Past or present activities on UW properties have resulted in soil and/or groundwater contamination. The EH&S Environmental Programs Office is responsible for ensuring the University is in compliance with environmental assessments, release reporting, and environmental remediation.
Former activities that could have caused environmental contamination include industrial activity; leaking heating oil tanks, hydraulic lifts, underground storage tanks, and fuel storage or dispensing areas; improper hazardous materials storage and use; and the use of lead-based paint on building exteriors.
Project Managers should refer Environmental Bulletin #10 (Site Contamination), located
in the Project Managers Reference Document for Environmental Stewardship. Environmental Bulletin #10
provides general guidance to meeting environmental regulations associated with
construction and renovation projects on contaminated properties.
Two sites with known contamination are worth mentioning in more detail because of their unique conditions and large sizes. The first site is the Montlake Landfill. The second site is on UW Tacoma property.
The Montlake Landfill is located on in the northeast quadrant of the Seattle campus. It is a unique area containing the Union Bay Natural Area, shorelines, wetlands and a riparian corridor. The Montlake Landfill (formerly called the Ravenna Landfill) was operated as a municipal landfill by the City of Seattle from 1926 until about 1966 and was closed in 1971.
EH&S reviews all projects that occur on the Montlake Landfill to ensure all workers are aware of methane gas, soil and groundwater contamination and landfill cap issues. The UW Executive Vice President established the Montlake Landfill Oversight Committee in 1999 to ensure appropriate use and protection of the site into perpetuity. The Montlake Committee has prepared an environmental guidance document to cover all operational and maintenance practices on the Montlake Landfill. See the Montlake Landfill Project Guide 2008.
EH&S has developed an environmental stewardship document intended specifically for project managers who oversee construction projects on the landfill. Project managers should review Environmental Bulletin #13 (Montlake Landfill Environmental Management Plan).
UW Tacoma is located in a former industrial area in the historic warehouse district of Tacoma. As a result, there is extensive soil and groundwater contamination on this and surrounding property.
The UW has acquired approximately two-thirds of the parcels in the designated 40 acre campus.
One of the parcels, the "Cragle site", was a former dangerous waste management facility. The EPA inspected this facility in 1996 and found evidence of releases of hazardous substances, including volatile organic compounds and petroleum hydrocarbons. The UW entered into an Agreed Order with the Washington State Department of Ecology in 1997 to assess and cleanup the contamination at the Cragle site and at all UW properties that are contiguous to the Cragle parcel (UW properties east of Market Street).
Under the Agreed Order the UW is considered a potentially liable party and is responsible for investigation and remedial actions within the boundaries of the Agreed Order. The University has completed environmental assessments of the parcels within the Agreed Order boundaries and has submitted a list of preferred cleanup remedies to the Washington State Department of Ecology. UW has not yet finalized cleanup plans with Ecology. The UW continues to look for the source of trichloroethylene (TCE) contamination in the groundwater flowing underneath the UWT campus. The source of the TCE contamination appears to be outside of the boundaries of the Agreed Order.
As the University of Washington acquires new properties, environmental assessments are performed by environmental contractors. EH&S has won an EPA Targeted Site Assessment Grant to assess for the source of the TCE contamination.
The University of Washington expects cleanup costs at UW Tacoma to reach upwards of six million dollars and has pursued Federal Brownfields Cleanup Grants as an interim step toward environmental cleanup there.
The Federal Government created funding programs called Brownfields Grants to assist state, local governments, and non-profits with the redevelopment or reuse of contaminated properties. The grants allow up to $200,000 of federal funds to perform environmental cleanups. Grantees must match 20% of federal funding.
The University won a Brownfields Cleanup Grant, a $200,000 grant to cleanup petroleum contamination on the Shaub-Ellison parcel. This cleanup project is currently underway.
EH&S maintains a list of all known or suspected contaminated sites on University property. This list is Appendix D of the Project Manager's Guide to Environmental Stewardship.
For assistance with site contamination issues such as the discovery of contamination or construction in known contaminated areas, please call EH&S at 206.616.0585. For assistance with questions about disposal of contaminated media, please call EH&S at 206/616.5835 or email chmwaste@u.washington.edu.
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