BY PEPPER FISHER
Port Angeles – The decades-long effort to clean up toxic waste at the Rayonier Mill site in Port Angeles Harbor appears to finally be making some headway, with the state Department of Ecology presenting its choice of a final plan for cleanup at an open house in July. That was followed by a public comment period that yielded over 300 comments overwhelmingly siding with the City of Port Angeles that Ecology’s solution does not go far enough.
We’ve now learned that a representative of Ecology cancelled a standing quarterly meeting with the City that was supposed to take place on Monday, September 22, and the agency is telling City officials they need more time to work on the required “responsiveness summary”, a comprehensive review of the community’s comments.
City Manager Nathan West replied to the cancellation of the meeting with an email of his own, saying, “we do not object to the meeting cancellation as long as Ecology provides us with a firm commitment on a not-to-exceed date by which a responsiveness summary will be publicly released by Ecology this year. In conversations and presentations this summer, Ecology staff noted it would be released prior to year end, however, please ensure we have a more precise deadline.”
Ecology’s solution would leave contaminants they consider least dangerous piled up on about 10 acres of the Rayonier property, next to Port Angeles Harbor, covered with fabric and earthen materials. That solution is considered unacceptable by City staff, the City Council, and residents.
West told KONP that when it comes to the community’s push to get a better outcome, the importance of the responsiveness summary cannot be overstated.
“That document couldn’t be more important relative to the amount of investment Port Angeles made in building public comment and submitting public comment to the Department of Ecology. And we want to make sure Ecology focuses on that and gives us a really concerted effort to consistently and carefully consider and weigh the comments provided, so that we can see an improved outcome than what they originally had proposed.”
The only outcome City officials and the community at large want to see is a total removal of all contaminants from the mill site, and if Ecology needs a little more time to come to that agreement, West is willing to give it to them.
“The cancellation is less concerning if we know that Ecology is in fact taking the time to actually work to fully contemplate the amazing comments provided with a very large spectrum of this community. So, we certainly hope a ecology is giving that every bit of diligence as they review and we certainly hope for that being the final outcome.”
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