Wednesday, October 12, 2011

Upcoming Creosote Log Removal from Lopez Beaches

Tim Clark, Lopez Land Bank Manager, has been working hard for several months on a big project that is about to come to fruition. During the week of October 17, Several hundred lineal feet of creosote-soaked logs will be airlifted off Lopez Land Bank property at Fisherman Bay Preserve Spit, and Weeks Wetland, and sent to a hazardous waste landfill on the mainland. Here are some excerpts from the Islands Weekly news article written by Land Bank Manager Tim Clark, (published in the Oct. 11 issue.)

“The State Department of Natural Resources will be supervising a crew from the Puget Sound Corps in addition to the helicopter, all funded by the Department of Ecology. Members of the crew will carry smaller pieces of treated wood to a container, and carefully cut the larger logs into manageable pieces before loading.

“Lisa Kaufman has overseen creosote removal projects at the DNR for six years, and delights in cleaning up sensitive habitat. In addition to the two preserves, Odlin Park will take part in the project along with neighboring private landowners.

“Though creosote has been banned from new marine construction, old docks and pilings break down, float off, and collect in pockets during winter storms. They can leach toxic chemicals called polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs} into the ground and water for years.”

Lopez Beach Watcher Pat Johnson (’11) helped Tim count and tag the logs earlier this year.

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