TagThird Runway(1098)

Email chain dated May 12, 1999 among Raymond Hellwig, Tom Luster, Erik Stockdale, and Paula Ehlers (Washington State Department of Ecology) regarding wetland mitigation strategy for the SeaTac Third Runway project (Port of Seattle). Tom Luster shares a Press Democrat article about Petaluma municipal airport’s Cross Creek subdivision wetland resolution with the FAA, proposing a

A May 1999 email exchange between Washington State Department of Ecology staff discusses wetland mitigation challenges near an airport flight path, referencing a similar case in Petaluma, California where seasonal wetlands were allowed to remain near a municipal airport under strict conditions. The staff propose a framework involving monitoring for hazardous bird activity, defined management options, and contingency plans for replacement wetland sites if the existing mitigation proves unsafe. The emails emphasize that while the goal is to find creative regulatory solutions to approve the project under Section 401, denial remains a possibility if adequate safeguards cannot be agreed upon.

These handwritten meeting notes dated 5/10/99 document a discussion among water quality staff including Kevin Fitzpatrick and Gary Bailey regarding permit standards and guidance. Topics covered include updating water quality standards to 'use-based' classifications, finalizing antidegradation rules, and establishing sampling protocols such as requiring at least 5 days of sampling during critical low-flow conditions. The notes also address mixing zone limits, AKART conditions for permit outfalls, and revisions to the permit writer's manual expected by June or July.

In April–May 1999, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (NWS) staff exchanged emails debating whether to use a Port of Seattle Third Runway construction site as a disposal area for roughly 60,000 cubic yards of excavated material from the Duwamish River Turn Basin #3 habitat restoration project. Officials weighed whether this arrangement could compromise the Corps' impartiality in its pending permit decision for the Third Runway Project, ultimately concluding it would not, since disposal would occur on upland areas outside Corps jurisdiction and King County bore responsibility for finding a disposal site. The collaboration was seen as potentially saving the habitat restoration project up to $200,000 in disposal costs.

This 1999 document by C. Gower describes the Miller Creek Basin, a historic Puget Sound salmon stream located in the cities of SeaTac, Burien, and Normandy Park in King County, Washington (Water Resource Inventory Area No. 9). The basin includes several lakes — Arbor, Tub, Reba, Lora, and Burien — and drains into Puget Sound via Miller Creek and Walker Creek. The map highlights the proposed Third Runway site at Sea-Tac Airport within the watershed, raising concerns about potential environmental impacts to this salmon-bearing stream system.

A April 30, 1999 memo documents a meeting between Corps of Engineers staff and Port of Seattle officials to discuss using land near Sea-Tac Airport's proposed 3rd runway as a disposal site for approximately 60,000 cubic yards of material from the Corps' Turn Basin #3 project. Key logistics covered included hauling up to 1,000 cubic yards per day starting in late July 1999 using no more than six trucks, with no fees charged for dumping on Port property. Outstanding questions included whether the Corps' Regulatory Branch — which was simultaneously reviewing a permit for the 3rd runway — might have conflicts of interest in using that same site, and what formal agreement would be needed between the two agencies.

A 1999 internal U.S. Army Corps of Engineers email discusses plans to dispose of approximately 60,000 cubic yards of excavated material from a Duwamish River habitat restoration project (Turn Basin #3) at a Port of Seattle site designated for the proposed Third Runway. The email raises concerns about whether this collaboration with the Port could compromise the Corps' ability to issue an impartial permit decision for the Third Runway project, while noting the arrangement could save the restoration project around $200,000 in disposal costs.

Email forwarded by Erik Stockdale to Tom Luster, originating from Gail Terzi, regarding SR509 proposal conflicts with Sea-Tac Airport third runway (SASA). Key issues include wetland fills in overlapping areas, moving Des Moines Creek for SR509 while Port Of Seattle spends millions bridging the creek at Tyee, and FAA telling WSDOT they CAN mitigate habitat

A April 17, 1999 outgoing telephone call was made to Kevin Fitzpatrick at the DOE regarding Project No. 55-2912-01(6), the POS Third Runway. The caller asked whether Ecology could proceed with reviewing the outline for the WER workplan and their approach to the mixing zones at the same time as evaluating BMPs at existing outfalls. Fitzpatrick responded that this was not acceptable to Ecology, stating that BMPs for existing outfalls must be addressed or confirmed as met before other project activities could proceed.

A April 14, 1999 email from Mike O'Neil of Metro King County discusses plans to use a Port of Seattle runway at Sea-Tac Airport as a disposal site for dredged material from Turning Basin #3 on the Duwamish/Hamm Creek project. The Port's contact, John Rothnie, found the material geotechnically and environmentally acceptable, but noted that sending more than 6 trucks per hour could trigger a special permit requirement from the City of SeaTac. Hauling was estimated to begin in June 1999 and conclude in August, with contingency plans for dewatering especially wet material at an alternative commercial site.