Demand for compliance by the Port and Ecology with the decision of the Washington Supreme Court in Port Of Seattle, et al. v. Pollution Control Hearings Board, et al.

A May 2004 legal letter from Helsell Fetterman attorneys demands that the Port of Seattle and Washington State Ecology Department comply with a Washington Supreme Court ruling before proceeding with third runway construction at Sea-Tac Airport. The court imposed environmental conditions requiring that fill materials used in construction come only from uncontaminated sites, meet strict groundwater quality standards, and pass SPLP leachate testing against both surface and groundwater criteria. The letter argues that the Port's existing work plans and bid documents violate these court-mandated conditions, citing discrepancies such as the Port's allowable arsenic limit of 14.75 ug/L being several hundred times higher than the court-required 0.05 ug/L standard.

Notes

A letter from attorney Peter J. Eglick of Helsell Fetterman to counsel for the Port of Seattle and the Attorney General’s Office demanding compliance with the Washington Supreme Court’s decision in Port of Seattle v. Pollution Control Hearings Board. The letter argues that the Port’s existing Work Plan and bid documents for third runway construction conflict with the Supreme Court’s environmental conditions, including zero TPH fill criteria and SPLP leachate groundwater standards. The letter specifically highlights that the Port’s arsenic limit of 14.75 ug/L in its Work Plan far exceeds the WAC 173-200-040 standard of 0.05 ug/L.

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