We are excited to see the initiation of the final Port Gamble Bay cleanup plan. It is historic on several levels.

One, it will (hopefully) restore the shoreline and aquatic lands to a condition unseen since industrial use of the mill site began in 1853.

Two, it will be, according to the state Department of Ecology, the largest piling removal project to date in the Puget Sound region.

Three, Port Gamble Bay is one of seven priority bays identified for cleanup under the Puget Sound Initiative, established by Gov. Christine Gregoire to coordinate efforts to restore and protect the health of Puget Sound by 2020.

Four, the removal of wood waste and creosoted pilings will improve the health of the local ecosystem – eelgrass is habitat for Pacific herring, which are forage fish for salmon, and so on. The bay is home to numerous living species, all very important to the environment in which they live, as well as to people who depend on shellfish and finfish as part of their diet and economy.

Five, getting to the point where the cleanup can begin has involved numerous interests — Pope Resources, local residents, county government, state agencies, the Port Gamble S’Klallam Tribe. Millions of dollars have been spent on cleanup to date; millions more raised to acquire and conserve upland and shoreline property on the bay. Eelgrass has been planted, new oyster beds have been seeded. That we’re now at the point where the final cleanup can begin is a credit to all who have been involved.

Pope Resources will lead the cleanup effort under Ecology’s oversight. The in-water work will remove about 6,000 creosote-coated pilings, overwater structures, and about 70,000 cubic yards of wood waste and contaminated sediments. Wood waste located close to shore will be dredged, and remaining areas contaminated by wood waste will be capped with clean material.

The cleanup is estimated to cost $20 million, with the costs shared by Pope Resources, whose predecessor company operated the mill; and the state Department of Natural Resources, which owns the aquatic lands. How much will be shared by whom is the subject of a lawsuit filed in Superior Court by Pope Resources.

While the cost-sharing is being resolved in court, the cleanup begins. We look forward to a healthy bay, and a project that will set the standard for cleanup and restoration projects throughout the Puget Sound region.