High PCB levels found in South Seattle

05:36 PM PST on Tuesday, November 9, 2004

By GARY CHITTIM / KING 5 News

SEATTLE - Some routine testing in a South Seattle neighborhood shows severe contamination with dangerous PCBs that requires immediate clean-up.

Little yellow flags and pink ribbons mark the spots of the dangerous toxins that exceed state clean-up levels in Seattle's South Park area

Resident Melisa Ahner was surprised and a little concerned when she received a map showing she's living next to polychloronated biphynels, or PCBs.

PCBs are cancer-causing toxins that were banned in 1979 but are still very much a threat worldwide.

PCBs were used extensively by industries in the neighborhood, including a former asphalt plant. Many of the industries are gone, but not the PCBs.

"The levels were higher than any other place in the city streets system in the city so that was a little bit of a find," said Martin Baker of Seattle Public Utilities.

State law requires a cleanup of any site contaminated with even one part per million PCBs.

"Right now the hottest sample is 24 parts per million at surface with 93 parts per million six inches below," said Dan Cargill of the Washington Department of Ecology.

KING

The ground in the Seattle' South Park neighborhood is contaminated with PCBs.

That means the road, some yards and parking lots wi ll have to be stripped down and resurfaced. The good news is the PCBs stick to soil and do not easily transfer to people in this form.

But it is bad enough that health officials suggest anyone walking on the road thoroughly clean their shoes before they enter their homes. There is also a plan to put a tire-cleaning facility at the end of the road to make sure no vehicles leave with PCBs on their tires.

The last thing anyone wants is the small neighborhood to share its toxic hot pockets with the rest of the city.

While city crews begin the clean-up, investigators will look for the source. They said the area cannot be truly decontaminated until they know where the PCBs are coming from.

Just nearby, in the Duwamish river, there is a mystery slick stretching a quarter mile down the river. The EPA and Coast Guard are investigating the slick which appears to originate from the east side of the Duwamish near the 16th Street Bridge.

They are checking sewer outfalls and underwater pipes in the area.