In The News
Crews removed 290 toxic and derelict creosote pilings from Steamboat and Ebey sloughs just off the highway north of Everett.
The Washington Department of Natural Resources said the 80-100-year-old pilings were soaked in a preservative that leaked out into the water, causing harm to salmon and forage fish and traveling up the food web.
"Once they get exposed to the creosote it goes into the food chain, through that avenue it makes its way all the way up to our whales," DNR Aquatics Restoration Manager Christopher Robertson said. "When they do look at the toxins that are inside of whale blubber, PAH which is the primary toxin from creosote, is one of the primary ones that's found there, so it really does impact the whole food web, from the base up."
