100 signatures reached
To: Governor Jay Inslee, Olympia City Council, Director of Ecology Laura Watson, Director of Public Lands, Hillary Franz, State Representative Joe Fitzgibbon, State Senator Kevin Van DeWege, State Senator Reuven Carlyle
Protect Puget Sound from Toxic Development
The City of Olympia is again considering a development proposal for 182 single family homes on a Model Toxics Control Act (MTCA) listed toxic waste dump in West Olympia before any cleanup has even begun.
The Sundberg Gravel Pit operated for more than 70 years as an unregulated and unpermitted solid and hazardous waste dump 4 minutes from the industrial cleanup of the Port of Olympia, and was used freely by the public and even by the City of Olympia. It also served as a Weyerhaeuser log yard from about 1960-1990 when Agent Orange tainted bark was buried in canyons on the property.
The site sits on the highest hill in West Olympia and drains through the ecologically sensitive Green Cove Creek Basin and Butler Cove basin into the federally protected and impaired 303(d)waters of Budd and Eld Inlets, habitat for endangered Salmon and Orcas.
It also sits atop the drinking water aquifer for the City of Olympia and the Strategic Groundwater Reservation for the State Capitol established by the Legislature in 1986 through WAC 173-591 which provides drinking water to the State Capitol.
The Sundberg Gravel Pit operated for more than 70 years as an unregulated and unpermitted solid and hazardous waste dump 4 minutes from the industrial cleanup of the Port of Olympia, and was used freely by the public and even by the City of Olympia. It also served as a Weyerhaeuser log yard from about 1960-1990 when Agent Orange tainted bark was buried in canyons on the property.
The site sits on the highest hill in West Olympia and drains through the ecologically sensitive Green Cove Creek Basin and Butler Cove basin into the federally protected and impaired 303(d)waters of Budd and Eld Inlets, habitat for endangered Salmon and Orcas.
It also sits atop the drinking water aquifer for the City of Olympia and the Strategic Groundwater Reservation for the State Capitol established by the Legislature in 1986 through WAC 173-591 which provides drinking water to the State Capitol.
Why is this important?
Toxics from waste buried on site are leaching into groundwater aquifers threatening the public health, and contaminated stormwater is entering the ecologically sensitive watersheds of Green Cove and Butler Creeks, which drain into the federally impaired waters of Budd and Eld Inlets of Puget Sound, habitat for endangered Salmon and Orcas. The Squaxin Island tribe has provided comment that notes a development overlying these contaminated soils would make contamination of soil, water, wetlands and groundwater permanent, adversely affecting their treaty rights.
This proposal has met with years of overwhelming public opposition, yet the City of Olympia continues to review it despite the Applicant's continued failure to comply with agreements to provide information to the City, the Department of Ecology, and the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) which are needed to perform an adequate review. The Applicant, Jerry Mahan of John L. Scott Realty, has obtained numerous extensions of time to provide this data, but has failed or refused to do so, violating the terms of the agreement to obtain an extension. Therefore, by failing to comply with these agreements and the laws which require information that would allow consideration of adverse environmental impacts which are foreseeably likely to be leading from this project, Applicant is acting in bad faith. The City should inform Applicant that he has not performed pursuant to the terms of his agreement granting a 6 month extension, and the project can no longer be considered until a new complete application is submitted.
We request that the City of Olympia return this application as incomplete and void, as required by the terms of the extension agreement. Any new application must provide the information required by the City, Ecology and DNR so that they can do their job to safeguard public health and the environment.
This proposal has met with years of overwhelming public opposition, yet the City of Olympia continues to review it despite the Applicant's continued failure to comply with agreements to provide information to the City, the Department of Ecology, and the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) which are needed to perform an adequate review. The Applicant, Jerry Mahan of John L. Scott Realty, has obtained numerous extensions of time to provide this data, but has failed or refused to do so, violating the terms of the agreement to obtain an extension. Therefore, by failing to comply with these agreements and the laws which require information that would allow consideration of adverse environmental impacts which are foreseeably likely to be leading from this project, Applicant is acting in bad faith. The City should inform Applicant that he has not performed pursuant to the terms of his agreement granting a 6 month extension, and the project can no longer be considered until a new complete application is submitted.
We request that the City of Olympia return this application as incomplete and void, as required by the terms of the extension agreement. Any new application must provide the information required by the City, Ecology and DNR so that they can do their job to safeguard public health and the environment.
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