Cornwall Avenue Landfill
Facility Site ID:
2913
Cleanup Site ID:
220
Current Status
Updated September 2025
2017 Fact Sheet | Información en español
Ecology conducted a public comment period (Dec. 18, 2017 - Feb. 22, 2018) on an engineering design report for the cleanup of a portion of the Cornwall Avenue Landfill cleanup site on the Bellingham waterfront. The report provides the preliminary design for isolating contamination and controlling landfill gas. The report was prepared by the Port of Bellingham, the City of Bellingham, and the State Department of Natural Resources, with Ecology oversight.
Ecology reviewed and considered all comments received on the Engineering Design Report (EDR, 65 MB) and responded to them in our Response to Comments (674 KB) document. Based on Ecology’s evaluation of the comments, no changes were made to the document. The EDR was finalized in 2018.
Planning for construction is underway. Permits are being secured through federal and natural resource agencies. Engineering design is being coordinated with the adjacent RG Haley International cleanup site.
2017 Fact Sheet | Información en español
Ecology conducted a public comment period (Dec. 18, 2017 - Feb. 22, 2018) on an engineering design report for the cleanup of a portion of the Cornwall Avenue Landfill cleanup site on the Bellingham waterfront. The report provides the preliminary design for isolating contamination and controlling landfill gas. The report was prepared by the Port of Bellingham, the City of Bellingham, and the State Department of Natural Resources, with Ecology oversight.
Ecology reviewed and considered all comments received on the Engineering Design Report (EDR, 65 MB) and responded to them in our Response to Comments (674 KB) document. Based on Ecology’s evaluation of the comments, no changes were made to the document. The EDR was finalized in 2018.
Estimated Site Timeline
- 2024-2025: Obtain permits for the construction of the cleanup action.
- 2025: Begin construction of the cleanup action. It is expected to take about three years.
Sign Up For Updates!
Join our email list to receive updates about the Cornwall Avenue Landfill cleanup site. Email Kristen Forkeutis, Public Involvement Coordinator, at Kristen.Forkeutis@ecy.wa.gov to be added to the list. Unsubscribe at any time.
General Cleanup Process
The Model Toxics Control Act (MTCA) is Washington’s environmental cleanup law. It provides requirements for contaminated site cleanup and sets standards that protect human health and the environment. Ecology enacts MTCA and oversees cleanups. The MTCA site cleanup process is completed in steps over a variable timeline.
Public Participation
Current Cornwall Avenue Landfill cleanup site Public Participation Plan (772 KB)
This plan describes how Ecology will share information with the community and how you can share information with us. Ecology will review this plan as the cleanup progresses and amend/update it as necessary.
This plan describes how Ecology will share information with the community and how you can share information with us. Ecology will review this plan as the cleanup progresses and amend/update it as necessary.
Site Description
2017 Aerial view of Site looking east. White-tarped mounds cover soil to be used as part of cleanup activities.
Site History
The Cornwall Avenue Landfill cleanup site is located on the Bellingham waterfront between Boulevard Park and the former Georgia Pacific pulp mill at the south end of Cornwall Avenue. About 13 acres of the site are on land, and about 3.5 acres are in water. Property within the site is owned by the City of Bellingham, the Port of Bellingham, and the State Department of Natural Resources. It is most recognizable today for the large mounds covered with white plastic.
A historic timeline of the site follows:
The Cornwall Avenue Landfill cleanup site is located on the Bellingham waterfront between Boulevard Park and the former Georgia Pacific pulp mill at the south end of Cornwall Avenue. About 13 acres of the site are on land, and about 3.5 acres are in water. Property within the site is owned by the City of Bellingham, the Port of Bellingham, and the State Department of Natural Resources. It is most recognizable today for the large mounds covered with white plastic.
A historic timeline of the site follows:
- 1888-1946: The site was used for sawmill operations, including log storage and wood disposal.
- 1965: Upon closure of the landfill the site was covered with a layer of soil.
- 1971-2005: The site was used for log storage and warehousing operations.
