Old creosote-covered pilings being removed from Port Angeles Harbor
A floating crane pulls abandoned pilings from Port Angeles Harbor near the north end of Oak Street in Port Angeles earlier this week. -- Photo by Keith Thorpe/Peninsula Daily News
By Brian Gawley, Peninsula Daily News
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The A-frame dock on Ediz Hook also is being removed as part of the same project.
The log removal project, which will continue over the next four weeks, is part of Gov. Chris Gregoire's Puget Sound Initiative.
"These creosote logs are dangerous and toxic, so the sooner we can get them out, the better," said Jane Chavey, spokeswoman for the state Department of Natural Resources.
"These creosote logs break off and end up on beaches with kids climbing on them.
"They also end up in shipping lanes, and recreational boaters can't see them," she said.
The pilings at Oak Street once were part of a High Tide Seafoods building.
The A-frame dock was used by Rayonier Inc. to put logs into the water.
Once the A-frame dock is removed, DNR officials hope to find partners for Ediz Hook beach restoration, said Lisa Kaufman, restoration manager for the state agency.
Removal program
The creosote debris removal program received $4 million for 2007-09 biennium, of which $500,000 is being spent on this project, she said.
Quigg Bros. Inc. of Aberdeen is removing the pilings by first loosening them with a vibratory hammer, then pulling them out with a 120-foot-tall crane.
The pilings are surrounded by an oil containment boom to catch any debris or oil that might come off the pilings, Kaufman said.
The project must be finished by Feb. 28 because of the fish migration windows for working in the water, she said.
The artwork on the pilings is being removed and given to the city, Kaufman said.
After the pilings are loosened with a vibratory hammer, two people in a boat wrap a cable around the piling.
After the piling is lifted out of the water, it is placed on a barge next to the crane.
The pilings will be loaded onto a truck for disposal at the Roosevelt Regional Landfill in southeastern Washington, Kaufman said.
Gregoire's "Puget Sound Initiative" identified creosote removal as a high priority by adding $2 million for DNR to expand its program and include removal of derelict pilings throughout Puget Sound.
"We already were doing creosote debris removal, then the governor saw the merit of it," Chavey said.
"I'm so glad the governor provided us more money."
The Puget Sound Initiative is Gregoire's effort to clean up the Sound by 2020.
DNR's Creosote Inventory and Removal Program identifies and removes creosote and other treated wood materials from beaches through Puget Sound's seven northernmost counties.
DNR is working on the project with the state Parks and Recreation Department, Northwest Straits Commission, Marine Resources Committees, and Beach Watchers and other community groups.
The seven counties are those covered by the Northwest Straits Commission: Clallam, Jefferson, San Juan, Island, Whatcom, Skagit and Snohomish.
Wood preservative
The materials come from old docks, piers and bridges that are falling apart.
Creosote is a wood preservative that contains from two to 300 chemicals, including polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons.
The chemical was used to protect wood from pests and the elements.
It is listed as a carcinogen and identified as a "contamination of concern" in the "State of the Sound" report by the Puget Sound Action Team.
Creosote is no longer allowed in new marine structures, which now are built with steel pilings.
An average marine piling contains 61 gallons of creosote, according to a DNR fact sheet.
Studies of herring eggs exposed to creosote in liquid solution have shown up to a 95 percent mortality rate.
When exposed to ultra-violet light, or sunshine, the chemicals in creosote become more toxic and are more likely to leach from the wood.
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Reporter Brian Gawley can be reached at 360-417-3532 or brian.gawley@peninsuladailynews.com.
Last modified: January 10. 2008 9:00PM