Toxic Legacy in Humboldt Bay

by Humboldt Baykeeper of Humboldt Baykeeper
August 22, 2007


A report released in April 2007 by Simpson Timber Company confirms extensive dioxin contamination at the site of the former Simpson Plywood Mill on Waterfront Drive in Eureka. Simpson and a previous owner used dioxin-laden wood preservative pentachlorophenol (penta) at the site from the 1950's to 1968. Those chemicals are still present at highly toxic levels beneath the old sawmill, in adjacent drainage ditches, and in Humboldt Bay sediments.

Simpson's report was in response to dioxin sampling done by Humboldt Baykeeper and Californians for Alternatives to Toxics (CATs), who filed suit late last year seeking clean-up of polluted soil and groundwater that flows to Humboldt Bay and
the Eureka Marsh. Baykeeper and CATs found dioxin at levels tens of thousands times higher than the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) considers safe.

A poster of Humboldt Bay available at Humboldt Baykeeper. Photo: poster by Trees Foundation GIS Department

In a 2003 report to the North Coast Regional Water Quality Control Board produced by SHN Consulting for Simpson, the company claimed that contaminated soil had been removed and requested that regulators drop requirements for further clean-up of the site. But Simpson and SHN had not sampled for dioxin contamination, prompting Baykeeper and CATs to hire consultants to investigate soil adjacent to the site for dioxin.

Simpson's new report confirms the significant dioxin contamination found by Baykeeper and CATs at the site.
"This report clearly shows that Simpson's old mill is a dioxin hot spot that is contributing to Humboldt Bay's dioxin problem," said Pete Nichols of Humboldt Baykeeper. "It is time to get this site cleaned up to the highest and safest standards possible."

For more information:
www.humboldtbaykeeper.org


This article can be found online at www.treesfoundation.org/publications/article-283

Forest & River News is produced by Trees Foundation. For more information contact:
Humboldt Baykeeper
422 First Street Suite G
Eureka, CA 95501
Email: pete@humboldtbaykeeper.org
Phone: (707) 268-0664 Fax: (707) 268-0665