NOTES
If you write Ecology, please let us know about it at info@bbayf.org. We're tracking comments.
Read the Whatcom Waterway RI/FS & EIS by going here. (Online documents lack the appendices.) You can also go to Ecology's office on Railroad Street to pick up a free CD-ROM. Compare the 2006 FS & EIS to the 2002 FS & EIS—they're both available at the link above. Tip: Closely examine the data tables.
If you write Ecology, please let us know about it at info@bbayf.org. We're tracking comments.
Read the Whatcom Waterway RI/FS & EIS by going here. (Online documents lack the appendices.) You can also go to Ecology's office on Railroad Street to pick up a free CD-ROM. Compare the 2006 FS & EIS to the 2002 FS & EIS—they're both available at the link above. Tip: Closely examine the data tables.
Healthy Bay Resolution
Bellingham Bay Foundation
WHEREAS, mercury left in the aquatic environment will persist indefinitely and present serious risks to human and ecological health;
WHEREAS, the standards for mercury may become more stringent as toxicological research on mercury is refined;
WHEREAS, the City of Bellingham's waterfront has been industrial for a century, leading to the contamination of the Whatcom Waterway and uplands with mercury, a persistent bioaccumulative toxin;
WHEREAS, prior to the construction of the Aerated Stabilization Basin, Georgia-Pacific released several pounds of mercury a day into the Whatcom Waterway;
WHEREAS, the RI/FS for the Whatcom Waterway is generated by the Port of Bellingham, with Ecology's approval;
WHEREAS, the citizens of Whatcom County support the permanent removal of the maximum amount of mercury from the Waterway and the former GP site, as evidenced by the 6400 signatures for the Healthy Bay Initiative—legislation that requested advocacy from the City of Bellingham for a better cleanup of the Whatcom Waterway and uplands of the former G-P site-and by polling data performed by the Bellingham Bay Foundation;
WHEREAS, participants in the Bellingham Bay Demonstration Pilot, including the Nooksack Tribe and Lummi Nation, recommended more dredging than currently advocated for by the Port of Bellingham and approved by Ecology, as well as the restoration of intertidal aquatic habitat;
WHEREAS, the Bellingham Bay Foundation, ReSources, People for Puget Sound, Washington Toxics Coalition, Conservation Northwest, Whatcom County Rainbow Coalition, Mt. Baker Sierra Club, Washington Conservation Voters, Olympic Environmental Council, and the Institute of Neurotoxicology and Neurological Disorders have signed a Statement of Principles calling for removal of mercury from our waterfront;
WE THEREFORE RESOLVE that we find the cleanup represented in the preferred remedial alternatives of the Whatcom Waterway RI/FS do not offer enough permanent protection from mercury nor adequate restoration of habitat within the Whatcom Waterway; that the permanent removal of mercury from the Whatcom Waterway should be more widely considered than currently represented in the preferred remedial alternatives, either by hydraulic or mechanical dredging; that a local facility be available for hydraulic dredging; that given capping is part of the remediation of the Whatcom Waterway, longer term and more frequent monitoring should be part of the scheduled cleanup, and the costs of the caps' additional monitoring, repair, and maintenance should be part of the RI/FS; that thicker capping than currently proposed should be considered, especially in concert with the creation of intertidal habitat, as is consistent with future land use planning. We strongly advocate that all Model Toxics Control Act funds be spent strictly for the remediation of contamination to protect human and ecological health.
Bellingham Bay Foundation Board of Directors:
Mitch Friedman, President
Lisa McShane, Vice-President, Secretary
Anne-Marie Faiola, Treasurer
Frances Badgett, Director
Elisabeth Britt, Director
Alice Clark, Director
John D'Onofrio, Director
George Dyson, Director
Murphy Evans, Director
Bob Kelly, Director
David Syre, Director
Bellingham Bay Foundation
WHEREAS, mercury left in the aquatic environment will persist indefinitely and present serious risks to human and ecological health;
WHEREAS, the standards for mercury may become more stringent as toxicological research on mercury is refined;
WHEREAS, the City of Bellingham's waterfront has been industrial for a century, leading to the contamination of the Whatcom Waterway and uplands with mercury, a persistent bioaccumulative toxin;
WHEREAS, prior to the construction of the Aerated Stabilization Basin, Georgia-Pacific released several pounds of mercury a day into the Whatcom Waterway;
WHEREAS, the RI/FS for the Whatcom Waterway is generated by the Port of Bellingham, with Ecology's approval;
WHEREAS, the citizens of Whatcom County support the permanent removal of the maximum amount of mercury from the Waterway and the former GP site, as evidenced by the 6400 signatures for the Healthy Bay Initiative—legislation that requested advocacy from the City of Bellingham for a better cleanup of the Whatcom Waterway and uplands of the former G-P site-and by polling data performed by the Bellingham Bay Foundation;
WHEREAS, participants in the Bellingham Bay Demonstration Pilot, including the Nooksack Tribe and Lummi Nation, recommended more dredging than currently advocated for by the Port of Bellingham and approved by Ecology, as well as the restoration of intertidal aquatic habitat;
WHEREAS, the Bellingham Bay Foundation, ReSources, People for Puget Sound, Washington Toxics Coalition, Conservation Northwest, Whatcom County Rainbow Coalition, Mt. Baker Sierra Club, Washington Conservation Voters, Olympic Environmental Council, and the Institute of Neurotoxicology and Neurological Disorders have signed a Statement of Principles calling for removal of mercury from our waterfront;
WE THEREFORE RESOLVE that we find the cleanup represented in the preferred remedial alternatives of the Whatcom Waterway RI/FS do not offer enough permanent protection from mercury nor adequate restoration of habitat within the Whatcom Waterway; that the permanent removal of mercury from the Whatcom Waterway should be more widely considered than currently represented in the preferred remedial alternatives, either by hydraulic or mechanical dredging; that a local facility be available for hydraulic dredging; that given capping is part of the remediation of the Whatcom Waterway, longer term and more frequent monitoring should be part of the scheduled cleanup, and the costs of the caps' additional monitoring, repair, and maintenance should be part of the RI/FS; that thicker capping than currently proposed should be considered, especially in concert with the creation of intertidal habitat, as is consistent with future land use planning. We strongly advocate that all Model Toxics Control Act funds be spent strictly for the remediation of contamination to protect human and ecological health.
Bellingham Bay Foundation Board of Directors:
Mitch Friedman, President
Lisa McShane, Vice-President, Secretary
Anne-Marie Faiola, Treasurer
Frances Badgett, Director
Elisabeth Britt, Director
Alice Clark, Director
John D'Onofrio, Director
George Dyson, Director
Murphy Evans, Director
Bob Kelly, Director
David Syre, Director
