TagThird Runway(1067)

A January 2002 letter from Northwest Hydraulic Consultants to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers challenges the Port of Seattle's December 2001 Low Streamflow Analysis related to Sea-Tac Airport's third runway development. The letter identifies critical flaws in hydrologic modeling of Miller, Walker, and Des Moines Creeks, including double-counting of groundwater discharges, flawed seepage modeling methodology, and failure to account for construction impacts on stream low flows. The consultants argue these errors cause the Port to substantially underestimate the project's negative impacts on local stream flows.

A January 2002 technical letter from Northwest Hydraulic Consultants challenges the Port of Seattle's December 2001 Low Streamflow Analysis for SeaTac Airport, identifying serious modeling errors that led to underestimated impacts on Miller, Walker, and Des Moines Creeks. Key flaws include double-counting of groundwater discharges in the Miller Creek model, inconsistent methodology for assessing embankment seepage, and failure to account for updated construction methods. The letter was submitted to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers on behalf of the Airport Communities Coalition.

Airport Communities Coalition (ACC) reply brief filed January 29, 2002 in PCHB No. 01-160 before the Pollution Control Hearings Board (PCHB), State of Washington, supporting ACC’s Motion for Summary Judgment on the absence of a water right for the Third Runway Section 401 Water Quality Certification (#1996-4-02325). ACC argues the Port Of Seattle’s Low Flow

This exhibit, part of K.M. Leytham's pre-filed testimony in PCHB No. 01-160, shows photographs taken on January 28, 2002, documenting standing water on top of a fill embankment near South 160th Street. The images provide visual evidence of water pooling conditions on the embankment surface, likely related to construction or environmental concerns associated with Sea-Tac Airport development. This material was submitted as part of a formal hearing record before the Pollution Control Hearings Board.

This exhibit, part of K.M. Leytham's pre-filed testimony (PCHB No. 01-160), shows a photograph taken on January 28, 2002, of an exposed fill embankment face near South 160th Street where a slope failure occurred. The image, approximately 4 feet high by 3 feet wide, reveals distinct layering and a lack of uniformity in the fill material. This evidence was submitted in connection with proceedings related to Sea-Tac Airport development and its surrounding infrastructure impacts.

Two photographs taken by P. Willing on January 28, 2002, document an absorbent boom placed in a stream below the SDS1 outfall, a pollution-control measure used to contain contaminants. The second photo highlights turbid (murky) effluent visible in the stream, indicating water quality concerns at the site. These images appear to be part of an environmental monitoring or spill-response record associated with drainage infrastructure near Sea-Tac Airport.

Internal memo from Ching-Pi Wang to Ann Kenny (cc: Jeannie Summerhays, Steve Alexander), dated January 23, 2002, reviewing the Port of Seattle’s Embankment Fill Monitoring Plan (EFMP) for the Third Runway, 401 Certification Condition E.3. Comments cover requirements for logic tree flow diagrams for tiered sampling and staged screening (groundwater, seepage), statistical methods for baseline

Letter dated January 23, 2002 from attorney Michael P. Witek of Helsell Fetterman to Presiding Officer Kaleen Cottingham of the Pollution Control Hearings Board (PCHB) in Airport Communities Coalition v. Department of Ecology and Port of Seattle, No. 01-160. Transmits two enclosures inadvertently omitted from Exhibit D to the Second Declaration of Michael P. Witek

Washington State Department of Ecology memorandum opposing Airport Communities Coalition (ACC) application for Certificate of Appealability of the Pollution Control Hearings Board (PCHB) Stay Order in PCHB No. 01-160. Ecology argues the Board’s stay of the § 401 Certification for the Third Runway Project (Port of Seattle) is not a ‘final decision’ under RCW 34.05.518

This January 2002 memo from the Port of Seattle describes an environmental incident in which soil from the Summit Ridge fill site in Bellevue, Washington—potentially contaminated with petroleum hydrocarbons from a former home heating oil tank—was temporarily placed in the Third Runway embankment during construction. Upon discovery of the contamination in October 2000, the Port halted all haul from the site and removed approximately 1,540 tons of soil, disposing of it at a facility in Everett. The Port subsequently implemented additional environmental safeguards, including full-time on-site supervision, to prevent further transport of impacted soil to the Third Runway.