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A Bremerton neighborhood environmental cleanup to remove tanks and surrounding soil has created a cavernous hole more than 15 feet deep and growing. The hole was being dug to remove soil where underground storage tanks (USTs) have leaked.
The 2.55-acre site consists of 17 lots within Plat 51, located between 7th and 8th Streets, Warren and Park Avenues. In addition to the long abandoned location of the former Puget Laundry & Drycleaners, it’s been used as parking. The 47-unit Southcourt Apartment complex, and single-family homes dating as far back as 1906 are also located within the block. Several lots are now vacant, a commercial Building sits on Park Avenue, and Kitsap Community Resources is building its new “built green” facility on a corner of the block at 8th and Warren.
The leak, while large, is not unusual. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) estimates that the average remediation costs per site have been about $125,000, but costs sometimes have exceeded $1 million.
Some components of gasoline can pose serious health risks to the individuals exposed to them and these can migrate quickly through the soil into groundwater. Even in small amounts, it is difficult and costly to clean up. EPA says more than 150,000 leaking underground storage tanks need cleaning up across the nation. According to EPA data, as of March 31, 2005, about 449,000 fuel leaks had occurred from the more than 2.2 million active (currently in use) and closed (no longer in use) federally regulated underground storage tanks nationwide. While progress has been made in cleaning up releases, cleanup efforts have not yet begun to address over 32,000 of them.
The leaking USTs have contaminated groundwater and soil underneath within the city block and possibly under 7th Avenue in city right-of-way, a state official said on April 20.
“Ecology considers a site to be where the contamination is and where it came to be,” said Mark Adams, state Department of Ecology Voluntary Cleanup Program representative assigned to these sites, adding that, “within the program I can help you craft a strategy. Depending on your approach that would normally be to clean the site and/or prevent contamination from spreading.”
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BHA Executive Director Kurt Weist and Construction Manager Scot Runyan survey the site with GeoEngineers Harini Shanmugam and Grant Project Manager Barrantes while Glacier Environmental Crews continue to dig.
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So far; five tanks have been emptied, decommissioned and disposed of, 45,000 gallons of gas-laden water has been pumped out, over 2000 tons of contaminated soil removed, and 1200 cubic yards of overburden (clean) soil has been stockpiled near where the underground tanks were, on-site contractors Glacier Environmental reported. Costs to complete the cleanup could reach as high as $450,000.
The Housing Authority of the City of Bremerton (BHA) purchased the properties in 2005 from the Southcourt Properties, LLC who had originally acquired the site from Kerry Investment Company, formerly Kerry Timber Company in 1981.
“The Bremerton Housing Authority’s holding of land on the 7th and Park block is leading to a major transformation of this neighborhood near downtown,” said Kurt Wiest, Executive Director for the BHA. “Land sold to Kitsap Community Resources has already led to the construction of their new offices, due to be completed in August 2007.”
As a prospective purchaser, the Kitsap County Consolidated Housing Authority (KCCHA) conducted analysis in 2004 and contracted with Grant-Solutions to obtain Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Brownfields grants. The EPA selected the project for a $200,000 grant in 2005 and the BHA transferred the property to KCCHA to administer the cleanup grant. Last year the City of Bremerton purchased several of the properties within the block from the BHA with plans for a court building facing Park Avenue.
The BHA took over responsibility for site cleanup and entered into a Voluntary Cleanup Agreement with the Washington State Department of Ecology for regulatory oversight in cleanup actions.
The environmental/geotechnical Consultant selected by BHA to prepare cleanup plans, specifications for remediation, and provide contractor oversight was GeoEngineers, Inc.
The plans would provide BHA with technical specifications and drawings in compliance with regulations, accurately and completely describe the remediation work to be performed, and enable BHA to bid the remediation work, and for contractors to have sufficient information to develop a bid price for the work.
The firm of Glacier Environmental was contracted to perform the cleanup work, obtaining permits from the City to begin work on April 9.
While the final excavation limits were to be determined based on field screening of soil samples and chemical analysis, the bombshell discovery of five leaking underground storage tanks was astonishing according to BHA officials.
