WHATCOM COUNTY, Wash. – Whatcom County’s Swift Creek east of Everson will slow way down as work gets underway to control the naturally occuring asbestos it carries to nearby communities and the Sumas River.
A slow-moving landslide on Sumas Mountain steadily pushes a mass of asbestos-containing sediment the size of the county courthouse into the creek each year.
The Department of Ecology and Whatcom County will begin work on the Swift Creek Action Plan this year.
Cris Matthews with Ecology’s Bellingham office says it involves re-building the course of the creek with sediment traps and dams.
That will allow the dangerous sediment to settle out.
Workers will then dredge and place the sediment in covered containment basins.
Deflection berms will also be installed to control flooding by the creek that’s caused property and crop damage over the years.
Matthews says they’ll continue to monitor the changes to gauge their effectiveness at controlling the pollution.