Excavators and bulldozers remove dirt at the site of the former KPly mill in Port Angeles in October. Keith Thorpe/Peninsula Daily News

Excavators and bulldozers remove dirt at the site of the former KPly mill in Port Angeles in October. Keith Thorpe/Peninsula Daily News

WEEKEND REWIND: Rain delays KPly site cleanup in Port Angeles; work might resume in July

PORT ANGELES — Mud. Awww, crud.

Heavy rains have turned earth to muck and interrupted cleanup of the Port of Port Angeles’ former KPly mill site barely three weeks before contractors hoped to finish the 19-acre tract at 439 Marine Drive.

Chris Hartman, director of engineering, told port commissioners Tuesday the work might resume in July after soaked soils dry out enough for contractors

to backfill and compact them.

He blamed heavy rains that have fallen since late October for making the ground too gooey to grade. Rainfall has been about double the average for this time of year, he said.

“Suspending work here is far from ideal,” Hartman said. “No one wanted this to happen.”

Port officials had hoped precipitation wouldn’t drown the project, but a Nov. 10 storm that dumped 2 inches of rain on the site “pretty much sunk us,” he said.

If the project had continued, soft spots eventually would develop across the site that the port is cleaning of petroleum pollution in hopes of marketing it as a marine trades industrial park.

The poisoned soil all has been excavated and hauled away, he said.

The shutdown will cost another $125,000 while contractor Engineering Remediation/Resources Group covers mounds of fill material and removes a sheet piling wall rather than rent the pilings throughout the winter.

Topping off the site will require an additional $75,000 worth of clean earth, Hartman said.

Like the doubling of the estimated $3.6 million project cost due to unexpected amounts of toxic soil, the added expense likely will be paid by the port’s insurers, he said.

Still, “we won’t be able to develop it,” said Commissioner Colleen McAleer.

“That’s a lost opportunity for another six to eight months,” lamented Commissioner John Calhoun.

The break in the action, however, according to Karen Goschen, finance director, will give port staff time to approach possible tenants for the land where it has worked since July to dig up and truck to an Oregon landfill more than 53 tons of earth polluted by previous tenants that included Rayonier, KPly and finally PenPly.

_______

Reporter James Casey can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 5074, or at jcasey@peninsuladaily

news.com.

More in News

Foundation donates $1 million to hospital

Recipients include residency program, scholarships and cancer care center

A former teacher, Larry Jeffryes moved to Sequim with his wife in 2013. He was appointed to the Sequim School Board in September 2019, elected by voters in November of that year and was elected again in 2023. Before his resignation, Jeffryes’ term was set to go through November 2027. (Larry Jeffryes)
Sequim school board director resigns after six years in seat

District opens process to apply for position

Members of the musical group Soupbones, from left, Ed Schmid of Port Angeles, Ron Munro of Sequim, Carly List of Port Angeles and Hugh Starks of Sequim, perform at a Good Trouble community gathering and picnic on Thursday at Erickson Playfield in Port Angeles. Organizers of the event, one of numerous gatherings across the United States, decided to forego conventional politics while commemorating the life of civil rights activist John Lewis. (Keith Thorpe/Peninsula Daily News)
Good trouble rally

Members of the musical group Soupbones, from left, Ed Schmid of Port… Continue reading

State funds to benefit coastal habitat

Clallam, Jefferson awarded $1.6M

Artists Heather Sparks, left, and Zeo Boekbinder set up a stencil of a fern leaf in an effort to decorate an otherwise-drab concrete roadside divider along Race Street south of Lauridsen Boulevard on Wednesday in Port Angeles. The divider work was part of a larger project to beautify the Race Street corridor from Eighth Street to Hurricane Ridge Road, which included improved traffic lanes, pedestrian and bicycle lanes and decorative lighting. Long-term plans call for similar improvements to Race Street, extending to First and Front streets. (Keith Thorpe/Peninsula Daily News)
A touch of color

Artists Heather Sparks, left, and Zeo Boekbinder set up a stencil of… Continue reading

A tanker truck overturned into Indian Creek west of Port Angeles, according to the State Patrol and the state Department of Transportation. U.S. Highway 101 was closed Friday afternoon at milepost 238 near Herrick Road, and traffic was being diverted to state Highway 112. (Katherine Weatherwax via X)
Highway 101 reopens after tanker truck overturns into creek

Port Angeles asks utility customers to conserve water

Lisa Hansen of Port Angeles, center, takes a cellphone photo of her son, Cooper Hansen, 3, as Hansen’s mother, Tracy Hansen, right, looks on during a warm day at Hollywood Beach on the Port Angeles waterfront on Wednesday. The trio were enjoying a sunny summer afternoon next to the water. (Keith Thorpe/Peninsula Daily News)
Picture perfect

Lisa Hansen of Port Angeles, center, takes a cellphone photo of her… Continue reading

Claim against First Fed alleges $100M fraud

First Fed plans to ‘vigorously defend’ loans

Olympic Medical Center CEO says Medicaid cuts will hit hard

Darryl Wolfe tells board entire state will feel impact

Joseph Wilson, left, and Kevin Streett.
Jefferson PUD names new general manager

Wilson comes with 30 years of experience

Firefighters from Clallam 2 Fire-Rescue oversee a brush fire Wednesday in the area of Baker Farm Road. (Clallam 2 Fire-Rescue)
Woman airlifted to hospital following bicycle crash

U.S. Highway 101 was closed for about 45 minutes… Continue reading