A Avenue Landfill: Agreed Order and Public Participation Plan

Submitted By

12 Results

Search Type

Sort:

Sort Results By

Comment From: Kathleen Lorence-Flanagan

4/23/24 @ 11:10 PM

Thank you for the public meeting on April 15 regarding the "Agreed Order" and the "Public Participation Plan" for the A Avenue Landfill in the City of Anacortes. It was informative but made me wonder why it was not presented closer to the March 25 op...↓

No attachments

Comment From: Paul Vance

4/23/24 @ 10:17 PM

Under Order, VII Work to be performed, consider incorporating a requirement to ensure seasonality is considered in the site assessment and remedial investigation since undersoil water level and flow may change with the seasons and specific seasonal c...↓

No attachments

Comment From: Carol Bordin

4/23/24 @ 8:36 AM

Dept of Ecology: I am submitting my brief comments today regarding the A Avenue Landfill/Toxic Dump here in Anacortes, Washington. My comments are as follows: (1) The City of Anacortes needs to restore this entire site including uplands and lowlan...↓ds from this point source eminating its toxic chemicals. The site needs to be "Restored to Pre-Existing Conditions", period. (2) If the City does not pursue cleaning the area, they should be charged to hire a remediation team/s to conduct the necessary work for however long it takes to return this area to pre-existing conditions with safety precautions utilized during all work/remediation/restoration. (3) The work should be conducted during the low precipitation season of the year/s to avoid unnecessary leaching of chemicals to downstream/lowlands from which them emminate. (3) Contaminated soil/water should be contained in an offsite location for purification. (4) After removing all contaminants from the site, new soil (tested for any chemicals should be used) before covering the area in the amount deemed to meet pre-existing conditions) should be utilized. (5) All safety/health standards and methods should be used/realized in the cleanup at the site and both up/downstream of the site/dump to lessen any contaminants leaving the area. (6) Native plants/trees should be planted at the site and brought to pre-existing conditions to help recover/restore the area. (7) The site should be monitored during cleanup, remediation, full restoration, and frequently (Bimonthly) to determine contaminant containment and/or further leaching of chemicals into the wetlands, beaver ponds, Little Cranberry Lake, and surrounding area/s. (8) Native plants/trees also need to be monitored to ensure survival and if mortality, replaced with new native plants/trees/native grasses. Monitoring needs to be done biannually. (9) This area is a major problem and with it comes with leaching of toxic chemicals into our wetlands, beaver ponds, and streams flowing into the Salish Sea. This area needs to be entirely free of these chemicals and brought back to Pre-Existing Conditions! (10) Many species of wildlife utilize the forested area/wetlands/pond/lake including: beavers, trumpeter swans, geese, a host of songbirds, bald eagles, prerigine falcons/hawks, owls, racoons, deer, opposom, rabbits, otters, and other native species both aquatic and terrestrial. They are truly affected by the toxic chemicals suspended in the water and latent in the soil (11). Please hold the City of Anacortes accountable for all remediation of this site = A Avenue Landfill/Toxic Dump to Pre-Existing Conditions. (12) Close the dump/landfill area completely for no more use! (13) This site is useless and is not necessary due to the fact that there is a Skagit County dump located in Mt. Vernon. (14) Human residents should no longer be made to be further affected by walking/hiking/playing in the forested area and wetlands with leaching toxic chemicals eminating from this toxic site!

Thank you for your serious and timely consideration and remediation by the City of Anacortes for this A Avenue Landfill/Toxic Dump site. There has been way too much time wasted in not fully cleaning up this site and doing so properly with the correct intentions! Bring the area back to Pre-Existing Conditions for the sake of this beautiful area, it's wildlife, and its human inhabitants in the area.

Regards,
Carol Bordin
Resident/Anacortes/Retired Biologist

No attachments

Comment From: Mark Nihart

4/22/24 @ 2:34 PM

The Old City Dump contains decades of what is considered today toxic and hazardous wastes. During its active life homeowner products were readily available at the local hardware store such as oil-based paint with lead, red lead primer, zinc chromate ...↓

No attachments

Comment From: Evergreen Islands (Kyle Loring)

4/19/24 @ 12:04 PM

Dear Mr. Fawley,

Please see the attached comment letter submitted on behalf of Evergreen Islands.

