RCAA On Line Library--Fill

RCAA ON-LINE LIBRARY

Fill

Issues in Brief: Fill material for the embankment has caused a lot of controversy. It has to meet normal engineering specifications (it cannot be all dirt, it cannot just be junk & debris). Gravel is the preferred material. It must not be contaminated with toxic materials that could travel downward through the embankment, & then out into local streams & wetlands.

The amount of fill is so enormous that no one existing gravel mine can provide what's needed. This leads to mine owners suddenly wanting to expand existing operations to several hundred times present production, causing local controversy on Maury Island, in the Issaquah-North Bend area, on Hood Canal, & elsewhere.

Moving all this fill is troublesome. Hundreds of thousands of truck trips over a decade are implied, with all the disruption, pollution, and roadway damage that so many trips would impose. This factor has induced promoters to dream about conveyor-belt systems, creating even more controversy.

Fill in Central Puget Sound may come with a dusting of arsenic & other fall-out from long-closed smelters (Ruston, Everett). Fill has been brought in, heavily contaminated with things like petroleum by-products, & even PCBs, from environmental clean-up sites. Preventing future use of contaminated fill has been a key point for runway critics during the Port's efforts to secure environmental OKs from the Department of Ecology and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, & even now there is not agreement on what degree of contamination should be allowed. The Port is arguing in the Supreme Court of Washington for looser controls, & the Airport Communities Coalition is calling for tighter.

The Port went so far as to persuade the Legislature in 2003 to enact special legislation allowing increased arsenic contamination in fill for this project, to the ire of most environmental groups in the State. That legislation is now under scrutiny by the Supreme Court.

RCAA Home Library Portal Background Introduction History, Chronology Charts and Graphs Photo Archive Maps, Flight Tracks Shelf List Purpose, Need, Alternatives Purpose and Need Alternatives Impacts Environ. Impact Statements Community Overview Air Pollution Equity and Cost Shifting Health Impacts on Local Govt's Noise Residential Impacts Social Changes Schools Water Pollution Wetlands and Streams Construction, Engineering Issues The Embankment Fill Other Elements Earthquake Risks Economics Rising Costs Costs Omitted Indirect Costs Comparable Projects Dumb Idea at Any Price Port Spin RCAA Newsletters Latest Edition Newsletter Archive Other Regional Airports		RCAA ON-LINE LIBRARY Fill Issues in Brief: Fill material for the embankment has caused a lot of controversy. It has to meet normal engineering specifications (it cannot be all dirt, it cannot just be junk & debris). Gravel is the preferred material. It must not be contaminated with toxic materials that could travel downward through the embankment, & then out into local streams & wetlands. The amount of fill is so enormous that no one existing gravel mine can provide what's needed. This leads to mine owners suddenly wanting to expand existing operations to several hundred times present production, causing local controversy on Maury Island, in the Issaquah-North Bend area, on Hood Canal, & elsewhere. Moving all this fill is troublesome. Hundreds of thousands of truck trips over a decade are implied, with all the disruption, pollution, and roadway damage that so many trips would impose. This factor has induced promoters to dream about conveyor-belt systems, creating even more controversy. Fill in Central Puget Sound may come with a dusting of arsenic & other fall-out from long-closed smelters (Ruston, Everett). Fill has been brought in, heavily contaminated with things like petroleum by-products, & even PCBs, from environmental clean-up sites. Preventing future use of contaminated fill has been a key point for runway critics during the Port's efforts to secure environmental OKs from the Department of Ecology and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, & even now there is not agreement on what degree of contamination should be allowed. The Port is arguing in the Supreme Court of Washington for looser controls, & the Airport Communities Coalition is calling for tighter. The Port went so far as to persuade the Legislature in 2003 to enact special legislation allowing increased arsenic contamination in fill for this project, to the ire of most environmental groups in the State. That legislation is now under scrutiny by the Supreme Court. See also Embankment section. Documents: Dirty Fill Bill Page--RCAA King County REPORT AND DECISION Application Nos. Shoreline Conditional Use Permit DDES File L02SH012 & Shoreline Substantial Development Permit DDES File L02SH013 Applicant: Northwest Aggregates (also known as Glacier Northwest) Date of Decision: March 16, 2004 Denies certain key elements of Maury Island Gravel Mine Permit Home \| What's the Latest? \| Links \| Library \| Newsletter \| About Us