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06/05/2006: "Tukang Project Strikes Oil"

(Engineering Geologist Dan Sorenson inspects site where oil was found)

Excavation of a former tank farm below Vinny's Restaurant, and across the street from Downriggers waterfront Restaurant, ran into an old pipe filled with what appears to be diesel fuel. The discovery of the pipe by an excavator led to a small spill of material, and started a search for the source of the pipe, and concerns that where there is some, there may be more. And sure enough, just when the Town thought they had stopped the flow, Bob Freeauf, Maintenance Manager for the Port of Friday Harbor saw an oil sheen on the water in the harbor.

Tukang Enterprises, L.L.C. purchased the property and has proposed to construct a number of buildings on the property that will be a combination of residential condos and retail stores, and in anticipation of making formal application for a building permit, they have begun blasting and the excavation of the site. While the site is well known to have been used as a petroleum tank farm, apparently the project developer failed to conduct a thorough investigation of the property to determine if a site clean-up was required. The recent spill has now impacted not only the subject project, but also Town right of way and Port property.

(Oil boom in place on Port Property)

Once the oil was noted, project manager Misty Todd contacted King Fitch, Town Administrator, and asked him to get involved. Mr. Fitch contacted Department of Ecology, and began to take steps to stop the flows, and find the source and the means by which it was entering Port waters and Town property. The local oil spill group worked over the weekend setting up booms and long sweeps of oil absorbent pads to contain and collect oil that had made it to the Port waters next to Downriggers restaurant. While this was going on, Todd contacted GEOTEST in Bellingham, and samples from the site have now been tested and found to be below the level that would trigger worker safety and clean up standards. There is still the need to remove the contaminated soil, clean the pipes and catch-basins, and also remove some rocks from the shoreline.

The work on the site cleanup will have to be done by qualified workers following standards that control the work, and the material removed will have to taken off island to an approve site. So who pays for all this? Well clearly the owners of the property will foot the bills for their work on their property, and since the impacts on public Port and Town property resulted from the Tukang property, it is expected the Port and the Town will be sending their bills to Tukang for payment. King Fitch has "informed Misty Todd that the Town was expecting the current property owner to bare the expense for the clean up." King stated that while "she did not immediately agree to this, but would consider it." So far, work has been allowed to continue on the project.