- 2011: An interim action (early partial cleanup) was conducted with Ecology oversight.
- 2013: A remedial investigation and feasibility study (RI/FS) was completed. The RI identifies the nature, extent and magnitude of contamination and how people, plants and animals may be exposed. It FS assembles and evaluates cleanup options and identifies a preferred option.
- 2014: The cleanup action plan was finalized for the upland and shoreline/shallow-water portions of the site. A future cleanup plan will address the deep in-water portion of the site.
- 2015: Field investigations were completed to support the design of the cleanup action plan.
- 2018: The EDR was finalized.
Contamination
Investigations found an estimated 295,000 cubic yards of municipal waste and 94,000 cubic yards of wood waste. Some of the contamination associated with this waste includes:
- Groundwater contamination: Tannins and lignins associated with wood waste products, elevated nitrogen compounds like ammonia, elevated dissolved metals like manganese, and volatile organics like benzene
- Sediment contamination: Phthalates, Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCBs), Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs), phenols, and diesel and oil-range petroleum hydrocarbons
- Contamination from neighboring sites: Petroleum hydrocarbons, pentachlorophenol, carcinogenic PAHs, and other contaminants associated with former wood treating operations at the adjacent R.G. Haley International site are present in the soil, sediment and groundwater. Mercury associated with the Whatcom
Waterway site is present in the sediment.
Bellingham Bay Action Team
The Cornwall Avenue Landfill site is one of 12 sites coordinated through the Bellingham Bay Action Team (BBAT). BBAT is a bay-wide multi-agency effort to clean up contaminated sediment, control sources of sediment contamination, and restore habitat, with consideration for land and water uses. In 2000, participants in this initiative developed the Bellingham Bay Comprehensive Strategy.
Language Services
Need help or have questions? We offer translation and interpretation services at no cost. If you need these services, email kristen.forkeutis@ecy.wa.gov or call 425-240-4353. If you call, ask for an interpreter to be connected with one.
Español
Le ofrecemos servicios de traducción e interpretación sin costo. Para solicitar una copia de esta información en español, llame a Kristen Forkeutis al 425-240-4353 o envíe un correo electrónico a kristen.forkeutis@ecy.wa.gov. Si necesita servicios de interpretación, solicite un intérprete y permanezca en la línea mientras lo comunicamos.
Español
Le ofrecemos servicios de traducción e interpretación sin costo. Para solicitar una copia de esta información en español, llame a Kristen Forkeutis al 425-240-4353 o envíe un correo electrónico a kristen.forkeutis@ecy.wa.gov. Si necesita servicios de interpretación, solicite un intérprete y permanezca en la línea mientras lo comunicamos.
Documents 41
Legal 6
| Document Title | Document Date | Document Type |
| Cornwall Avenue Landfill - CD First Amendment | 5/22/2025 | Consent Decree Amendment |
| Cornwall Avenue Landfill - CD | 12/2/2014 | Consent Decree |
| Cornwall Avenue Landfill - CD Signatures | 12/2/2014 | Consent Decree |
| Cornwall Avenue Landfill - AO First Amendment | 8/31/2011 | Agreed Order Amendment |
| Cornwall Avenue Landfill - AO for RI/FS (Feb 2005) | 8/19/2004 | Agreed Order |
| Cornwall Avenue Landfill - Early Notice Letter | 7/16/1992 | Early Notice Letter |
Outreach Information 15
State Environmental Policy Act 2
| Document Title | Document Date | Document Type |
| Cornwall Avenue Landfill - Determination of Non-Significance (SEPA) | 5/22/2014 | SEPA Documents |
| Bellingham Bay Comprehensive Strategy - SEPA - Environmental Impact Statement | 10/1/2000 | SEPA Documents |
Technical Reports 17
| Document Title | Document Date | Document Type |
