Waste Cleanup Case Study
Situation:
The Commencement Bay Nearshore/Tideflats site, in Tacoma, Washington, covers 12 square miles in Puget Sound. Since the late 1800s, over 125 businesses, including companies in shipbuilding, oil refining, wood products, chemical manufacturing, and other miscellaneous manufacturing have operated in the area. In 1983, the EPA added the site to its list of hazardous waste sites. The agency divided the site into several "Operable Units," including two in a section of the Bay called the Hylebos Waterway.
The EPA contends that various business operations — storm water runoff, releases of airborne particulates, groundwater flows, and historical emissions — have caused elevated levels of hazardous substances in the Waterway. Under EPA's Superfund program, the agency required the investigation and remediation of the Nearshore/Tideflats site. The Marten Law Group was retained by a significant party at the site to assist in this effort.
Challenge:
EPA identified our client as one of the potential sources of some of the pollution in the Waterway. The company asked Marten Law Group attorneys to help determine the extent of any hazardous-substance releases, to advise on the legal issues regarding the elimination of any ongoing releases, and to work with EPA and other cooperative businesses to investigate how best to cleanup the Waterway.
Solutions:
Our client was approved for a remedial plan, which involved excavating the historical areas used for disposing waste materials from its processes, and installing an award-winning groundwater treatment system. Marten Law Group helped ensure that the system satisfied state and local regulators, the community and the facility's neighbors.
In addition to cleaning up its property and being one of the first parties on the Waterway to have property "delisted," or removed from the Superfund site list, the company worked with EPA to develop a remedy for the Hylebos Waterway sediment. The company is currently negotiating with EPA for a consent decree which will fund part of the cleanup while the company and other Hylebos businesses implement the remedy.
Results:
Marten Law Group attorneys helped our client resolve its liability in Commencement Bay in a manner that protects the environment and takes advantage of innovative treatment technologies and approaches.