Toxic Tacoma legacy not behind us yet
Tacoma and Pierce County are in the middle of renaissance. We’ve long since put the “aroma in Tacoma” jab in our rearview. New businesses and organizations have brought a wave of 21st Century industry to our corner of the Puget Sound.
But while we no longer may be tagged with the industry town label, that legacy has the potential to shackle us to a past we desperately need to rise above.
Our revitalized waterfront is the perfect example. Its rebirth has been the poster child for how Tacoma has changed. With new businesses, restaurants, art and culture, it shows what can be done when we come together to clean up and revitalize our town.
Many areas were once deeply and dangerously polluted but now have a new lease on life. But we still have work to do.
To break that cycle of pollution, we have to simultaneously invest in preventing and controlling what’s still coming into our community. If we don’t prioritize both toxic cleanup and prevention, it’s like bailing water out of a boat without patching the leak.
For decades Washington has had a program that focuses on cleaning up and preventing polluted sites across the state. Since the 1980s the Model Toxics Control Act has helped clean up 6,000 sites statewide. In Tacoma and Pierce County, we have roughly 660 sites where cleanup is underway or that await funding.
MTCA funding has also helped make Tacoma and Pierce County a leader in reducing the largest source of water pollution: toxic stormwater runoff. Research at WSU-Puyallup is fundamentally changing how we define modern infrastructure; Tacoma is putting this research to work near the University of Washington Tacoma campus and at Point Defiance Park.
But recently MTCA projects have been under threat due to a historic funding decline. A state report last November found that funds vary greatly from year to year and that the demand for money far exceeds available dollars.
The state has cut millions of dollars for cleaning up toxic sites and pollution prevention. Work in our communities and around the state is starting to stall.
We need action from state leaders to reduce pollution that harms our health and supports local economic development. Without MTCA funding, our waterfront transformation would never have happened and many areas would still be unsafe for redevelopment.
While legislators in Olympia passed an operating budget last month, they unfortunately failed to address sustainable funding for toxic cleanups and pollution prevention projects. House Bill 2182 is a reasonable, equitable solution that will get us back on track; they should support it in the next session.
Tacoma, after all, is the City of Destiny, and Pierce County demonstrates the promise of natural solutions. If we make the right choices today, there’s no stopping this place we call home.
Anders Ibsen represents the 1st District on the Tacoma City Council. Reach him by email at anders.ibsen@cityoftacoma.org
This story was originally published July 29, 2017 at 2:03 PM with the headline "Toxic Tacoma legacy not behind us yet."