SENATE BILL REPORT

SB 5575

BYSenators Kreidler, Talmadge and Rinehart

Limiting the disposal of materials into Puget Sound.

Senate Committee on Parks & Ecology

Senate Hearing Date(s):February 11, 1987

Senate Staff:Gary Wilburn (786-7453)

AS OF FEBRUARY 9, 1987

BACKGROUND:

The deregulation of the disposal of material into Puget Sound waters, which consist primarily of dredged sediments, is divided among various federal and state programs specifying differing permit processes.  Open water disposal is regulated by the United States Army Corps of Engineers pursuant to Section 404 of the Clean Water Act and Section 10 of the Rivers and Harbors Act.  For each project required to receive a Corps permit, Section 401 of the Clean Water Act requires that the Department of Ecology certify that the project will not violate any applicable effluent limits or water quality criteria.

The Department of Ecology has developed guidelines for issuing water quality certifications for dredging and disposal actions.  Additionally, the Shoreline Management Act requires that the applicant obtain a Shoreline Substantial Development Permit from the affected city or county with jurisdiction for any dredging or filling operation.  Excavation and discharge of contaminated sediments or other fill are regulated by this system whether proposed for unconfined open water disposal, confined in-water disposal, shoreline fill, or off-land burial in the shoreline zone.  The Department of Natural Resources, the state agency responsible for managing the state's aquatic lands, regulates the use of such lands for the discharge of dredged material.

Selection of regional sites for the disposal of dredge material is subject to the advice of an interagency open-water disposal site evaluation committee composed of representatives of the State Departments of Ecology, Fisheries, Game, and Natural Resources, United States Army Corps of Engineers, National Marine Fishery Service, Environmental Protection Agency, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

As open-water dredged material disposal sites are located in locations which are designated "shorelines of statewide significance" under the Shoreline Management Act, shoreline permit decisions should give preference to uses which recognize and protect the statewide interest over local interest.

The use of open-water disposal sites in Puget Sound waters for large volumes of dredge material, much of which may be contaminated, has been identified by the Puget Sound Water Quality Authority as a potential source of the pollution of Puget Sound.  The use of Puget Sound waters for open-water confined disposal of large volumes of contaminated sediments, such as proposed by the United States Navy in the Everett Homeport Project, constitutes a significant alteration of existing practice and policy regarding the disposal of dredged material in Puget Sound.  There is presently no statutory policy regarding the level of contamination allowable in dredge material to be disposed of in Puget Sound waters.

SUMMARY:

The disposal of large volumes of material into Puget Sound waters is found by the Legislature to have potentially significant and adverse impacts upon water quality and associated marine life.  Persons seeking to dispose of material in excess of 3,000,000 cubic yards into the waters of Puget Sound must first obtain approval by the Department of Ecology.  For approval, the Department must find that the disposal project is consistent with any applicable local master plan and state master program under the Shoreline Management Act, and that the material does not exceed any applicable criteria for the presence of contaminants of equal volume and character adopted under the Federal Ocean Dumping Act relating to disposal in ocean waters.

Public lands of the State of Washington shall not be transferred where the intended use by the transferee is to dispose of material in excess of 3,000,000 cubic yards into the waters of Puget Sound, unless the transferee consents to appropriate need restrictions subjecting the transferee to the Department of Ecology's review under the Act.

Fiscal Note:      requested

Effective Date:The bill contains an emergency clause and takes effect immediately.