Serving Whitman County since 1877
Serving Whitman County since 1877
Once a blacksmith shop, a fertilizer producer and a gas station, in the last month the Palouse Brownfields cleanup site became an 8-foot hole and a pile of contaminated dirt with a few surprises.
The location on Main Street, an environmental cleanup project overseen by the Washington State Department of Ecology, is now in its final stage.
A discovery last week of an unknown fuel tank and additional contaminated material led to an approved change order by the Palouse City Council in an extensive meeting Sept. 25.
Connor Lamb of Maul Foster Alongi, the project’s environmental engineering contractor, attended the session, and Project Manager Michael Stringer participated via conference call.
Stringer gave a rundown of the current work.
“We’ve made great progress the last two weeks,” he said, noting 3,500 tons of soil had been removed as of the day before. That added up to 90 percent of all soil had been taken out that was planned.
Then he talked about doing more.
“Overall, we’re looking at the potential of additional soil being taken out,” said Stringer.
After the planned area was dug through, some DOE-required soil samples came back above remediation levels, which reflect the level of contaminants in a given sample.
Because of the presence of additional lead and petroleum, it was deemed more digging was necessary to follow the black oil residue and scent toward the Main Street side of the site.
While more work was necessary, Stringer said the project still would remain under budget, since the dirt already taken out of the site has proved lighter in weight than expected.
This lead to cost savings since the project bid was based on volume and weight of that soil.
“It’s a wash. There is no additional lost change on the additional dirt work,” Stringer told the Palouse City Council, noting that it all is within the original budget.
“Overall, the extra work will reduce the ongoing risk for the city,” said Stringer.
Once the extra digging is complete, remediation levels will determine whether more needs to be excavated. DOE officials will check for the existence of the two main contaminants at the site – total petroleum hydrocarbon (TPH) and lead.
Unexpected find
The project’s surprise came Sept. 19, when workers found a 500-gallon underground storage tank on the main street side of the old gas station site’s bay doors.
Inside was about 75 gallons of water and some product, which was most likely waste oil or heating oil, according to Lamb.
The crew put absorbent material into the tank, pumped out the water and cleaned the inside. It was hauled away for scrap metal Sept. 28.
“It was pretty small and manageable,” Stringer said.
On Tuesday night at the council meeting, he proposed a change order for the cost of cleaning and removal of the tank for $5,000.
The mayor and the council discussed it.
“It’s not a showstopper and we have money in the budget to cover it,” said Mayor Echanove.
The project at this point has $121,000 left in the budget.
Councilwoman Connie Newman made a motion to approve it.
“Is there a second to that?” asked Echanove.
“I’ll second,” said councilman Bo Ossinger.
“I could not have stated that any better,” said Echanove.
Blacksmith lead
Stringer stayed on the conference call while Brownfield Committee Chairman Doug Willcox added comments.
“This project has absolutely come off like clockwork,” he said, sitting next to Lamb.
Willcox addressed the discovery of lead, which was also on the north side of the site where the additional petroleum was detected.
“As just a layman, this lead is probably more of an event than the tank being removed,” said Willcox.
He talked about the blacksmith shop that used to be on the property.
“When I was small, I remember it being there,” he said. “This lead is obviously a residue of the era of the blacksmith shop.”
He noted the forge, anvil, coal and ash used in the trade.
“There isn’t a great fear and trepidation when it will turn up,” Willcox said.
Lamb said that the lead layer that was found will remain under three to four feet of soil, stabilized in a layer of carbon and ash.
“It’s essentially capped,” he explained. He reported that the three wells on the property will monitor anything coming in and out of the site for one year. The wells will be installed at the end of October or early November.
They will be checked four times per year by the DOE.
“There’s a light at the end of the tunnel and it’s not far off,” said Mayor Echanove.
“You’re in the final chapter of the book,” said Stringer.
Willcox talked further about what might happen if any future contaminants are detected by the wells.
“This is why we pushed so hard for a consent decree,” he said, noting that he thinks the chance of any future problem is remote.
A consent decree was signed last year between the city of Palouse and the Department of Ecology, which limits the liability of the city, if the monitoring wells detect additional contamination into the site.
After Stringer, Lamb and Willcox concluded, the council approved an expenditure of $74,900, which covered the cost of the monitoring wells and final phase of the cleanup. Both costs were in the original budget.
Mayor Echanove then noted that County Commissioner Pat O’Neill and commissioner candidate Art Swannack were in the audience.
“They got Brownfields 101 tonight,” Echanove commented.
“Almost 201,” said Swannack.
Garth Meyer is a former Whitman County Gazette reporter.
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