify for one of our free soil sampling programs.  Please visit our sampling webpage to learn more and sign up.

Why do I have to wait for soil replacement?

There are around 1,100 properties slated for soil replacement.  We are planning to replace soil on an estimated 100 properties a year.  We are first working in areas with the highest percentage of properties that qualify for soil replacement.


At the meetings, we presented maps showing our schedule for soil replacement in the service area.  Please see the Study Area sequence map and the Tacoma sequence map for more information.



What are the health impacts of arsenic and lead?

Long-term exposure to small amounts of arsenic or lead on a regular basis can increase your risk for certain health problems.  Arsenic can cause cancer, heart disease and diabetes.  Lead can lead to developmental delays or behavioral problems.  Please visit our webpage on the health effects for more information.
 

What do I do if I have elevated arsenic but do not qualify for soil removal?

We recommend healthy actions to reduce your exposure to contaminated soil. This includes things like: 

Health Actions are simple things you can do to protect

yourself and your family.

• Wash your hands before eating
• Take your shoes off at the door
• Vacuum at least once a week
• Peel produce grown in your garden

Please visit the Healthy Actions webpage for more information. 

Follow our yard cleanup work:

• Follow our blog!
• Visit our webpage on the Tacoma Smelter Plume.
• Sign up for email updates on our listserv.
• Attend the next public meeting:

June 14th-7:00-8:30 pm
McMurray Middle School
9329 SW Cemetery Rd, Vashon, WA, 998070

Questions about the Tacoma Smelter Plume project?
Please call the project line at (360) 407-7688 and press 2 for Tacoma Smelter Plume; email me at Jill.Reitz@ecy.wa.gov; or contact your local health department DirtAlert program.

Tackling Toxics: How do we really know a chemical is safe?

By Andrew Wineke, communications, and Alex Stone, chemist, Hazardous Waste & Toxics Reduction

We all want safer products. No one ever argues in favor of putting hormone disruptors in children’s toys or substances toxic to fish in tires.

But when an inventor or manufacturer is designing a product, how do they really know what chemical ingredients are safe? Asbestos was considered a safer alternative when it was introduced. And “safe” compared to what? Pesticides are not supposed to be safe – for bugs. And how do they prove it?

Chemical hazard assessments

This is where chemical hazard assessments come in. A chemical hazard assessment is a tool to help organizations evaluate a chemical’s impact on human health and the environment. The key component of a chemical hazard assessment is that it enables the user to compare chemicals against each other on a level playing field.

The GreenScreen® for Safer Chemicals method, for instance, ranks a chemical on 18 different potential impacts on human health and the environment. Running a GreenScreen assessment will tell you things like whether a given chemical can cause cancer, or if it’s flammable, or whether it’s safe for fish.

Several major manufacturers and retailers use GreenScreen or similar systems to screen the ingredients that go into their products. These companies go to their suppliers and say, “show us that your chemical is safe.”

However, a full GreenScreen report can run more than 20 pages – just for a single chemical. Sometimes that’s too much, particularly for smaller businesses or if a company is just doing a preliminary assessment.

Quick Chemical Assessment Tool

To meet this need, we developed a simpler method, the Quick Chemical Assessment Tool, or QCAT. It’s based on GreenScreen and uses the same databases of chemical hazards, but it looks at a smaller set of potential health and environmental endpoints. A QCAT report is about five pages long.

Still too much? There are a number of chemical hazard databases, such as Pharos, that are inexpensive to use and will give a quick rundown on potential problems in just a few seconds.

Want to learn more?

We are offering a free, day-long class, “An Introduction to Chemical Hazard Assessments,” Sept. 25 in Lacey. You can register here, or download this brochure for more information. Other QCAT classes will be offered in 2015.

If you aren’t ready to take a class or need help right away, we can often conduct QCATs for Washington businesses, although some limitations apply. Contact greenchemistry@ecy.wa.gov to inquire.

Visit Ecology's website for more about assessing the safety of chemical alternatives.

Stay informed about our efforts to reduce the use of toxic chemicals by following our Tackling Toxics series right here on the ECOconnect blog.

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Tackling Toxics: Searching for safer products?

The EPA can help

By Andrew Wineke, communications, Hazardous Waste & Toxics Reduction

One of the simplest things we can do to protect the environment, both at home and at our workplaces, is to use safer chemicals in our cleaning supplies and other household products.

But how do you know what “safer” is? Do you look for “natural” on the label? Should it say “eco” in the name? There are more than 300 different “green” certifications. Which one should you trust?

If you really want to pick the safest products possible, a great place to start is the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Design for the Environment program.

Design for the Environment is a voluntary product labeling program that works with manufacturers to determine that the chemicals used in a product are the very safest available. Today, more than 2,500 products ranging from toilet bowl cleaners to bilge tank treatments have been evaluated through the Design for the Environment Safer Product Labeling Program.

