Good Afternoon Councilmembers and Mayor Lund,
I am sure by now you have heard about the barge that came in last week, and was immediately sent away by the Port, due to environmental concerns.
18 months into the activity, and after over a year of acknowledging a need for pollutant mitigation and an independent ABC Recycling Industrial Stormwater General Permit, the Port is just now cracking down on ABC for violations of its lease. These violations occurred from the start. Protecting the Bay is not easy, when a heavy industrial activity such as multiple polluting metal piles, that are stories tall and hundreds of feet long, are left unenclosed and open to stormwater runoff. It hasn’t even had a SEPA review!
Are we to trust the Port, when these violations were on going for so long, but only when the violations became visibly blatant to the community, did they finally act?
This is not the first time the Port has been found asleep at the helm. Although they have gotten good at PR spin, it cannot be ignored that once again, far after environmental pollution was known, the Port acted only when made to do so because circumstances and visibility to the community made it.
Soon, you may have a presentation from the Port about economic development, their mission. This presentation seems to be focused on the challenges the Port will face due to possible City Council action on clarifying the Noise Disturbance Policy. I say clarifying because it already prohibits industrial noise from disturbing residents.
Maybe the question should not be, “how will policy changes affect your mission?”, but “Port, when are you going to fulfill your mission by focusing on that which is already agreed upon and proven to be economically important to Bellingham?”
That which is already agreed upon is the Waterfront Plan. A more devastating activity, than a massive polluting metal pile in the middle of the Waterfront, cannot be imagined, to hinder the Waterfront’s success. Will the Boardmill Building succeed with the pile and activity right outside its doors?
“The 2016 Bellingham Comprehensive Plan projects a demand for 6,459 new infill housing units and 3,930 new jobs within Urban Villages by the year 2036. The Waterfront District encompasses a significant portion of the vacant land within City Urban Villages. Redevelopment at urban density is an important element in the City’s adopted infill strategy.” – Waterfront Sub-area Plan – Pg 8
Instead, we are immediately reverting to the days of heavy industrial polluting activities. The benefits? 4 jobs at the metal pile, and 2 full time equivalent local longshoreman jobs at the Shipping Terminal. That’s it. When the agreed upon plan expects thousands of jobs, and we get 6, we must ask the Port, “are you fulfilling your mission?”
Looking forward to talking with you soon.
Sincerely,
Save The Waterfront Foundation
www.savethewaterfront.org
