The Washington State Department of Ecology is inviting the public to review and comment on a draft legal agreement that will require BNSF Railway Co. and Marathon Oil Co. to investigate petroleum-related contamination on property in Hillyard.

The investigation is part of the beginning phase of cleanup at the site. The site is located near 3202 E. Wellesley Ave. and is directly over the Hillyard Trough portion of the Spokane Valley Rathdrum Prairie Aquifer, which provides drinking water to more than 620,000 residents in the Spokane/Coeur d’Alene area.

The property belongs to BNSF. Marathon Oil and its predecessors leased the property to store petroleum products, which were then used for various industrial purposes.

BNSF already removed a large (50-foot diameter), above-ground storage tank along with contaminated soil that was found underneath it. The tank contained petroleum products and was connected to various pipes and other infrastructure facilities. Storing them began as early as 1955 and continued until 2006. The historic industrial operations there resulted in releases of the product to soil and groundwater.

Groundwater samples from eight monitoring wells near the site of the old tank contain petroleum product. However, current information indicates that drinking water has not been affected by the site’s contamination. What’s called a “remedial investigation” will provide additional information to identify the extent and concentration of contaminants at the site. A “feasibility study” will evaluate the different cleanup options. One of those options will be selected to guide the cleanup.

If the remedial investigation shows drinking water is affected, Ecology and the Spokane Regional Health District will notify residents immediately and take actions to protect the public.

The legal document, called an “agreed order,” and associated documents, including a scope of work and a plan for how the public will be updated, are available at the Department of Ecology’s Spokane office by making an appointment with Kari Johnson, kari.johnson@ecy.wa.gov. They also are available on this Ecology webpage and at the Spokane Library’s Hillyard Branch, 4005 N. Cook St.

Comments will be accepted through Aug. 20, 2012. Send them to: Jeremy Schmidt, Washington Department of Ecology, 4601 N. Monroe St., Spokane, WA 99205-1295, or by email to jeremy.schmidt@ecy.wa.gov.

Ecology will review and consider all comments received by Aug. 20, 2012. It is possible the documents will change, based on public comment.

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