6b motion

Item No.:     6b_attach_1 
Meeting Date: September 22, 2015 

DRAFT MOTION OF THE PORT OF SEATTLE REGARDING REMEDIATION OF THE LOWER
DUWAMISH WATERWAY FOR THE BENEFIT OF LOCAL COMMUNITIES, WATERWAY USERS AND
THE ENVIRONMENT. 
PROPOSED SEPTEMBER ___, 2015 
TEXT OF THE MOTION 
The Port of Seattle supports moving cleanup actions in the Lower Duwamish Waterway
forward in an expeditious manner that reduces environmental risk to affected communities, such
as South Park, Georgetown, fishers and Tribal communities, as quickly as possible. 
The Port of Seattle supports the choice of cleanup technologies based on information
from studies concluded prior to and during the remedial design phase of the cleanup effort,
including information on waterway uses and the results of pre-design sampling and
environmental evaluations. Appropriate cleanup technology choices will ensure the cleanup's
long term effectiveness and permanence while also achieving cleanup goals as quickly as
possible and minimizing short-term impacts to affected communities, businesses and the
environment.
The Port of Seattle will continue its participation in the EPA-led outreach efforts to local
communities and interests concerning the implementation of EPA's Lower Duwamish Site
Record of Decision in order to assist EPA in ensuring that information concerning Lower
Duwamish remediation is effectively shared with all affected communities and interests. 
The Port of Seattle will continue its source control efforts to assist in reducing
contaminant inputs to the Lower Duwamish in order to facilitate the effective implementation of
the Lower Duwamish cleanup. 
STATEMENT IN SUPPORT OF THE MOTION 
The Lower Duwamish Waterway was created to facilitate shipping, industrial development and
maritime commerce, and has served as a key component of the region's transportation and
commercial infrastructure for nearly 100 years. Today, t he Lower Duwamish Waterway is a
federal Superfund site due to sediment contamination that poses threats to human health and the
environment. Communities including tribal members, low-income, immigrant and refugee
families live, work and fish along the Lower Duwamish Waterway. Local businesses along the
Lower Duwamish Waterway have provided and continue to provide a livelihood for residents
throughout the region. 
The Port of Seattle has, along with the City of Seattle, King County, and Boeing (collectively,
the "Lower Duwamish Waterway Group") and under the oversight of the United States
Environmental Protection Agency ("EPA") and Washington State Department of Ecology, for
the past fifteen years, voluntarily participated in investigations of contamination in the Lower
Duwamish Waterway and the development and evaluation of approaches to its remediation.
The Lower Duwamish Waterway Group is continuing work related to the Duwamish cleanup by
carrying out a study of fishing activity and a study evaluating the effectiveness of activated

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Item No.:     6b_attach_1 
Meeting Date: September 22, 2015 
carbon use as a supplement to available cleanup technologies, with the goal of reducing seafood
concentrations of contaminants. 
The Port has made significant investments to improve the environment in the Duwamish
corridor. The Port has successfully addressed contamination at Terminal 117 and in adjacent
Lower Duwamish sediments. Port has reduced diesel particulate emissions from its operations
by more than 34% per ton of cargo through its Northwest Ports Clean Air Strategy since 2005 
and has a goal of reducing diesel particulate emissions per ton of cargo by 80% by 2020, thereby
reducing health impacts to communities in the Duwamish corridor.  The Port has created,
restored and enhanced over 30 acres of habitat in the Duwamish waterway and Elliott Bay. The
Port Commission has adopted the Lower Duwamish River Habitat Restoration Plan, which 
identifies over 70 acres of additional habitat restoration and enhancement opportunities on Portowned
properties along the Lower Duwamish Waterway.
The Port is a special purpose government with a goal of creating 100,000 additional jobs while
reducing our environmental footprint. The Port is committed to responsible environmental
stewardship as an element of the Port's strategic goals and has set aggressive environmental
goals as part of our Century Agenda. 
EPA has issued its Record of Decision concerning Lower Duwamish sediment remediation. 
The Port anticipates continued participation, along with other parties, in the pre-design and
design work that must be completed prior to implementation of the Lower Duwamish site
remedy. 









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