Sincerely,
Kyle Loring

Attachments:

Download

Comment From: Ellie Kravets

4/18/24 @ 10:09 AM

The overview map in the public factsheet for this site seems to have an error in the location of Seep 1. I've attached a copy of the map for the sample locations (originally from the 2003 Geomatrix Investigation Plan, but cited in the 2019 Field Repo...↓

Attachments:

Download

Comment From: Griffin Greenberg

4/16/24 @ 9:08 AM

I have some concerns about what the cleanup entails- what steps (besides the MTCA) will be taken to clean up the A Avenue Landfill? I am not local to Anacortes (Kirkland), but upon reading other comments, I noticed concern about the surrounding fores...↓

No attachments

Comment From: Jill Bowker

4/15/24 @ 2:38 PM

We reside in a neighborhood situated near the A Avenue landfill, precisely on 35th Ct. Estimating the distance to be approximately 1,000 feet from the landfill, I harbor concerns regarding the potential contamination of adjacent regions. Given our lo...↓

No attachments

Comment From: Arlene Cook

4/15/24 @ 1:01 PM

Seems to me the Dept of Ecology and City of Anacortes need to determine whether cleaning up the landfill site, with the truck traffic, earthworks, noise, and prolonged general disruption this is likely to entail, will do more harm to the forest than ...↓

No attachments

Comment From: Martha Hall

4/15/24 @ 11:43 AM

I am not hopeful when I hear that the City of Anacortes and its Park Department may be responsible for this clean if this is needed. I had a very unsatisfactory experience with the Dept. of Ecology and its director in my area, North Sound. I live in ...↓Anacortes and reported illegal activities by the Anacortes Park Department to Ecology in 2016. I had many photos and had documented these activities carefully over several years. One involved the Park Department adding a large amount of fill on top of an old, logging road through a wetland in Smilely's Bottom, a wetland near my home and adjacent to our high school. People from Ecology visited the site with me and people from the City and its Park Dept. and then wrote an inaccurate report which showed they had not read my extensive reports on this fill and these activities. I was never able to get Ecology's director for this area and the wetland specialist who was involved to fully correct their errors. They also left correcting and addressing illegal fill to the City and its Park Department. Nothing has ever been done that I can see to address these violations such as removing the fill or adequately mitigating all of the many negative impacts caused by this fill and improvements to the old road which has increased traffic and dog use on this road all year which is causing serious impacts to wildlife use of this area. Virginia rails and other interesting species once used and nested in this area, but no more. What did the City do? They formed a secret committee to address these issues and I was not told about this and was not able to participate. Instead, this committee consisted of the people who supported this fill and these illegal activities and a few people who knew little about these illegal activities or their negative impacts. And this is the last I ever heard -that the Park Department formed this committee - about 6 years ago. Is this what Ecology supports when wetlands are negatively and illegally impacted by fill, cutting trees in riparian areas, installing multiple and giant lights on ballfields that light up this entire area and are kept on late into the night and all night, and paving roads and etc. without obtaining proper and required city permits? This is what the City of Anacortes does. The City and Park Department think this is okay.

I took many photos of the old dump in the ACFL which is not being questioned - again - after not being capped and the damaged contained correctly years ago. And Ecology thinks this can be left up to the City and Park Department to fix. The City allowed a small amount of dumping along Guemes Channel, from 12th Street, Oaks Ave, at what is now a small park and stairway to the Guemes Channel Trail. The City traded very valuable street ends in a nearby development to have this developer clean-up this dump and build these stairs. This dump too was not completely clean up. I took and shared photos with the City of this dump too. I also have taken many photos of the dump in the ACFL and all of the garbage, metal, tires, containers, glass, etc that remain in the streambed at the edge of the capped area of this dump. This seasonal stream runs into the wetlands below. I shared some of these photos with the City of Anacortes and received no response. I also photographed areas where the Park Department has filled the shoreline along Little Cranberry Lake and Heart Lake to make or improve old trails made by fishermen years ago. This is fill in wetlands and lakes in areas that are most used by wildlife. This fill and these trails prevents wildlife from using these shorelines. These also violate the City's CAO. But this does not matter in Anacortes. My photos were mostly ignored - except for the closure of one short section of trail - but without adequate removal of fill and restoration of damaged areas. Many other trails are still damaging our shorelines because of where and how they are built and maintained. Our City supports this. I also documented failures of the City of Anacortes to create the Guemes Channel Trail as a no-net-loss project as promised to the USACE and Ecology and WDFW. This trail system is causing huge and everlasting negative impacts to salmon and other marine life who might use the near-shore habitats which are now filled with armoring and large boulders that continually fall onto this shoreline. These problems have not been addressed. Ecology and WDFW should know about these. I have given both photos and documentation of these violations.

