A warehouse is about to be developed on 123rd Street, in Lakewood’s Springbrook neighborhood. Are there toxic substances on the property, specifically PFAS? To my knowledge, the results of any testing have not been released.
Lakewood is being poisoned, and the actions of private developers could make the problem worse.
The poisons in question are per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, commonly known as PFAS. It is well know than PFAS are extremely toxic. They are associated with a variety of cancers, thyroid disease, low birth weight and infertility. In 2016, the Environmental Protection Agency set a safe limit of 70 parts per trillion for drinking water. In June, the EPA reduced these limits for some PFAS substances, to effectively zero parts per trillion.
A recent scientific article in the Journal of Hepatology Reports considered the impact of PFAS on liver health. The study found that high exposure to one PFAS, perfluorooctane sulfonic acid, increased the odds of getting liver cancer by 4.5 times.
Perfluorooctane sulfonic acid (PFOS) is used in fire-fighting foams, of the kind that are frequently used on airbases. For example, on Joint Base Lewis McChord (JBLM).
Thousands of gallons of foam have been splattered around JBLM, and they have contaminated the immediate environment. Not only has the soil been contaminated, but also Lakewood’s s precious water resources.
The City is well aware of the problem. In July 2020 The Tacoma News Tribune wrote that
Lakewood Water District is suing the U.S. government, including the Department of Defense, the Air Force and the Army as well as 13 manufacturers, including 3M and DuPont, of firefighting foam used on Joint Base Lewis-McChord that leaked into the groundwater supply.
The clean-up is going to be an expensive process, with the Water District envisioning that over the next 50 years it will cost over $377 million.
Still, we can’t have PFAS getting in the way of progress. The area next to JBLM, which includes Springbrook, has been rezoned as industrial, and on 123rd Street the real estate developer Panattoni is about to build a warehouse.
The warehouse will be built on an 8.88 acre plot, which is part of a flood plain and a sole source aquifer recharge zone. Over 100 Garry oaks will be cut down, and 85% of the property will be covered with impervious surfaces, according to the project’s SEPA Checklist.
Underneath the property is groundwater — measured at just six feet below the surface — which is most likely contaminated with PFAS. If there is a major flooding event, this possibly contaminated water will be dispersed across a wide area, and the poisoning of Lakewood could be intensified.
This raises the question of how likely it is that there will be such an event. The original estimate was once in 500 years. It was then found, because of climate change, that it was once in 100 years. However, estimates have been changing, and the next estimate might be 20 or even 10 years. In some places, supposed 100-year floods have been coming every three or four years.
Assuming 100 years, there is a 50% chance of a major flooding event in the next 69 years. Assuming 20 years, there is a 50% chance in the next 14 years. Assuming 10 years, there is a 50% chance in the next 7 years and a 10% chance in the next year.
The City of Lakewood, in rezoning Springbrook, and allowing development on 123rd Street, is gambling on Lakewood’s future. It’s putting the interests of developers before the interests of the City’s residents.
Lakewood’s City Council members don’t seem to care. Maybe they are not interested, or they regard it as a risk worth taking. Especially as none of them live in Springbrook.
However, you should care, and you and your family should think very carefully about whether you really want to live in this poisoned city.
There was a dreary inevitablity to the August 2 elections. The Democrat establishment won out, and we can all go back to sleep. However, I’ll briefly discuss the three candidates I wrote articles about.
The Lakewood Examiner endorsed Melissa Knott for Washington State Representative in the 29th Legislative District, Position 2. Melissa is infuriated by non-partisan politics, and I think she understands that when there is no debate, when there are no split votes, democracy dies. A vote for Melissa Knott was a vote against the Croneyism that pervades Pierce County.
So perhaps it wasn’t surprising that she came in a poor third, with only 16.66% of the vote.
On the other side of the political spectrum, Republican Susanna Keilman did nearly as badly, in her bid to be elected for State Representative, Position 2, in the 28th Legislative District. Yet in spite of only getting 26.16% of the vote, she came second, and goes through to the November election.
Chris Nye, who came third, was also a Republican, so Keilman is likely to pick up his votes. And with Biden continuing to trash the Democrat brand, she might be in with a chance.
Linda Farmer had a great election, getting 43.92% of the vote in the election for Pierce County Auditor. She will get most of Damon Townsend’s votes, so she is all but guaranteed to be elected in November.
Some might ask what I’ve got against her. Well, she hadn’t even finished her first term as Lakewood council member, and yet she wants to move on, to better things. And as a council member, she was largely ineffective, standing by as the rot and the injustice continued.
Worse, if she gets elected as Pierce Couny Auditor, then presumably she will stand down as council member, and the council will appoint an unelected replacement.