The Design for the Environment label means that each ingredient has been screened for potential adverse human or environmental health effects and that the product contains ingredients that pose the least concern among chemicals in their class. You can find a list of all 2,500 products, organized by category, or you can look for the Design for the Environment logo on the products you already buy.

Want to know more?

At 10:30 a.m. Thursday, Aug. 28, our Safer Chemistry Challenge is hosting a free, one-hour webinar with the EPA’s Bridget Williams for a deeper look at the Design for the Environment program.

Williams will discuss how the EPA evaluates products, how businesses can get their products certified, how the program works with industry to identify safer chemicals, and answer your questions. Register here.

Stay informed about our efforts to reduce the use of toxic chemicals by following our Tackling Toxics series right here on the ECOconnect blog.

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Tackling Toxics: PCB problem requires creative solutions

PCBs are in many paints!

By Erika Bronson, communications, Reducing Toxic Threats

You would think that a toxic substance we stopped using 35 years ago would no longer be a problem, right? Wrong.

Polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) contamination is widespread throughout Washington and found in almost every water body in the state.

History of PCBs

PCBs were produced for commercial uses from about 1929 to 1977. During this time, PCBs were widely used for heat transfer fluids in electrical transformers and capacitors. They were also used as plasticizers, wax and pesticide extenders, and lubricants. Many common products used to contain PCBs at high levels, such as carbonless copy paper and caulk used to seal cracks in homes and buildings.

As early as 1936, serious skin irritations and other health effects were noted in industrial workers exposed to PCBs, which led to increased protection for workers but didn’t slow their manufacture. By 1976, it was clear PCBs were also an environmental problem. The Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) was passed to ban the majority of PCB uses and restrict remaining concentrations to low levels. This law was in effect by 1979.

Health & environmental effects

Unfortunately, PCBs last for a very long time in the environment. This is a concern not only for plants and animals, but also for humans. PCBs have toxic effects to the immune, reproductive, nervous, and hormone-regulation systems in humans and other living things. PCBs cause cancer in animals and are considered likely to cause cancer in humans.

PCBs also build up in living things, which is amplified when predators eat prey (known as biomagnification, see illustration, courtesy of the Seattle Post Intelligencer). For example, the Washington Department of Health has set fish advisories for many bodies of water due to PCB and other contamination. When a person eats fish that’s been living in waters contaminated by PCBs, that contamination then enters her body and adds to the store she already may have from other exposures – like consumer products.

Breaking the law?

PCBs continue to show up in products today because manufacturing them at low levels was not outlawed by TSCA. They are often inadvertently produced during manufacturing processes, especially those including pigments or dyes. Concentrations in each product are low. However, the large numbers of products that contain PCBs add up to significant, problematic releases to the environment.

The results are in: PCBs in consumer products

We recently tested 68 consumer products and confirmed that PCBs are present in commonly used items. Forty-nine, or 72 percent, of the products contained at least one of four PCB types. We ran the tests to gauge PCB levels in consumer products and potential releases to Washington’s environment.

Chemist Alex Stone prepping samples for the lab.

Items tested in our study include paper products, paints and colorants, caulking, printer ink, and some product packaging. Full details – including a complete product listing – are available in a report on Ecology’s website. The study focused only on four PCB types that previous studies have linked to pigments and dyes. A future report will include results for all 209 PCB types.

We have already begun a second round of testing for PCBs in consumer products with a focus on yellow, green and blue paints and colorants, colored clothing, cosmetics, soaps, office products and products used by children, such as fingerpaints and comic books. Some of this testing will help state agencies comply with a new law requiring agencies to only buy PCB-free products.

If you have any questions about the PCB report, please contact Alex Stone at 360-407-6758.

PCBs affect water quality

Gov. Inslee’s Clean Water Initiative to update water quality standards and reduce toxic threats includes PCBs as a key chemical of concern. Contamination levels are high enough to require cleanup plans in several areas, including the Lower Duwamish Waterway, Spokane River, Wenatchee River, and Lake Washington. Ecology also found elevated PCB levels in the Puget Sound basin and estimated releases as part of the Puget Sound Toxics Assessment.

PCBs in consumer products are also making it difficult for some companies to meet their water quality discharge limits. For example, a large paper recycler in the Spokane area is having trouble meeting its water discharge limits because of PCB contamination in a lot of the products it recycles, including newspaper and consumer product packaging. If we can help get rid of PCBs in these products, it benefits not only the environment but industry as well.

Be part of the solution

We have drafted a chemical action plan identifying PCB sources in the state and recommending ways to reduce exposures. We are inviting public comments on the plan Aug. 6 to Oct. 6, 2014. If you have questions or comments, please contact Holly Davies at 360-407-7398.

These product-testing campaigns are just one piece of a much larger toxics puzzle. You can stay informed about all our work to reduce toxic threats by:

• Following our Tackling Toxics series right here on the ECOconnect blog.
• Signing up to receive email notifications about toxic chemicals in children’s products.
• Accessing manufacturer-reported CSPA data online.
• Taking action to reduce toxic threats in your everyday life.

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