Concerns over presence of dioxin means demolition misses deadline.
A 175-foot Peninsula Plywood mill chimney stack that fought being felled April 8 — before saws and torches did the trick — is still in a fractured pile while its remains are examined for levels of dioxin, a toxic compound, Port of Port Angeles Director of Engineering Chris Hartman said Friday.
That means this Friday’s deadline date for completing demolition of the 439 Marine Drive industrial site will be delayed by a few days, he said.
The dioxin levels are “considerably greater than what we thought,” Hartman said.
The initial test results “came back so high, we started asking questions,” he added.
The dioxin is in ash that coated the inside of the 1,000-ton structure, port environmental specialist Jesse Waknitz said.
Hartman said the dioxin does not pose a danger to anyone who walks on the site or lives or works near the area, located on the edge of the downtown business district where Front Street meets Marine Drive.
Tests on the dioxin should be completed by May 8 and the rubble hauled off the site by May 31, Hartman added.
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