Time Oil Bulk Terminal

This is the Ecology webpage for the Time Oil Bulk Terminal Cleanup Site. The Site includes five parcels of land, including the BNSF Property, which recently went through a public comment period associated with its cleanup process. Please see Site History section below for a description of each of these properties.

Ecology recently hosted a public comment period for documents associated with the cleanup of the BNSF Property, which is one of the parcels of land that make up part of the Time Oil Bulk Terminal Cleanup Site. Documents that were available for public comment included:

1) Agreed Order
This is a legal document that requires BNSF to investigate environmental conditions, complete a Remedial Investigation (RI) and Feasibility Study (FS), and if requested by  Ecology a preliminary draft Cleanup Action Plan (dCAP) for the BNSF property;

2) Public Participation Plan
This describes how Ecology will inform the community about Site activities and opportunities to be involved in the cleanup process.

Ecology received no comments that warranted changes to these documents, and therefore has finalized the documents and is moving forward with the cleanup process. You can read more about the cleanup process here:

*  Ecology's Time Oil Factsheet, in both English and Spanish; and
*  Ecologys' Blog.



In July 2020 Ecology completed a public comment period for documents related to the cleanup process of the other four parcels associated with the former Time Oil Bulk Terminal Facility in Seattle. TOC Seattle Terminal 1 LLC purchased these four parcels (Property), and plans to clean up and redevelop them with Ecology oversight. The name Time Oil Bulk Terminal also refers to the contaminated site (Site) located within and beyond the Property. Ecology did not receive any comments during the 2020 comment period that warranted significant change to any of the documents. They were therefore finalized and the cleanup process is moving forward. Design and permitting of the cleanup action is currently under way, and construction is expected to begin in Spring of 2021.

The Property is generally located at 2737-2805 West Commodore Way in Seattle, along the industrial waterfront area of Salmon Bay on the Lake Washington Ship Canal. It is approximately 11 acres in size and consists of five parcels. Time Oil began bulk fuel operations at the Property in the early 1940s, primarily to support World War II efforts. The former Time Oil Bulk Terminal supported large quantities of fuel being stored and distributed during and after the war. In later years, portions of it were leased to other parties for industrial purposes.

The historical operations and uses resulted in releases of petroleum hydrocarbons, chlorinated solvents, wood preservative, and metals into soil and groundwater on the Property and the adjacent West Commodore Way right-of-way. Several interim cleanup actions were done between 1991 and 2017 to remove some contamination. A final cleanup action is proposed now to address the remaining contamination at the Property, including parts of the West Commodore right-of-way.

The name Time Oil Bulk Terminal also refers to the contaminated Site located within and beyond the Property.  The Site includes the Property and wherever a hazardous substance released from the Property has come to be located, including throughout the Property, in Salmon Bay Sediments, and releases of hazardous substances from the entire historical footprint of the former Time Oil operations.

Portions of the Property, referred to as the Remedial Action Area, are subject to active remedial actions as part of the proposed cleanup action plan. These parcels are identified as the Bulk Terminal, ASKO, and East Waterfront parcels. The other parcel (West Waterfront parcel) is part of the Property to be purchased, but is not included in the Remedial Action Area.

An adjacent parcel is owned by BNSF Railway Company and is a continuing source of contamination within the Site. Ecology is currently negotiating a legal agreement with BNSF to investigate contamination and develop a cleanup action plan for that portion of the Site