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B & L Woodwaste

SITE DESCRIPTION

The B& L Woodwaste site is located at 2201 6th Avenue, Milton in a mixed residential/agricultural and wetland area. It is southeast of Interstate 5 between Fife Way and a Puget Power access road.

This site was used as an industrial landfill from mid 1970’s until the early ‘80’s. Wood chips from log sort yards, slag from the old Asarco smelter in North Tacoma and soil from the Commencement Bay Nearshore/Tideflats area were dumped here.

In 1982, the Commencement Bay Nearshore/Tideflats area, including Hylebos Waterway and the B&L Woodwaste site, were added to the
National Priorities List by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The B&L Woodwaste site was named as a source of arsenic, copper and lead.

In 1992, Ecology issued an Enforcement Order requiring Asarco, Inc. (Asarco) , Murray Pacific Corporation (Murray Pacific) and Executive Bark, Inc, site owner, to do the following:

Monitoring during the mid-1990’s discovered elevated arsenic in the ditch system that surrounds the pile and increased arsenic in groundwater outside of the landfill containment system, including a wetland next to the site.

In 2002, Asarco’s funds became unavailable and they were unable to complete the rest of the Cleanup Action Plan. In 2005, Ecology amended the original Enforcement Order and required the PLPs to complete:

• Evaluation of several potential remedies to contain the release of contaminated groundwater from the site
• Investigation of the wetland area to determine what remedial action is needed.

In 2006, Asarco entered into bankruptcy proceedings and has failed to contribute towards cleanup efforts since that time. Murray Pacific has continued with efforts to prepare a Cleanup Action Plan.

As part of an existing Enforcement Order, Ecology is now requiring Murray Pacific and Asarco to carry out requirements of a Cleanup Action Plan including:

• Constructing a groundwater barrier wall around existing capped landfill.
• Treating arsenic contaminated groundwater from within the groundwater barrier and nearby wetland with pump and treat system.
• Constructing a treatment system to prevent arsenic in wetlands from reaching the Hylebos Creek.

For more information about the Nearshore/Tideflats Commencement Bay area-wide work, visit the EPA website
http://yosemite.epa.gov/R10/CLEANUP.NSF/88b0452f26c113d88825685f006ab43f/e8d62480494ad483882564f80082a1c0?OpenDocument

Photo 1:
B&L Woodwaste Site

Photo 2:
Wetland area adjacent to
B&L Woodwaste site

SITE DOCUMENTS

• Responsiveness Summary for the Draft Cleanup Action Plan and SEPA Determination - September 21, 2007
• Draft Cleanup Action Plan and SEPA Determination - June 2007
• Fact Sheet
• Draft Cleanup Action Plan
• Figures
• Figure 1 - Vicinity Map
• Figure 2 - Site Map and Cross Section Locations
• Figure 3 - Current and Projected Changes in Land Use in Site Vicinity
• Figure 4 - Property Ownership
• Figure 5 - Surrounding Land Use and WSDOT Proposed Relocation of Surprise Lake Drain
• Figure 6 - WSDOT Existing and Future Mitigated Project for Hylebos Creek 100-Year
• Figure 7 -  Topography and Drainage Features in Site Vicinity
• Figure 8 - Cross Section F-F’ Site Hydrostratigraphy and Dissolved Arsenic Concentrations in Groundwater
• Figure 9 - Cross Section E-E’ Site Hydrostratigraphy and Dissolved Arsenic Concentrations in Groundwater
• Figure 10 -  Potentiometric Surfaces in Upper Sand Aquifer
• Figure 11 - Extent of Dissolved Arsenic in the Upper Sand Aquifer
• Figure 12 - Arsenic Concentrations along Agricultural Ditch System – Surface Water
• Figure 13 - Arsenic Concentrations along Agricultural Ditch System – Sediments
• Figure 14 - Cleanup Action Areas
• Figure 15 - Conceptual Model of Potential Exposure Pathways and Receptors
• Figure 16 - Preferred Remedy Components
• Appendices
• Appenedix A - Groundwater Alternatives Evaluation Report, Ecology Comments, & Tech Memos
• Text:
• Part 1
• Part 2
• Part 3
• Part 4
• Part 5
• Part 6
• Part 7
• Tables
• Appendix A - 2006 Data Report
• Figure 1 and 2
• Figure 3
• Figures 4 and 5
• Figures 6 through 10
• Figures 11 through 16
• Appendix B - Drinking Water Exposure Pathway Factors
• Appendix C - Cost Calculations
• Ecology GAE Comments
• Tech Memos: 
• Aquitard Continuity Remedy Analysis
• Figure 6
• Figures 7 and 8
• Figure 9
• Arsenic in the Lower Sand Aquifer at B&L
• Figure 1
• Vertical Gradients at B&L

•  State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA) Checklist
• Figure 2:  Site Map and Cross Section Locations
  
  
  

Related Information

• B&L Woodwaste Document Archive
• Watershed Information for WRIA 10

Additional Resources

• Washington State Department of Health Fact Sheet:  What is vapor intrusion
• Acronyms used by the Toxic Cleanup Program
• Cleanup Process: Major Steps & Definitions
• Data Submittal Requirements for All Cleanup Sites
• Facility/Site Atlas
• Toxics Cleanup publications