Plantation Rifle Range

Last Updated November 2024

Site contamination is worse than expected, so cleanup will take longer than initially thought. The draft remedial investigation was submitted to Ecology for review in September 2024. We reviewed this draft and provided comments to the County. A revised draft remedial investigation is expected to be submitted to us in early 2025. Then, work begins on a feasibility study and a cleanup action plan. The removal of lead contaminated soil is expected to go quickly once it begins. 

This site has contamination that could harm people or the environment. It is in the state cleanup process under the Model Toxics Control Act. They are sampling soil and groundwater and will write reports about the contamination and ways to address it, those reports will be issued for public comment.

See the documents in the Site Details section at left to learn more about the site.

A public comment period ran from May 6 - June 28, 2024 for the corrective action permit for cleanup activities. The permit is now final. We received 57 comments. A Response to Comments Summary is available on this site in the "View Documents: Public Information" section below. 

A public comment period ran from February 13 - March 17, 2023 for the Agreed Order and Interim Action plan. These documents are now final. We received 51 comments. A Response to Comments Summary is available on this site in the "View Documents: Public Information" section below. 

When there are new documents about the site, we’ll notify you about additional public comment periods. 

Whatcom County Parks & Recreation operates the Plantation Rifle Range (Site). The Site opened in 1971, prior to the promulgation of RCRA in 1978. The Site is located on property owned by Bertch Timberlands, LLC. Whatcom County Parks & Recreation leases the property from Bertch Timberlands, LLC.

The Site is one of two public shooting ranges in Washington. It has an outdoor, high power rifle range, indoor and outdoor small-bore rifle and pistol ranges, a trap field, and a classroom.

Ruby Creek flows along the eastern boundary of the Site’s high power rifle range. Where the creek meets the 300-yard back stop, it enters a pipe running underneath the backstop. The creek re-emerges from the pipe, to the southeast of the 300-yard targets.

In addition to Ruby Creek, wetlands are located to the east side of the high-power rifle range. Ruby Creek is a major tributary to Finney Creek, which flows into Lake Samish. Lake Samish is a drinking water supply to area residents around the lake.

In 2020, we inspected the range and collected surface water samples. The samples contained lead above Clean Water Act standards for aquatic life in freshwater systems. Starting in 2020, Whatcom County began monthly surface water sampling at the Site. In 2021, we returned and took soil samples from the range floor. These samples confirmed the presence of lead.

While the amount of lead is above Clean Water Act standards for aquatic life, the levels are below the standard for drinking water. Lead removal could be finished sometime in 2025. This will be the first time the lead has been removed since the range opened in 1971.

Lead is the known contaminant at Plantation Rifle Range. The first step in corrective action is to do extensive sampling to determine what contamination is on the site and where it is. The known contaminant detected in the soil, sediment and surface water at the Site is lead. Lead is a toxic metal that impairs brain function. Exposure to lead causes noticeable developmental delays in children.

See Health Effects of Lead Exposure for more information about lead effects. 

Some soil samples taken from this site had lead at levels more than 100 times the hazardous waste limit. Limited soil samples have been collected so far and do not represent the entire site.  Risk-based screenings have not taken place yet. At this time, people are not being exposed to harmful levels of contamination because the range is closed.

This Site is at the beginning of the cleanup process. There are six phases in the process: remedial investigation, feasibility study, planning and design, implementation, monitoring and site use controls.

The first step is to find out the types and extent of contamination. Cleanup activities will be done under an approved health and safety plan. Interim actions or partial cleanups can occur at any time. There will be opportunities for public comment at each stage, except for cleanup implementation. A detailed site assessment and feasibility study are expected to be completed during 2024. 

We apply both the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) and the Model Toxics Control Act (MTCA) regulations to clean up hazardous waste sites. The cleanup protects human health and the environment from dangerous wastes and chemicals.