Norm Dicks opposes pit-to-pier project

Tour of Shine Pit fails to dissuade him of bridge, environmental concerns

By Barney Burke
(Leader Staff Writer)

Since Fred Hill Materials (FHM) announced plans to build a "pit-to-pier" gravel mining project at Shine Pit in 2002, hundreds of people have taken a tour of the company's existing operation to find out more about its expansion plans.

U.S. 6th District Congressman Norm Dicks (D-Bremerton) took the tour himself on Monday at the urging of company officials who invited him there after Dicks took a formal stand in opposition to the project on Jan. 22.

"I did meet with the Fred Hill officials today," Dicks told the Leader Monday night. "They gave me a very comprehensive briefing, and I still feel that this project is too big. And I still remain in opposition to it."

FHM Project Manager Dan Baskins summed up Monday's meeting by saying, "We have great respect for Congressman Dicks and appreciate the fact that he met with us on such short notice. Much information was exchanged. It is a complex project. We appreciate the fact that he is willing to study it further."

Pit-to-pier

Dicks had announced two days before Saturday's meeting here that he was in opposition to the pit-to-pier project.

"It's too big," Dicks told the Leader Saturday. "It doesn't fit on the canal." Dicks said that in addition to concerns about the natural environment, he felt the use of barges and ships in close proximity to the Hood Canal Floating Bridge creates a risky situation.

"We've been through that before," Dicks said of the sinking of the western span of the bridge 25 years ago next month. "These things do happen." Dicks called the bridge, the eastern span of which is slated for replacement in 2006, "critical to the economy of the entire Olympic Peninsula."

It was apparent that Dicks was irritated by comments made by FHM officials that were quoted in other newspapers last week. "I'm very much upset with the company officials that said I didn't know what I was talking about," Dicks said at Saturday's Town Meeting.

Asked what he would do about his concerns, Dicks responded, "I'm going to talk to local and federal officials." The permitting process mainly involves Jefferson County and the state of Washington, but federal agencies are among those which are expected to comment on the environmental review of the proposal, which could take several years to complete.

And then there's the U.S. Navy submarines that frequently sail under the bridge on their way to and from Naval Subase Bangor.

Dicks, a Bremerton native who has been a leading supporter of the Navy during his 28 years in Congress, told the Leader, "I've already talked to the Navy. They are very nervous about this project."

Other legislators, too

Dicks is not the only member of Congress to take a position on the issue.

Charla Neuman, press secretary for U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell, called the Leader from Washington D.C. Tuesday evening to say that Cantwell has concluded that the "risk of harm is too great."

In addition, 1st District Congressman Jay Inslee (D-Bainbridge Island) has "serious concerns" about Hood Canal potentially becoming a "major mining center," his staff said Tuesday. Inslee sent a letter to the Jefferson County Board of Commissioners on Jan. 13 asking that the county look into the concerns about it voiced by one of his constituents. Inslee has not yet received a complete briefing on the project, his staff noted.

U.S. Senator Patty Murray's staff said she is currently reviewing the issue.

John Fabian, a leader of the Hood Canal Coalition, the chief opponent of the project, received the loudest applause of any speaker at the Town Meeting. "That took a great deal of political courage," Fabian said regarding Dicks' voiced opposition. "I want to thank you for that." The crowd responded by giving Dicks a standing ovation.

"I'm a 'jobs Democrat,'" Dicks told the 200-member audience. "But once in a while, a project comes along that's too big," he said. "It's the same thing we heard about the Exxon Valdez."

Dicks announced his opposition to the project on Jan. 15, when he received the Hood Canal Environmental Achievement Award from the Hood Canal Coordinating Council (HCCC), an organization that address issues concerning the canal on behalf of a number of local agencies.

"While I hesitate to sound like I am predicting it, I would be somewhat worried about the nightmare of one of those big freighters colliding with the bridge and blocking passage to the Canal, including the Navy base," Dicks told the HCCC. "When you look at all of the benefits and negative aspects of this project, and the fact that most of this gravel will be bound for overseas, I simply do not believe it is in the best interests of the people of Jefferson County or of Washington state.

"It is my intention at this point to inform the county that I will oppose the Fred Hill Materials project and that I will support the already-substantial campaign here in the community to prevent the approval of the expansion permits that the company needs," Dicks continued.

Tax revenues

Opponents of the project have argued that the pit-to-pier project is unlikely to produce a significant amount of new tax revenues for Jefferson County.

At a Jan. 14 budget workshop, the Board of Commissioners and County Administrator David Goldsmith reviewed revenue projections for the county's general fund [see related story, page A-11]. All three commissioners and Goldsmith concurred that they expect to receive no sizable revenue from the project because under state law, sales taxes on gravel are allocated to the county where it is delivered, not the county where it is mined.

However, the county sent a letter to state officials in the fall of 2003 proposing that some sort of "extraction tax" be considered as a means of assisting counties where natural resources are a major part of the local economy.

Baskins maintains that the project will one way or another generate $9.2 million to the county over the next 20 years. "While the Department of Revenue is considering the retail sales status at the pier, the company has stated that it will see that Jefferson County nevertheless receives the annual retail sales tax equivalent should those sales ultimately be deemed non-retail," he explained.

Baskins went on to say that he expects FHM to eventually sign a formal agreement with the county stipulating that the company pay an amount equal to what it would receive if the gravel were all delivered locally. Asked what remedy the county might have if FHM failed to live up to that agreement, Baskins said the county could "shut us down."

(Contact Barney Burke at bburke@ptleader.com.)