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 Jorgensen Forge

SITE BACKGROUND

The Jorgensen Forge site is located along the east bank of the Lower Duwamish Waterway at 8531 East Marginal Way South in Seattle, Washington.  It is bordered to the north by Boeing Plant 2, to the east by East Marginal Way South, and to the south by the Boeing Isaacson property.  The site consists of approximately 21.6 acres in an industrial area.
 
Jorgensen manufactures specialized open die steel forgings and rolled aluminum rings.  In addition to steel and aluminum, Jorgensen also processes nickel, titanium, and specialized alloys.   

The Property was developed in 1942, and operated from 1942 to 1965 as a fabricator of structural steel, tractor and road equipment.  Operations on the property included forging and heat-treating by Isaacson Iron Works, which operated as a U.S. naval vessel manufacturer. 
 
Bethlehem Steel operated a steel distribution center on the northwestern portion of the property from approximately 1951 to 1963.  Bethlehem Steel operations consisted of cutting prefabricated steel rods to customers’ specifications.  From 1965 to 1992, the property was owned and operated by Earle M. Jorgensen Company (EMJ).
 
In July 1992, the facility was purchased by the plant management group and became the Jorgensen Forge Corporation.  From 1992 to the present, the property has been owned and operated by Jorgensen
 
Previous investigations at the site have detected concentrations of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), total petroleum hydrocarbons (TPH) and arsenic, cadmium, chromium, lead and nickel in soil exceeding the applicable cleanup levels in various areas of the site. Concentrations of TPH and metals have also been detected in groundwater at the site exceeding cleanup levels. 
 
This site was ranked “1” on the Washington State Hazardous Sites List. This ranking is based on a scale of 1 to 5.  According to this scale, “1” represents the highest relative risk, and “5” represents the lowest relative risk.  This ranking is designed to estimate the potential threat to human health and/or the environment, relative to all other sites in Washington State.
 
Ecology and Jorgensen Forge Corporation have negotiated a legal agreement called an Agreed Order to conduct a Source Control Investigation at the site.  The purpose of the Source Control Investigation is to determine if the site is an on-going source of contamination to sediments in the Lower Duwamish Waterway that could cause a violation of sediment cleanup goals.  The results of the Source Control Investigation will be used to evaluate, and select effective measures to prevent or control sources of contamination, if any, migrating from the site to the Lower Duwamish Waterway. 

For more information regarding the Jorgensen Forge Site or to be added to the site mailing list, please contact John Keeling, Site Manager, at (425) 649-7052 or by e-mail at jkee461@ecy.wa.gov or Justine Asohmbom, Public Involvement Coordinator, at 425-649-7135 or by email juas461@ecy.wa.gov.  Jorgensen Forge is part of Early Action Area 4.  Click here for more information on this early action area.

Site Documents

• Fact Sheet
• Jorgensen Forge Agreed Order
• Jorgensen Forge Agreed Order Exhibit A, Exhibit B, Exhibit C
• Public Participation Plan

Related Information

• More information on the Lower Duwamish Waterway
• Watershed Information: WRIA 9

Additional Resources

• 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