Facelift proposed for former Anacortes public dump

ANACORTES, Wash. — It used to be a public dump – then, a sawmill.

Until recently, decades of household, commercial and industrial waste littered March Point Landfill, often called Whitemarsh Landfill.

Now, the Washington Department of Ecology wants to clean it up. The environmental regulation agency is drafting a landfill investigation and cleanup effort under a legal agreement with Skagit County, the Washington Department of Natural Resources, Shell Oil Co. and Texaco Inc.

But it's going to take a whole lot of work.

The agency is inviting members of the public to make comment on documents they've draft related to the contamination and proposed cleanup efforts. The comment period lasts through July 28. Click here to learn more. 

The documents include the results of contamination tests, possible cleanup options and a public participation plan that details how people can stay informed about the site's cleanup.

The site operated as a landfill from 1950 until 1973. It was first used as an unregulated public dump and later became a county disposal area.

A sawmill operated at the site from the late 1980s into August 2011. At one point, wood waste up to 10 feet thick accumulated over large portions of the landfill.

Cox Media Group