PORT ANGELES — Port Angeles Boat Haven moorage tenants and boat house owners will need to remove all expanded polystyrene foam from their vessels and property within two years, or repair or replace immediately any EPS that is found to be breaking down and dispersing into the water.
Failure to do so could result in fines of up to $10,000 a day from the state Department of Ecology and/or action by the Port of Port Angeles.
Commissioners on Tuesday unanimously approved a resolution amending port policy making a ban of EPS enforceable and in compliance with state law, which prohibits the use of EPS in underwater and in-water construction.
“We have in our current rules and regulations that this is supposed to be adhered to,” Executive Director Paul Jarkiewicz said.
“What we’ve noticed is that there’s a lack of adherence to this. It provides a clear and unambiguous deadline as to when EPS flotation devices need to be removed. We have a duty and obligation to make sure that we enforce the rules and regulations of the state.”
EPS has been popular in the maritime sector for its buoyancy and relatively inexpensive cost, but it breaks down and can contaminate the environment and poses risk to aquatic life.
Commissioners asked if the two-year window for compliance was too lenient. Jarkiewicz said it gave individuals who may not have substantial resources enough time to come into compliance.
All tenants and boat house owners will receive notice of the updated policy, he said.
Commissioners also approved extending an agreement for $62,540 with Floyd/Snyder for project management and groundwater monitoring at the former K-Ply mill. In 2016, 54,000 tons of contaminated soil were removed from the site, which had for decades been the location of plywood timber operations.
Since that time, environmental manager Jesse Waknitz said, the port has been conducting semi-annual groundwater monitoring, which has shown contamination levels that are within compliance levels. The agreement will meet Ecology’s requirement for monitoring through 2026.
In other action, the board approved the port seeking a $61 million Airport Improvement Grant from the Federal Aviation Administration for the upgrade of taxiways at William R. Fairchild International Airport.
Airport manager James Alton said the project would involve crack and slurry sealing the eastern portion of Taxiway A, which was last repaired in 2009, and would extend its life by five to seven years. Rehabilitation of the western portion of Taxiway A would extend its life by 20 years; it was last repaired in 1998.
Connector taxiways C, D, E, F, G and H also would be rehabilitated.
Taxiway B is not eligible for FAA funding, so the port would pay $67,538 for its rehabilitation. The FAA would fund $5.7 million of the project, and the state Department of Transporation and the port would contribute a 2.5 percent match of $150,000.
The port would kick in a total of $217,400, which includes the required match and the upgrade of Taxiway B.
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Reporter Paula Hunt can be reached by email at paula.hunt@peninsuladailynews.com.
