PORT ANGELES — The earliest the cleanup at the former Rayonier mill site could be completed — clearing the way for development on the prime waterfront real estate — will be three more years, state Department of Ecology Director Jay Manning said Wednesday.
“A minimum of three years, unless a buyer shows up,” Manning said during a meeting with the PDN.
“It’s going to take a while under the best circumstances.”
However, Manning said he would work with Rayonier and the Lower Elwha Klallam tribe to accelerate the cleanup process.
“We well understand the frustration level in the community with the pace, or the lack of pace,” Manning said.
“We cannot take six months to make every decision.”
The Rayonier pulp mill at 700 Ennis St., east of downtown Port Angeles, shut down in March 1997.
The 75-acre property is in the sixth year of a toxic-waste cleanup project supervised by Ecology, Rayonier and the Lower Elwha Klallam tribe.