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EIS PUBLIC SCOPING MEETING
The Army Corps of Engineers has announced that they have initiated the development of the Court ordered Glacier NW Environmental Impact Statement(EIS). The first step of this process requires the Corps to invite the public to help scope the range of issues and concerns that will be evaluated in the EIS document.
A public scoping meeting [...] Read More
Funding For Potential Property Acquisition
Nearly a year ago - well before winning the federal court case- POI invited a coalition of the region’s top environmental groups, agency heads and elected officials to join together and work with us in the development and implementation of a plan to purchase the Glacier site.
The Cascade Land Conservancy, a statewide organization specializing in [...] Read More
Court Case Victory!
On August 13, 2009 U.S. District Court Judge Ricardo Martinez ruled in favor of Preserve Our Islands appeal of the Army Corps Permit. The Judge’s decision invalidated the Federal permit and remanded the issue back to both the Army Corps of Engineers and the National Marine Fisheries Services.
To read the Judge’s decision click here
In his [...] Read More
The Fight Moves Into The Courtroom
In recent weeks the fight to protect Maury Island has moved into the courtroom.
The lawsuits related to our appeal of the Federal Army Corps permit and the State DNR aquatic lands lease have both begun.
We have asked the courts to overturn the approvals granted and expect a decision in upcoming months.
Click here to read Preserve [...] Read More
Carcinogens At The
Glacier Northwest Site
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Arsenic, cadmium, lead and other dangerous toxins have saturated the top layers of the soil at the Glacier Northwest mining site.
- Arsenic levels at the Glacier Northwest site have been documented to be at levels 20 times higher than what is allowed under State and Federal toxics laws.
- Arsenic is recognized as a carcinogen and exposure to the chemical elevates the risk for bladder, lung and skin cancer, and may cause kidney and liver cancer. Studies have also found that arsenic can harm the central and peripheral nervous systems, as well as heart and blood vessels, and causes serious skin problems. It may also cause birth defects and reproductive problems.
- In order to mine the site, these carcinogenic soils must be disturbed to expose the sand and gravel aggregate materials.
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- Glacier Northwest has suggest that a disposal site would be created on the property to house the toxic soils after removal.
- This proposal would establish a hazardous waste landfill directly over a sole source aquifer, presenting a significant threat to the Island's only source of clean drinking water.
- The arsenic contamination at the site is the legacy of nearly a century of downwind fallout from the ASARCO copper smelter in Ruston, a neighborhood in North Tacoma.
- The Asarco property was listed as a Superfund cleanup site by the EPA with jurisdictional responsibility for the smelter plume fallout - including Maury Island, granted to the Washington State Department of Ecology.
- For nearly a decade the Department of Ecology ignored the Arsenic issue at the Glacier Northwest site.
- In 2008, due to the work of Preserve Our Islands, the Department of Ecology recognized that the contamination at the site presented a significant public and environmental health risk and issued a formal order for analysis and clean up under the State Model Toxics Control Act.
- Initial analysis is expected to commence in the fall 2010.
This Proposal Doesn't Make any Sense
It Doesn't Make Environmental Sense
It Doesn't Make Economic Sense
It Doesn't Make Sense For
The People Of Washington State