State plans more contamination sampling at former Georgia-Pacific mill in Washington

BELLINGHAM, WA, Dec. 14, 2010 (Press Release) - Crews will return to the Georgia-Pacific West cleanup site to sample areas where the Department of Ecology and Port of Bellingham are considering early cleanup actions, and to provide a clearer picture of contamination for an overall investigation.

Sampling work will be Dec. 15 - Dec. 22, 2010, and again in January.

Port contractors will follow a work plan approved by Ecology, which is overseeing cleanup activities at the site under state cleanup law, the Model Toxics Control Act. (The work plan is available at www.ecy.wa.gov/programs/tcp/sites/blhm_bay/sites/gpWest/gpWest_hp.htm.)

Ecology and the port will use the new information to determine where early cleanup work could take place so waterfront redevelopment can begin.

Information from this round of sampling also will be included in the overall investigation report and analysis of cleanup options, called a remedial investigation and feasibility study. Ecology expects to release the report as a draft for public review in fall 2011.

The bulk of the cleanup site is made up of former Georgia-Pacific property. The 64-acre property at 300 W. Laurel St. was used to manufacture paper from 1925 to 2007. The port acquired the former industrial site in January 2005.

Although the site is not open to the public during this work, people may be able to see site activities from the sidewalk along the Chestnut Street bridge and other city streets.

The G-P West site is one of 12 cleanup sites in the Bellingham Bay Demonstration Pilot - a multi-agency collaborative effort that combines cleanup, controlling pollution sources, habitat restoration and land use. The pilot program is a major step toward restoring Puget Sound, and it is a model for other large-scale cleanup initiatives.