Tacoma Port Earley Business Center

In 2025, the Port of Tacoma proposed a partial cleanup of the site, called an Interim Action. The goal of this cleanup work is to remove four underground storage tanks and address petroleum contamination with an area of the site. Ecology held a public comment period from July 17 to August 18, 2025, on two documents, including the:

1. Interim Action Plan: This plan has background information about the site, a design of the proposed cleanup, and the next steps.
2. State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA) Determination of Non-Significance: Ecology determined the proposed cleanup is not likely to cause significant environmental harm. We considered environmental, historical, and cultural factors in this process.

We received no comments during this comment period. You can view the full outreach record in the 2025 Responsiveness Summary (download 0.5 MB). You can also view the 2025 Fact Sheet (download 0.6 MB) for more information.

After the comment period, Ecology finalized the Interim Action Plan. The Port of Tacoma will complete the cleanup actions as outlined in the Interim Action Plan. A comprehensive cleanup plan addressing all contamination at the site is still in development. Once ready, we will share the plan for public review and comment.

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In 2013, Ecology held a public comment period for a legal agreement and a public participation plan. We received one comment during that time. You can read the comment and our response in the 2013 Responsiveness Summary (download 1.8 MB). More information is available in the 2013 Fact Sheet (download 0.5 MB).

After the comment period, Ecology finalized a legal agreement, called Agreed Order DE 9553 (download 4.0 MB), with the Port of Tacoma. The Port is responsible for cleaning up the site. The agreement requires the Port to study contamination, explore cleanup options, and develop a cleanup plan.

In 2023, we updated the agreement (download 3.7 MB) to include more work. The Port is still studying the site and starting some early cleanup activities. Once those studies are complete, the Port will draft a full cleanup plan. We’ll share that draft with the public and open another comment period.

Tacoma Port Earley Business Center (EBC) is located at 401 East Alexander Avenue in the Tacoma tide flats.

During World War I, a shipyard and sawmill operated on the site. Shipbuilding resumed during World War II.  Parts of the property were used for ship repair, dismantling, and salvage until about 1960.

The Port of Tacoma purchased the EBC property in 1960. The Port leased out the site for a variety of businesses and industries, including a shipyard, ship dismantling operations, and other industrial uses. In 1983, the US Environmental Protection Agency designated much of the Tacoma tide flats as a national Superfund site.  EBC is located within the Superfund site. Contaminants include chlorinated solvents, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), PCBs, pesticides, and metals.