Apr 20, 1999

Remedial action grants are available

OLYMPIA -- Washington state, through the Department of Ecology, has remedial action grants available for use by local governments who must clean up contaminated sites. The term 'local governments' includes towns, cities, counties, school districts, fire districts, public utility districts, port districts or any other local entity with the authority to levy taxes. The grants can be used for a variety of expenses, among them remedial investigations, remedial designs, landfill closures and underground storage tank removal. Items not covered are legal fees and penalties, oversight costs, most retroactive costs, costs of long-term monitoring, natural resource damage assessments, and source control/prevention at non-landfill sites. Under the program, a local government may receive a grant totaling 50 percent of its eligible project costs for remedial investigations, feasibility studies, remedial designs, interim actions and remedial actions. In addition, a county that is classified as economically disadvantaged may receive up to 25 percent additional funding. The following counties qualify: Ferry, Franklin, Grant, Grays Harbor, Kittitas, Klickitat, Lewis, Mason, Okanogan, Pacific, Pend Oreille, Skamania, Stevens and Yakima. For more information or an application form, contact Steve Loftness, Solid Waste & Financial Assistance Program, (360) 407-6060 or check the web site.

AGI merges with Camp Dresser & McKee

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. -- Camp Dresser & McKee, a global consulting, engineering, construction and operations firm, has merged with AGI Technologies of Bellevue. AGI is an engineering and environmental consulting firm. The merger is intended to strengthen both companies in both the private-sector and public works markets in the Northwest, said AGI President John Newby.

Dispose of pesticides on May 26

OLYMPIA -- The state Department of Agriculture will present a free pesticide-collection service in Bellevue on May 26, but interested persons or businesses must sign up for it by tomorrow. Only those who sign up will be given directions to the site, and only commercial or agricultural-grade pesticides are eligible. To register, call (360) 902-2056 or email. No hazardous-waste disposal fees will be charged to participants. In addition, the Department of Agriculture will provide supplies to safely transport broken or leaky containers to the collection site. The department particularly wants to encourage new owners of property, who may find unidentified containers of chemicals on the property, to ask for its help in identifying the substances. If they are pesticides, Agriculture will arrange for its removal.

Ford to announce environmental grant

SEATTLE -- William Clay Ford, Jr., chairman of the board of the Ford Motor Co., plans to announce an environmental contribution to the Pacific Northwest Trail Association at a news conference in Seattletomorrow. Northwest Ford dealers will make a matching contribution. The amounts of the contributions have not been released. They are intended to support completion and improvements to the 1,100-mile trail, which extends from Waterton Lakes National Park in Canada to the Pacific coast in Washington state.

Schwabe firm adds environmental lawyer

PORTLAND -- Schwabe, Williamson & Wyatt, one of the 10 largest law firms in the Northwest, has hired Brian J. King as a member of the Environmental, Energy & Natural Resources practice group. King formerly was an environmental attorney with the Bogle & Gates law firm. His practice focuses on environmental auditing, permitting, compliance and working with environmental managers.

Tanks vs. tortoises in California desert

BARSTOW, Calif. (AP) -- Army efforts to expand its warfare training center in the Mojave Desert have erupted into a battle over tanks and tortoises. The Army wants to expand the National Training Center at Fort Irwin by taking over 150,000 acres to the southwest where the endangered desert tortoise lives. It also wants use of 24,000 acres on center property currently set aside to protect the tortoises. Officials contend the center needs to expand to make room for fast tanks and new weapon systems which require larger battlefields. The post covers 642,000 acres but officials say that's not enough, and that they have been working with about a 35 percent shortfall in the amount of land that can actually be used for exercises. However, an expansion plan has not been finalized for almost 15 years because the Army, Bureau of Land Management and others have not been able to agree on how to expand without compromising other interests. A plan that targeted 300,000 acres to the east of the center, primarily used for desert recreation, including camping, dry-lake sailing and off-roading, drew criticism from desert users. The Army refocused on the area to the southwest -- the same location where the government-protected tortoise roams. The area is "better for us to maneuver on," said Maj. Barry Johnson, the training center's public affairs officer. More Army studies using new counting techniques suggest the site the service wants to turn into a training zone has only a fraction of the tortoises originally believed to inhabit the area. The BLM made the suggestion more than a year ago that the Army revisit expansion plans to the south, with certain conditions. The impact on tortoises could be minimized, the bureau said, either by building fences or by relocating the tortoises. The Army made its latest proposal to the BLM and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service on Friday, detailing the plan to expand toward the southwest. The Army said it would adopt the BLM proposal, but wanted only some of the offered land. The Army also wanted some land to the southwest known as the Superior Valley that is situated between Barstow and the Navy's China Lake facility. The BLM controls the majority of that area. The bureau has to review the Army's request, including how the Army plans to minimize the impact on the desert tortoise population. But some environmentalists object to expansion into desert tortoise habitat. "We have enormous problems with that," said Elden Hughes, head of the Sierra Club's California desert community.

