Arrow-right Camera
The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Creosote-treated logs targeted at park beach clean up

Associated Press

SEATTLE – Washington officials will begin removing creosote-treated logs from the beach at Seahurst Park in Burien as part of a statewide effort to clean up the state’s shorelines.

KING-TV reports that the work beginning this month in Puget Sound involves crews with the Washington State Department of Natural Resources periodically visiting the park to collect the logs.

Creosote is used to treat logs and protect them from rotting in water and is often used on wood structures and pilings in estuaries.

Officials say creosote-treated materials can leach into the beach and marine sediments, releasing toxins harmful to organisms that live there or visit.

The state’s creosote removal program began in 2004, and officials say workers have pulled nearly 15,000 unused pilings and removed 21,300 tons of creosote from Puget Sound.