Past behavior and current culture can provide valuable clues for what to expect in the future. I've lived in Anacortes since 1996. I have very low expectations for the City and its Park Department to do the right thing - unless someone else makes them and will pay for it. Ecology needs to ask for adequate funding if it is given the task of protecting and restoring salmon habitat, wetlands, shorelines, etc. Ecology needs adequate and dedicated staff. This self-policing idea only works when the party wants to do the right thing.
Martha Hall

No attachments

Comment From: Martha Hall

4/06/24 @ 10:49 AM

I support requiring the City of Anacortes to conduct additional studies to measure the amount of contamination in the soils, streams, and wetlands in and surrounding this old City Dump. This old dump is located in the headwaters of and within critica...↓l areas including streams and wetlands and major beaver ponds in the ACFL including wetland complexes that include Big Beaver Pond and the 32nd Street Swamp. These wetland complexes are designated and protected as "Critical Areas" and "Fish and Wildlife Habitats" in the Anacortes "Critical Area Ordinances". These wetland complexes provide habitats that are used by a long list of species of plants and animals. These species include aquatic species, invertebrates such as dragonflies and mayflies, and many birds such as trumpeter swans, many species of ducks, grebes, and migrating songbirds. These birds include raptors such as merlins who, like the kingfishers, hunt for dragonflies and other prey in these ponds and wetlands. The beavers are greatly appreciated for the work they do to maintain these wetlands. This work includes keeping water levels high enough during our increasingly hot and dry summers so support all of the species who use and depend on these wetlands. All of these species and these special habitats are highly valued and enjoyed by many residents and non-residents of the City of Anacortes. These "critical areas" Contaminated soils, streams and wetlands may negatively impact these plants and animals.

My biggest concern is the slow response to address contamination from this dump by the City of Anacortes and its Park Department. The potential for contaminated soils, water and streams has been visible and reported for many years. This is especially true for the sides of the old dump seen when walking Trails 124 and 108. A seasonal stream runs along the north end of this old dump and through a low area at the edge of this dump that still contains many items of dumped garbage. This area was ignored when the dump was capped so it is outside of the area the City of Anacortes has addressed. I'm probably one of many residents who sent photos of dumped items in this area to the City of Anacortes over the years. During the winter when plants have few leaves. many items such as dozens of old tires and metal and glass can be seen strewn around in this area. These items are on the dirt bank outside the capped dump and in the season stream below this dump. Some become more visible and are exposed by erosion. This area is in the stream and wetlands and drains into these. Why did the City of Anacortes not remove these items when the old dump was capped? Why were letters and photos sent by the public like me ignored?

The City of Anacortes and its Park Department failed to be interested in this old dump for many years. This only changed when some bike groups and some staff of the Anacortes Park Department decided they wanted to build a bike skills course on this old City Dump. It was disappointing that this was their motivation to look again at this old dump site. This wasn't because they cared about contamination. This was all about their desire to build the bike skills course in a natural area which is strongly opposed by many people because the ACFL was not protected to build recreational facilities for various user groups such as mountain bikers.
Another old Anacortes City Dump is also located near Lovric's Marine off of 12th Street in Anacortes. The trail and its stairs that go down to the Guemes Channel Trail do through this old dump. Erosion and time continues to expose more of the contents of this old dump. The City of Anacortes had an agreement with a local developer to clean up this area and build this small "park" and stairway in exchange for some very expensive city street ends that this developer used to create more waterfront building sites in his adjacent development. The clean-up of this old dump also was not adequate to address possible contamination into the marine ecosystem below, Guemes Channel. Has this area been checked for possible contamination of soil?

I will need to check to see if I still have some of the photos I've sent to the City of Anacortes Park Department documenting the garbage that still remains at these old dumps.

I hope the Department of Ecology closely supervises any work done by the City of Anacortes when addressing contamination at old dump sites. In the past the City of Anacortes and its Park Department has not shown much of an interest in addressing possible contamination caused by these old dump sites.

Thank you for having a comment period and a public meeting on this issue,
Martha Hall
Anacortes, WA

No attachments

Comment From: Tracy W Powell

3/30/24 @ 1:40 PM

There was a significant oil spill at the city shop around 1990. The contaminated soil was dumped at the A Ave site, and covered with a sand and soil cap layer. Has that oil layer been sampled? And has the downslope forest soil been sampled suffici...↓

No attachments