But I hear some people claiming that she’s non-partisan, just the person we need as Pierce County Auditor. In which case why did the Pierce County Democratic Party establishment endorse her?
There’s no point in asking, you’ll get no reply.
The City of Lakewood council, at the end of its August 1 meeting, went into executive session. It then voted in favor of settling with a certain Arthur West, for an amount not exceeding $25,000.
The story started on August 29, 2020. There were clashes in Portland, Oregon, involving pro-Trump and antifa groups. In one incident, antifa demonstrator Michael Reinoehl shot and killed Patriot Prayer supporter Aaron Danielson. Danielson was also armed.
Michael Reinoehl fled northwards, into Washington State. He ended up in Lacey, just north of Olympia, and this is where he was gunned down by law enforcement officers.
Or as The New York Times put it put it:
On Sept. 3, about 120 miles north of Portland, Mr. Reinoehl was getting into his Volkswagen station wagon when a pair of unmarked sport utility vehicles roared through the quiet streets, screeching to a halt just in front of his bumper. Members of a U.S. Marshals task force jumped out and unleashed a hail of bullets that shattered windows, whizzed past bystanders and left Mr. Reinoehl dead in the street.
Four police officers fired at Michael Reinoehl. According to The New York Times, his .308 handgun was found in his pocket and his rifle was “apparently untouched in a bag in his car”.
The four officers, according to Oregon Public Broadcasting, were members of a federal task force, and included Lakewood police officer Michael Merrill.
On October 23, 2020, Arthur West submitted a public records request with the City of Lakeood, with the subject line “RE: Public Records Request for Reinoehl Arrest and Investigation Records”. The subject line spelled Reinoehl’s name correctly, but in the body of the request it was spelled “Reinoel”.
As part of the search, the City’s public record specialist contacted the Police Department, who told her “that the Lakewood Police had no responsive records because the incident was being investigated by Thurston County“. The specialist then searched the City’s email server, and found no relevant files, because she was using the misspelled name, used in the request’s body.
On December 18, the public record specialist told Arthur West that there were no responsive records. She further stated “The records requested are associated with a case that is under active investigation and non-disclosure is essential to effective law enforcement“.
A few days later Arthur West started legal proceedings. He went through the Pierce County Superior Court and the State of Washington Court of Appeals. The latter found in his favor, in an opinion filed on July 12, 2022. As a result, the City of Lakewood council agreed to settle the case, for an amount not exceeding $25,000.
Some people reading this might be concerned about such a high settlement, for what seems a very small mistake. However, it is a matter of public concern when a Lakewood police officer is involved in a fatal shooting. We need to know all the details, and we need to know what action the City and its police department are taking.
Arthur West, whoever he might be, should be congratulated for bringing the City of Lakewood to account.
Susanna Keilman is a Republican, and she is standing for State Representative, Position 2, in the 28th Legislative District.
The Tacoma News Tribune was not particulary impressed by Susanna Keilman, on account of her declining to be interviewed:
Unfortunately, while voters and the TNT’s Editorial Board would have benefitted from a spirited conversation amongst all three candidates in this race, Keilman declined an invitation to participate in the endorsement process. If Keilman moves on to the general election this fall, we hope she’ll rethink her strategy and realize the importance of the public exchange of ideas and the responsibility to reach beyond one’s base.
You would have thought that Susanna Keilman would have welcomed the opportunity to get some extra coverage, especially as she has raised close to $100,000 for her election campaign, including $50 from Paul Wagemann, a Clover Park School District Board member.
In June Paul Wagemann was censured by the Board, for “harassing, intimidating and bullying the district’s superintendent“.
The superintendant, Ron Banner, was quoted as follows by The Tacoma News Tribune:
Paul Wagemann is part of a community group with an overtly racist agenda, and I am being subjected to heightened scrutiny by him due to my race, and due to my leadership and support of equity and inclusion for our students and staff in the school district…
On June 13 Susanna Keilman attended a meeting of the board of Clover Park School District. Paul Wagemann was the main subject of public comments, and this was a chance for the budding politician to make her point. She could have made a spirited defence of her $50 supporter. Or perhaps she could have made an eloquent critique of critical race theory.
And guess what she said? Wait for it…
I’d like to yield my time to J… Healy, please.
That was it, Susanna? Is this the kind of response we want from someone who is standing for political office? Who has raised around $100,000 for her campaign? She yields her time to someone else? Who is she going to yield her time to if she gets elected?
But perhaps it didn’t matter what she said. Susanna Keilman attended a highly charged meeting, and was making it clear to her supporters which side of the fence she stands on.