Herbicide spraying permit challenged

SEATTLE -- Environmentalist David Ortman has appealed the state Department of Ecology's issuance of a permit to the state Agriculture Department spray herbicide on Puget Sound shorelines. The appeal was filed April 12 with the state Pollution Control Hearings Board. It seeks to overturn a permit allowing aerial spraying and other applications of Rodeo, a herbicide that is toxic to fish, to Puget Sound shorelines in King, Island, Kitsap, San Juan, Skagit, Snohomish and Whatcom counties. "Apparently, the Department of Ecology hasn't heard that Puget Sound salmon are on the endangered species list," Ortman said. Agriculture wants to use the product, which contains glyphosphate, to control spartina grass. However, Ortman said the same chemical is listed by Ecology as a "chemical of special concern in Washington state." Ortman further charges that the Ecology permit does not adhere to the 1993 Noxious Emergent Plant Management Final Environmental Impact Statement; it allows multiple applications of Rodeo whereas the FEIS considers only one; and that the proposed application does not have a National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit as required by the federal Clean Water Act. Jon Savelle is the Journal's environment editor. He can be contacted at (206) 622-8272.

Hornall Anderson Design Works

Chris Sallquist and John Anicker have recently been named principals for Hornall Anderson Design Works, a Seattle-based graphic design firm. Sallquist formerly served as executive producer and a founding member of Vivo Media in Portland. Anicker has been a design team member with Hornall Anderson since 1992.

Schwartz Brothers Catering

Shelby Varden was recently named general manager of Schwartz Brothers Catering. Varden formerly served as general manager of The Atrium Catering. Schwartz Brothers Catering was recently formed by the merger between Gretchen's Of Course and The Atrium Catering, both divisions of Seattle-based Schwartz Brothers Restaurants.

Vander Houwen Public Relations

Anne Marie Peacock has joined Vander Houwen Public Relations in Bellevue as an intern. Peacock will be interning through June.

Hitching Post Supply

Hitching Post Supply, a mail order catalog business, recently opened its first retail catalog showroom at 111 W. Main St. in Monroe.

Western Washington University

John D. Warner, senior vice president and chief administrative officer of The Boeing Co., has been appointed to Western Washington University's board of trustees. Warner replaces Charlie Earl, who recently resigned after being named Everett Community College president.

Trans-Ocean Products

Trans-Ocean Products, a Bellingham-based seafood processor, recently named Murray Brokerage of Toledo, Ohio, the 1998 Broker of the Year. Murray's territory includes Northwestern Ohio, Northern Indiana and Southwestern Michigan.

Tech-Fast

Tech-Fast Metal Systems has promoted Mike Hayes to national sales manager. The Tacoma-based company is streamlining its sales operations by closing its Phoenix office and creating Hayes' new position. Hayes will be responsible for all national and international sales. Tech-Fast provides designs, engineering, materials and construction services for self-storage buildings.

AGC

The Associated General Contractors of America recently announced the winners of its national safety awards program. Local winners included: CSR Associated of Everett, for the third best record in Group II of the Highway Division; AGC of Washington, for the third best incidence rate for chapters with 100-200 members; and the Inland Northwest AGC, for the third best incidence rate for chapters with under 50 members.

U.S. Army Corps

Reed McDowell has been named resident engineer of the Portland District of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. The corps also announced James Van Nest is the new chief of the Contracting Division in the Portland District. McDowell oversees the corps' local construction quality assurance program, which covers civil works projects in Oregon and southwestern Washington, including dredging, new construction and repair work. He holds a master's degree in construction engineering management from Oregon State University and a bachelor's degree in civil engineering from the University of Arkansas. Van Nest supervises about 31 professional employees, including procurement specialists, contract administrators and other technical personnel. He holds a bachelor's degree in business administration from the University of Washington.

Sound Floor Coverings

Sound Floor Coverings of Seattle has signed an exclusive agreement with Kahrs Fine Swedish Wood Flooring to distribute its line of cross-layered hardwood floors to dealers in Washington, Oregon, northern Idaho, Alaska and Montana. Kahrs' floor system is made of three layers of soft and hard woods. Two layers of soft wood on the bottom help absorb moisture so the hard surface layer won't warp, crack or buckle.