Cornet Bay gets a clean bill of health

Cornet Bay Marina will come off the state’s list of contaminated sites if public comments don’t prevent that exit, Washington State Department of Ecology officials said Tuesday.

Cornet Bay Marina will come off the state’s list of contaminated sites if public comments don’t prevent that exit, Washington State Department of Ecology officials said Tuesday.

The 1.1-acre site at 200 Cornet Bay Road, Oak Harbor, underwent a cleanup in 2014, followed by a year of groundwater monitoring. The department determined it now meets state standards for protecting public health and the environment.

As part of the $4.2-million clean-up, crews excavated about 23,000 tons of petroleum-contaminated soil and brought in clean soil to replace it. They installed a 360-foot steel bulkhead to replace an old wooden one and removed more petroleum-contaminated soil from a small nearby wetland.

Then they collected and tested soil and groundwater samples for a year.

The work was done under a cost-sharing plan with the property owner.

Comments may be sent through Nov. 9 to Jing.Liu@ecy.wa.gov or Department of Ecology, 3190 160th Ave. SE, Bellevue, Wash. 98008.