June 28, 2005

Environmental Watch: Action Team picks communication head

SEATTLE — The Puget Sound Action Team appointed Linda Elliott Farmer as its new communications director.

She will oversee communications, and public education and involvement efforts around Puget Sound. Farmer has five years of experience working on environmental services and communication at the city of Tacoma.

She also was an editor for The Federal Way News and worked in the news office at Pacific Lutheran University.

Farmer can be reached at (360) 725-5445 or (253) 232-2891 (cell), or by e-mail at lfarmer@psat.wa.gov.

Utility to remove tar from Willamette

SEATTLE — The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has decided on a cleanup option to remove tar deposits from Willamette River sediment. Portland-based gas utility NW Natural will do the cleanup, scheduled to begin in August and finish in October.

Last year NW Natural agreed to an early action to clean tar residues at the site where an oil gasification plant operated in the early 20th century. The tar deposits are high in benzene and total polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon.

Cleanup work will involve dredging, a cap and a curtain.

About 15,000 cubic yards of tar-laden sediment will be dredged and covered with a protective cap. A silt curtain is designed to keep fish from getting into the dredge area and contain contaminated sediments loosened during dredging. The curtain will be engineered to withstand boat wakes and high river flows.

Contaminated materials will be disposed at a hazardous waste facility in Arlington, Ore.

This will be the first in-water cleanup along a six-mile length of the river known as Portland Harbor, which was identified as a Superfund site in 2000.

Island County OKs watershed plan

COUPEVILLE — The Island County commissioners last week approved a watershed plan to guide decisions on managing fresh water on Camano and Whidbey islands.

Twelve citizens worked with the cities of Coupeville, Langley and Oak Harbor to create the plan. It outlines county efforts to protect areas where rainwater recharges aquifers and keep saltwater from getting into groundwater.

Island County is eligible for $450,000 in Department of Ecology grants in the next five years to put this plan into action.

For more information, call Larry Altose, Ecology public information, at (425) 649-7009 or Island County Water Resource Planner Sheilagh Byler at (360) 678-7888. Also see www.islandcounty.net/health/Envh/wrac/WRAC%20Main.htm.

Company to pay $42K lead penalty

SEATTLE — The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency said G.B. Enterprises, operating under the name Alpha Technologies, will pay a $42,300 penalty for failing to report the use of lead at its Arlington facility.

G.B. Enterprises supplies power systems for the cable television and cellular phone industries. Companies that manufacture, import or process certain quantities of potentially harmful chemicals or substances have to report these to state and federal agencies. Reports are compiled each year for the public as part of EPA's Toxic Release Inventory.

The EPA said G.B. failed to report the use of lead after EPA lowered its reporting threshold in 2001. Children ages six and younger are most at risk to lead exposure's adverse effects, which include behavioral problems and learning disabilities.

Web site shows toxins near you

OLYMPIA — The state Department of Ecology has a Web site with information people can use to find out about toxic chemicals in their communities.

Idell Hansen of Ecology's Hazardous Substance Information & Education Office says the Web site is a one-stop shop for facts on toxic substances. People can see which buildings in their areas have asbestos, what chemicals community businesses use and how much mercury local manufacturers release into the air. Tips on how to recycle hazardous materials are also posted.

The Web site address is www.ecy.wa.gov/hsieo. A link goes to the Environmental Defense Fund Scorecard, which lists toxic-substance details by to zip code. See www.environmentaldefense.org/go/scorecard.cancer. For information by phone, call (800) 633-7585.

Zero-VOC paint coming to Seattle stores

PORTLAND — A paint company in Portland has introduced a new shade of "green." Yolo Colorhouse has a line of Green-Seal certified paints that will be available closer to Seattle in July.

The company says its paints do not emit volatile organic compounds, or VOCs. Using zero-VOC paint means no noxious fumes and toxic chemicals are emitted.

Artists and custom paint designers Virginia Young and Janie Lowe founded Yolo this year. The company's "earth color" collection has 40 colors and is based on a natural palette. An $80 design kit comes with large samples of each color.

Yolo's paint will be in Rodda Paint Stores in Bellevue and Seattle. In Vancouver, Yolo is stocked at Rodda Paint on Fourth Plain Boulevard. Orders can be made through the company's Web site, www.yolocolorhouse.com.