Mined Over Maury

by Hannah Lee

The battle has spanned four years and is going on its fifth. It is a thorn in the side of just about every conservationist in Puget Sound who cares about the last remaining patches of wildness in the area. Amidst the hubbub of commercial activity and the notorious traffic that our region is known for is Maury Island, a small refuge of tranquil indifference to the cares of man's harried existence.

Located just southeast of its larger cousin, Vashon Island, Maury Island is a short boat ride across the water from the city of Des Moines. Known for its natural features and rural feel, the island is also a habitat for many different species of wildlife, including local salmon and killer whales.

Northwest Aggregates, a subsidiary of the foreign-owned company Glacier Northwest, has since 1999 been seeking to expand gravel mining operations on the eastern side of the island, arguing that expansion would cause no harm to the wildlife in the area.

Strong opposition was raised against the Department of Fish and Wildlife's granting of a permit to the company for a 370-foot pier that would expand existing gravel mining operations from 15,000 tons to up to 7.5 million tons per year.

The gravel would be transported by barges, requiring that the huge pier be built for loading. While gravel-mining activity is nothing new to Maury Island--it has been happening there for decades--public outcry has been stirred by concerns about the environmental consequences that will inevitably result if Glacier Northwest is given permission to build.

Arsenic levels were found to be high in the Maury Island gravel pit during an impact survey conducted in 1999, when expansion was first proposed. But the city of Des Moines voted against the expansion that May, which was followed by a King County requirement for Glacier to apply for a permit for expansion. In late 2000, the State Department of Fish and Wildlife issued an opinion stating that Glacier would be reasonably able to conduct barging in a manner that would not threaten local wildlife habitat.

Island residents subsequently began an effort to close down the mine. Questions were raised concerning possible aquatic reserve designation for the waters surrounding Maury Island. An aquatic reserve status would not prevent mining operations altogether but would at least help to prevent Glacier's expansion.

Incredibly enough, Glacier later requested approval of the pit and dock expansion without requiring that any permits be obtained, which only further incensed many Maury residents and other opponents of the proposal. In July of 2002, the Cascade Land Conservancy thanked Patty Murray for securing $1.8 million toward purchase of the existing 300 acre gravel pit owned by Glacier. Murray later secured an additional $2 million.

Purchase of the pit was unsuccessful, and mining by Glacier resumed in 2004 while dock expansion plans continued. But in January of this year, in a breakthrough effort, local conservationists appealed, and state superior court Judge Sharon Armstrong granted a stay that would delay issuance of dock permits to Glacier by at least a year.

Glacier claims that only 1.5 to 2 million tons of gravel are slated to be removed per year, as opposed to the 7.5 million that was estimated by potential impact assessments. Ron Summers, Vice President for the local division of Glacier Northwest, said that the proposed dock would be built of steel instead of creosote pilings, and be of small surface area. The company also defended its proposal as environmentally safe.

Summers told the Seattle Post-Intelligencer in summer 2004 that "extensive environmental analysis" had been completed, and that the pier would be designed to protect the shoreline. Glacier also claims that their barges are both efficient and clean. For all the promises of ecological soundness, conservationists are wary. None of these assurances were given on paper.

Over 500 people attended a public hearing on May 17th to speak out against the proposed expansion of the mine, and another hearing followed when the Army Corps of Engineers opened its doors for public comment on May 31st. The outcry has been substantial, the arguments many.

More than the aesthetic transgression of putting a huge hole in the island, the main concern about the gravel mine is wildlife. A lighted dock is bad for birds navigating routes over Maury Island, and the island is critical habitat for western grebes, whose populations are in decline.

Maury waters are also essential habitat for eelgrass, another threatened aquatic species. Runoff would cause nearshore "dead zones" like the ones that are already common throughout the Puget Sound. Damage to eelgrass beds would inextricably affect other fish species, including herring, surf smelt, sand lance, and the salmon that come from as far away as Skagit River to use the Maury Island Shoreline as their spawning grounds.

In light of recent local events, Puget Sounders know all too well that oil spill risk increases with vessel traffic. The potentially high levels of vessel activity triggered by expansion of the mining site carry dismal consequences to local marine mammals, including river otters, harbor seals, harbor porpoises and sea lions. The killer whales that regularly feed in Vashon-Maury waters would suffer harm, their fishing and migrations disrupted by the noise and traffic of the dock's loading and barging activities.

Another concern is drinking water for the human population of Maury. With up to ten percent of the island's landmass being removed to a depth reaching within 15 feet of the Maury fresh water aquifer, local residents are concerned about the safety of their water source and the risk of soil contamination and polluted runoff from the mining site.

Clearly, with the issuance of permits hanging in the balance, at stake is not just the health of an island but that of the entire Puget Sound. Existing pollution presents enough of a challenge for our wildlife and human residents. The largest obstacle in the fight to save Maury is the sheer shortage of political muscle. Said Brad Ack of Puget Sound Action Team: "The jury's out on whether the will exists to save Puget Sound."

Add some push to the Maury Island gravel mining issue by visiting www.preserveourislands.org as well as www.pugetsound.org/index. Find out about how you can help as the debate continues to unfold in the coming months.

An excellent archived public-radio report on the Maury topic is at this website .