The cleanup ceased on the second day until test results confirmed the contents of the tanks, soil, and groundwater contaminants and work resumed on April 11.
At least 16 USTs used for heating oil are known to be located on this block as well as another large UST at the SouthCourt Apartment building, constructed by the Navy in the 1920s for junior officers. The former Puget Laundry and Drycleaners occupied Lot 31 from 1923 until 1972 and operation included use of “dry cleaning” products consisting of gasoline and white gasoline (1910s), followed later by Stoddard Solvent (late 1920s), and also referred to as Cleaner’s Naptha. Stoddard Solvent is a petroleum distillate known today as mineral spirits, and the facility may still have been active in 1977 though any buildings were removed by 1985.
The BHA plans to rehabilitate the sites once underground storage tanks and petroleum-contaminated soils and groundwater have been removed.
“Brownfield cleanup of several other parcels of land on the block will be a major precursor to further redevelopment. Long term visioning of the block includes affordable housing and commercial buildings that will bring vitality back to this neighborhood,” explained Wiest.
While the redevelopment potential appeared to be unlimited, environmental contamination has long been an obstacle to use and private development that contributed to the blight and economic distress of this entire community.
These decaying brownfields had a negative impact and, according to city officials, a deterrent to the establishment of businesses and residential development. In economic distress with 36-56 percent of persons living below the poverty level, it borders an economic empowerment zone and blight area defined by city ordinance.
The BHA’s vision for the “7th & Park Avenue Housing” redevelopment are expected to broaden the prospects for citizens and future generations of this community by providing proximity and accessibility to essential community services. Near the Norm Dicks Government Building and new conference center/hotel, it is possible for residents here to live a block from their job and get to work by foot, bus, or ferry and get the support services they need.
In July 2004, an environmental site assessment.(ESA) on the former drycleaners confirmed the presence of gasoline-range petroleum hydrocarbons (GRPH) and total xylenes exceeding the state’s Model Toxics Control Act (MTCA) Method A Soil Cleanup Level at 12 feet below grade on the south-central portion of the property.
Subsequent Phase 2 investigations by Alkai Consultants LLC in February 2005 encountered only gasoline-range hydrocarbons (Stoddard Solvent) and xylenes in the groundwater in two of four borings drilled. Their investigations determined that vertical distribution of the contaminated soil was from 6 to 14 feet below ground surface (bgs) and that the volume of soil would range from 500 to 1000 cubic yards.
The Washington State Department of Ecology (DOE) Toxics Cleanup Program issued a determination letter to EPA in 2004 stating that the site was relatively low risk compared with other petroleum contaminated sites in the state.
The BHA is in line for a $200,000 DOE Voluntary Cleanup Program grant that will reimburse the remaining costs of the cleanup once the project receives a “no further action” (NFA) letter from the state. The EPA Brownfields Program is currently conducting a Targeted Brownfields Assessment (TBA) on the rest of the city block property.
Examples of this cleanup and redevelopment strategy were demonstrated in King County where SouthEast Effective Development (SEED), a nonprofit organization, invested in seven blighted acres in the Rainier Valley for redevelopment into affordable housing and commercial space. An unregulated landfill in the 1930s, it had a number of subsequent uses, including vehicle storage and maintenance, electrical contracting, manufacturing, welding, a mortuary, used for illegal dumping and other criminal activities. Soil and groundwater contamination included polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), petroleum, solvents and metals.
Between 1999 and 2003, the EPA’s TBA program conducted three phases of soil and groundwater sampling at the site (valued at over $300,000) at no cost to SEED and a $440,000 loan at one percent interest to finance site cleanup.
The site was redeveloped into a mixed-use housing and commercial project; resulting in 208 units of low- and moderate-income elderly housing and 9,000 square feet of new commercial space, created approximately 150 construction jobs and 25 to 50 permanent jobs.
(Editors Note: Byrne-Barrantes is also the project manager for the EPA grant on behalf of the KCCHA & BHA until cleanup is completed.). | 
