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 will be held on Vashon on Wednesday July 14, 2010 from 6:00-8:30 pm at the Vashon High School Commons located at 20120 Vashon Highway.

We expect to have updates and more information in the upcoming weeks so please click here to sign up for our email list so we have a ready way to provide you with news.

We have drafted some information on the EIS and scoping process for you.

Click here to learn more about the EIS process.

Click here to learn more about the public scoping process.

Your Attendance At This Meeting Is Critical To The Protection of Maury Island And Puget Sound.

Ten years ago, a threat was made to one of Puget Sound’s “last best places” when mining company Glacier NW stepped forward with a plan to utilize hundreds of acres of land heavily contaminated with carcinogenic arsenic to create an industrial-scale mining operation along the shoreline of Maury Island.

To support this mine, the company proposed the construction of an industrial barging facility in the heart of a nearshore area so ecologically unique it has been designated as both a State Aquatic Reserve, and as a Nationally recognized Marine Protected Area.

Together, as a community, we rose to fight against Glacier’s nonsensical and dangerous proposal and by providing regulatory oversight and targeted litigation - we have successfully defended the Maury Island nearshore against the threat from Glacier’s plan. But, as big federal court victory was, as exciting as the prospect of full acquisition is…while we may be close, we are not done yet.

Everything we have fought for, every success we have won in working to protect Maury Island could disappear overnight without your active and informed participation in the upcoming Glacier EIS process and public scoping meeting.

As we have sadly learned with the Gulf oil spill tragedy, a lack of public oversight and participation in the federal regulatory permitting process can have devastating social, environmental and economic effects - as industry is far to often given approvals for projects that should have been stopped before they ever reached the starting gate.

Projects like the Glacier proposal.

Yes…there is work being done on the potential acquisition of the site, but even with those negotiations in full swing, Glacier is moving full steam ahead, trying desperately to regain approval on the suspended Army Corps permits.

And so, once again,  steadfast and tenacious as ever, we need to all be there to stop them… and to make sure the Corps is working in the interest of the public and adhering to the Country’s essential environmental laws.

We Need You To Keep Fighting With Us For Just A Little While Longer

We need you to take some time to read the information documents we have linked at the top of this page.

We need you to start thinking about the information you already know about Maury, and can share with the Corps.

We need you to start pulling together the information that you DON’T know, the concerns you have about the impacts from the Glacier proposal and the issues that you would like to see evaluated fully in the EIS.

We need you you join us at the public scoping meeting on July 14th, as we once again step forward, using the power of community to protect Maury Island and Puget Sound.

Together, we’ve worked so hard to get this far…We can’t stop now.

*There will also be a scoping meeting held in Seattle on July 12, 2010 from 6:00-8:30 pm at the Federal Center South located at 4735 East Marginal Way.

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 conservation acquisitions was asked to represent the coalition’s interest and last fall, direct negotiations with Glacier were initiated.

While a deal has NOT yet been finalized, good progress is being made and we are optimistic that the parties will come to agreement in the very near future.

At the start of legislative session in early January, with our champion State Rep. Sharon Nelson leading the charge, the coalition began work in Olympia to secure funding as seed money for a purchase.

Yesterday, our state legislators approved $15 million in funding to support the acquistion of the Glacier property.

This money comes from a special Department of Ecology fund that can only be used for conservation/restoration projects in the Asarco arsenic plume AND it is not created by tax revenues. Specifically, the use of the money to purchase the Glacier site could not have been used to fill any of the State budget gaps and does not cause an increase in taxes.  

Read the Beachcomber’s early report by clicking here 

Read the Seattle Times early report by clicking here 

Read the Publicola early report by clicking here

Even with this new chapter opening, this fight is far from over and we will not rest for one moment until the Maury Nearshore is permanently protected. 

Glacier is still appealing the federal ruling and POI is currently hard at work finalizing the next round of legal briefs as we head back into court.

The Army Corps has just initiated the very arduous EIS process and the State Department of Ecology will soon be formally starting the investigations and analysis into the extent of the arsenic contamination on site. And POI will be there every step of the way.

Still, as you can imagine, we are thrilled with this news and hope you take a moment to celebrate this new development with us.

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 decision - which found that in issuing the Corps permit for dock construction the Federal Agencies had violated the Endangered Species Act and the National Environmental Policy Act - Judge Martinez  noted that what was missing in the proposed projects previous evaluation was “science”.

With his determination that the barging facility would  both adversely affect endangered species and significantly impact other important environmental functions, Judge Martinez had directed the Corps and NMFS must now undertake rigorous and science based analysis of the proposed project - including the development of a Federal Environmental Impact Statement and formal consultation under the Endangered Species Act. The ability of the Corps to reinstate the permit after these complex evaluations is highly unlikely.

This was a victory not only for Maury Island but for all of Puget Sound.

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 Our Islands brief challenging the Army Corps permit

Click here to read Preserve Our Islands brief challenging the DNR lease