Opening statements in Snohomish County Superior Court before Judge Jon Scott have initiated a four-week bench trial between the Port of Everett and timber corporation Weyerhaeuser over liability for a projected $250 million environmental cleanup along Port Gardner Bay.
Jarrett emphasized that public taxpayers should not be forced to subsidize private corporate decontamination costs resulting from nearly a century of intensive milling operations.
Marine sampling documented by the Washington Department of Ecology Cleanup Site Search indicates that approximately 350,000 cubic yards of wood waste rests upon the marine floor at depths exceeding forty feet.
Bart Williams argued that this containment structure directly overlaps with the port's long-term maritime master plan, effectively constructing the structural foundation for an expanded shipping berth at the South Terminal without requiring the port to pay standard capital development costs.
Department of Ecology Withdraws $87 Million in Remedial Grants Amid Litigation Stalemate The timing of the bench trial follows an administrative crisis that disrupted the cleanup program's financing earlier this year.
A four-week bench trial in Snohomish County Superior Court will determine whether timber giant Weyerhaeuser or the Port of Everett pays for removing 350,000 cubic yards of toxic wood waste from Port Gardner Bay.