Ecology: No to pollution
An application submitted by landowners to build a home on land on the Methow River, south of Twisp, is again under review, now that the Washington Department of Ecology has decided it no longer has considerations about pollutants on the property, the former Red River Site. Shirt mill.
Homeowners Kevin and Bonnie Schmidt submitted plans to the Okanogan County Planning Department last year for a 4,400-square-foot property. Following the county’s environmental review of the project, Planning Director Pete Palmer asked the Schmidts to work with the state Department of Ecology. Toxic Substances Cleanup Program to make sure poisonous waste from old mine tailings doesn’t harm the environment before moving forward with house plans.
Red Shirt Mill processed gold and silver for about two years in the late 1930s. The abandoned mill structure was demolished in 2002.
A review of the site through Ecology published in October 2023 found that the worst soil contamination was removed in 2002 as part of an emergency cleanup. In a letter to the county in February 2024, Ecology said the proposed home site was not in the main tailings. area, which is located in some other component of the property, and that the firm no longer had any considerations about the progress of the project.
The county will still require mitigation measures for the project. The mitigation measures would be developed in coordination with Ecology and the Yakama Nation, who expressed considerations in their comments to the county regarding the possibility of poisonous discharges into the Methow River that could harm fish. and aquatic life.
The planning department has asked the Schmidts to complete a revised list under the State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA) that outlines the task and how they will prevent further toxic emissions and remediate the site.
There is a well, and the Schmidts intend to install a septic tank. Groundwater sampling from the well found metals above the cleanup threshold, Ecology said.
Ecological balance
Ecology’s October 2023 periodic review found that residual steel concentrations that exceed cleanliness grades established through the state’s Model Toxics Control Act remain in assets after emergency remediation. A restrictive environmental commitment is required as a component of the clean-up action, which would imply a periodic review of each of them. every five years, Ecology said.
Ecology has tested waste and soil several times for lead and arsenic since 2000 and has discovered concentrations that exceed cleanliness thresholds, some for human fitness and some for ecological risk. The ecology also revealed elevated levels of other pollutants, such as antimony, copper and zinc. The company also discovered arsenic in a soil pattern extracted from the riverbank.
The 2023 revision covers the period from 2010 to 2013. I discovered the presence of arsenic, cadmium, chromium, and copper in degrees above the cleanliness level.
Although Ecology is no longer involved in the Array, the periodic review concluded that cleanup movements in the main tailings “do not appear to protect human fitness and the environment” and that soil cleanliness grades have not been met.
An agreement between the Schmidts and Ecology lays out the needs for the continued recovery of the property, adding the collection of soil and water samples for chemical analysis, the application of soil amendments, and monthly monitoring for one year (until June 2025). Cleaning moves can probably be made on the structure of the house, Ecology reported.
The next review of the Council will take place in five years’ time.
Okanogan County issued a mitigated SEPA non-materiality decision. For more data or to provide feedback, please contact planner Pam Wyllson at pwyllson@co. okanogan. wa. us. Comments are due May 30.
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