Pacific Creosoting Company
Encyclopedia
Pacific Creosoting Company was a company on Bainbridge Island's Eagle Harbor
. Its factory coated logs with creosote
. It began operations as The Perfection Pile Preserving Company in 1904 and was taken over and renamed by Horace Chapin Henry
in 1906 when he introduced the new Bethell Process.
The company went bankrupt in 1993 under pressure from the Environmental Protection Agency
to clean up its operations. The site was put on the Superfund
list in 1987 for PAH
, heavy metals
and PCB
pollution.
Between 1994 and 2002, the US Army Corps of Engineers created a one to three foot cap of clean sediments over the bottom of the harbor to contain polluted sediments.
Eagle Harbor
Eagle Harbor may refer to a water body or community in the United States:* Eagle Harbor , an inlet in Bainbridge Island at the community of Winslow, Washington** Eagle Harbor High School* Eagle Harbor, Maryland* Eagle Harbor Township, Michigan...
. Its factory coated logs with creosote
Creosote
Creosote is the portion of chemical products obtained by the distillation of a tar that remains heavier than water, notably useful for its anti-septic and preservative properties...
. It began operations as The Perfection Pile Preserving Company in 1904 and was taken over and renamed by Horace Chapin Henry
Horace Chapin Henry
Horace Chapin Henry was an early Seattle businessman and founder of the Henry Art Gallery.-Biography:He was born at the Henry House in Bennington, Vermont in October, 1844....
in 1906 when he introduced the new Bethell Process.
The company went bankrupt in 1993 under pressure from the Environmental Protection Agency
United States Environmental Protection Agency
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is an agency of the federal government of the United States charged with protecting human health and the environment, by writing and enforcing regulations based on laws passed by Congress...
to clean up its operations. The site was put on the Superfund
Superfund
Superfund is the common name for the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 , a United States federal law designed to clean up sites contaminated with hazardous substances...
list in 1987 for PAH
Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon
Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons , also known as poly-aromatic hydrocarbons or polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons, are potent atmospheric pollutants that consist of fused aromatic rings and do not contain heteroatoms or carry substituents. Naphthalene is the simplest example of a PAH...
, heavy metals
Heavy metals
A heavy metal is a member of a loosely-defined subset of elements that exhibit metallic properties. It mainly includes the transition metals, some metalloids, lanthanides, and actinides. Many different definitions have been proposed—some based on density, some on atomic number or atomic weight,...
and PCB
Polychlorinated biphenyl
Polychlorinated biphenyls are a class of organic compounds with 2 to 10 chlorine atoms attached to biphenyl, which is a molecule composed of two benzene rings. The chemical formula for PCBs is C12H10-xClx...
pollution.
Between 1994 and 2002, the US Army Corps of Engineers created a one to three foot cap of clean sediments over the bottom of the harbor to contain polluted sediments.