Last updated Aug. 18, 2009
King County has reviewed multiple permit applications over several years associated with Glacier Northwest Aggregate's proposal to update its existing surface mining reclamation permit and grading permit (file no. C92G0075 and E98E0502) for their sand and gravel mining on Maury Island. A major element of the proposed revision is reconstruction of the barge facility. This is occurring under a separate building permit (B04C0222) described below.
The existing site is approximately 235 acres and is located in portions of sections 28 and 29, Township 22 north and Range 3 east, on the eastern edge of Maury Island along Admiralty Inlet.
Sand and gravel mining operations have occurred on the site since the 1940s. Mining is currently permitted on the site under King County grading permit no. 1128-714 and Washington State Department of Natural Resources surface mining reclamation permit no. 70-010256. These permits allow mining on approximately 193 acres of the site, however, mining is currently restricted to approximately 40 acres that have been disturbed by previous mining activities. The site has been mostly idle for the last seven years with some occasional screening and removal of sand by truck for use on the islands.
Expanded mining operations proposed three primary components: 1) ground preparation and storage of any materials as may be required by an approved Washington State Department of Ecology clean-up plan, 2) phased mining operations, and 3) reclamation (site restoration).
The current sequential mining plan proposes mining to occur in six 32-acre phases. Up to 7.5 million tons of sand and gravel per year would be extracted from the site depending on market conditions. The total amount of sand and gravel on the site is estimated to be 85 million tons. Active mining operations would be confined to approximately 60 acres at any one time. Large contracts requiring barged material would require up to four 10,000-ton barges per day. No new permanent structures are proposed.
Reclamation would occur as mining reserves in a given area are depleted, and would include slope stabilization and erosion control, final contouring and topsoil placement, and revegetation.
The King County Department of Development and Environmental Services (DDES) has completed its Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the applicant's mining proposal as required under the State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA). The Draft EIS was issued on July 21, 1999. The Final EIS was published on June 27, 2000. A notice of FEIS availability was mailed to everyone who submitted comments on the Draft EIS prior to publication of the Final EIS.
On September 10, 2002, Glacier Northwest filed applications for a shoreline substantial development permit (SDP), file no. L02SH013, and a shoreline conditional use permit (SCUP), file no. L02SH012, to construct an expanded barge loading dock. The SDP is for the construction of a new, larger dock and the SCUP is to recognize "mining" and its associated activities within the shoreline environment.
In 2004, King County denied Glacier's request for shoreline permits for this project. The county's denial of those shoreline permits was challenged by Glacier Northwest to the State Shoreline Hearings Board, which directed King County to issue requisite shoreline permit approvals to Glacier. King County appealed the Shoreline Hearings Board's decision which was subsequently affirmed by the Court of Appeals and Supreme Court of the State of Washington. King County issued the building permit for the dock and barge loading facility in 2006; however, actual construction was delayed pending final approval of federal and state permits and authorizations. The aquatics lease, issued by Washington State Public Lands Commissioner Doug Sutherland on December 2, 2008, was the final remaining permit approval required for Glacier prior to proceeding with the dock construction.
Glacier Northwest Aggregates applied for building permit B04C0222 for reconstruction of the dock on December 21, 2004. After thorough review of the application by this department, the permit was issued on February 9, 2006 with the condition that no work would begin until all other required permits and approvals were in place.
The final approval required to meet this condition was the Aquatics Lease approved by State Lands Commissioner Sutherland on December 2, 2008. Subsequent to the lease approval, Glacier requested authorization to proceed. The notice to proceed was provided by DDES on December 5, 2008 and work on the reconstruction project was begun immediately by Manson Construction.
DDES has, since approval of the building permit, been conducting regular inspections on this project for compliance with the building permit and shorelines approvals and conditions. On December 29, 2008, operations were suspended by Manson Construction when the on-site consultant, Grette & Associates, found sand lance eggs on the beach in the construction area. This was in compliance with the conditions of the Hydraulic Project Approval (HPA) issued by the Washington State Department of Fish and Wildlife. Reconstruction resumed on January 7, 2009 when the consultant determined the eggs were no longer present. Grette & Associates provides the fulltime on-site independent inspection required by condition 42 of the shorelines substantial development permit.
In accordance with the requirements of the HPA, the construction window for in water work closed on January 15, 2009. An inspection on that date confirmed that in water work had ceased.
| DDES issued a Notice-to-Proceed for building permit application B04C0222 on December 5, 2008. This notice authorized construction subject to compliance with all conditions associated with the building permit, and all other permits associated with this project, state and federal. On August 13, 2009, US District Court invalidated the required federal permits previously approved for this building permit application. Therefore, on August 17, 2009 , the department determined that the project is now out of compliance with the Notice-to-Proceed. DDES has notified the permittee that construction is no longer authorized under this building permit application. |
DDES has been closely coordinating inspections with other agencies and will continue to do so. The building inspector for the project is Jim Nicholas and he can be contacted at 206-296-6770 or e-mail james.nicholas@kingcounty.gov.
The existing grading permit which has allowed some mining activity during the last several years was first issued in 1970. This permit originally allowed trucking and barging of gravel off-site, but Glacier eventually stopped barging due to reduction in market demand. During the past several years, DDES has been on-site at least once per month, with only a small amount of material removed from the site in trucks. This permit must be updated in order for Glacier to remove the proposed amount of sand and gravel from the site.
The revision to this permit is still under review and, if approved, will include conditions and reference to all other associated permits and approvals. For more information on this proposed grading permit, please contact Fred White, DDES Site Development Specialist, at 206-296-6783 or e-mail fred.white@kingcounty.gov.
For more information about this project, contact
Fred White E-mail: fred.white@kingcounty.gov |
Jim Nicholas E-mail: james.nicholas@kingcounty.gov |
*Note: To view PDFs, free software from Adobe is required. See helpful hints for assistance.
To request this information in alternate formats for people with disabilities, call 206-296-6600 or TTY Relay: 711.