| RG Haley and Cornwall Ave Landfill: Notification regarding Salish Landing Park | 2/26/2025 | Site Specific Administrative Document - Other (Administrative Correspondence) |
| Cornwall Ave Landfill - SHARP Report | 5/16/2024 | Site Hazard Assessment and Ranking Process Report |
| Cornwall Avenue Landfill - Change of Designated Project Coordinator | 5/15/2024 | Site Specific Administrative Document - Other (Administrative Correspondence) |
| Cornwall Avenue Landfill - Ecology Project Coord Change Letter | 3/22/2021 | Site Specific Administrative Document - Other (Administrative Correspondence) |
| Cornwall Avenue Landfill - EDR MU1 & MU2 | 4/30/2018 | Engineering Design Report |
| Cornwall Avenue Landfill - Work Plan & Pre-Design Characterization | 4/30/2015 | Scope of Work |
| Cornwall Avenue Landfill - CAP | 10/10/2014 | Cleanup Action Plan |
| Cornwall Avenue Landfill - RI/FS | 12/17/2013 | Remedial Investigation / Feasibility Study Report |
| Cornwall Avenue Landfill - RI/FS - Tables | 12/17/2013 | Remedial Investigation / Feasibility Study Report |
| Cornwall Avenue Landfill - RI/FS - Figures | 12/17/2013 | Remedial Investigation / Feasibility Study Report |
| Cornwall Avenue Landfill - RI/FS - Appendices | 12/17/2013 | Remedial Investigation / Feasibility Study Report |
| Cornwall Avenue Landfill - Interim Action Completion Report | 8/22/2012 | Interim Action Plans and Reports |
| Cornwall Avenue Landfill - RIWP Supplemental groundwater investigation | 6/15/2012 | Remedial Investigation Work Plan |
| Cornwall Avenue Landfill - Interim Action Plan | 8/18/2011 | Interim Action Plans and Reports |
| Cornwall Avenue Landfill - Public Comments Received | 7/7/2011 | Site Specific Administrative Document - Other (Administrative Correspondence) |
| Sediment Site Characterization Evaluation - Bellingham Bay | 6/26/2009 | Site Specific Technical Document - Other |
| Cornwall Avenue Landfill - Public Comments Received | 10/1/2004 | Site Specific Administrative Document - Other (Administrative Correspondence) |
Voluntary Cleanup Program 1
| Document Title | Document Date | Document Type |
| Cornwall Avenue Landfill - VCP Termination Letter | 5/24/2007 | VCP Administrative Document |
There may be more documents related to this site. To obtain documents not available electronically, you will need to make a public records request.
Places to see print documents
-
Northwest Regional Office15700 Dayton Ave NShoreline, 98133Please schedule an appointment to view print documents at this location.
-
Ecology Bellingham Field Office913 Squalicum Way, Unit 101Bellingham, 98225This location may only have print documents available during open comment periods.
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Bellingham Public Library210 Central AveBellingham, 98225This location may only have print documents available during open comment periods.
Contaminants 13
| Contaminant Type | Soil |
Groundwater |
Surface Water |
Air |
Sediment |
Bedrock |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Metals - Metals Priority Pollutants | S | C | S | C | ||
| Halogenated Organics - Polychlorinated biPhenyls (PCB) | S | C | ||||
| Pesticides - Halogenated Pesticides | C | |||||
| Non-Halogenated Organics - Non-Halogenated Solvents | C | |||||
| Non-Halogenated Organics - Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons | C | |||||
| Halogenated Organics - Halogenated Solvents | C | |||||
| Other Contaminant - Conventional Contaminants, Organic | C | |||||
| Other Contaminant - Conventional Contaminants, Inorganic | S | C | S | C | ||
| Halogenated Organics - Other Halogenated Organics | C | |||||
| Non-Halogenated Organics - Benzene | C | |||||
| Non-Halogenated Organics - Other Non-Halogenated Organics | C | |||||
| Pesticides - Pesticides-Unspecified | S | |||||
| Pesticides - Non-Halogenated Pesticides | S |
- S
- Suspected
- C
- Confirmed Above Cleanup Levels
- B
- Below Cleanup Levels
- RA
- Remediated-Above
- RB
- Remediated-Below
- R
- Remediated
This contaminant list was based on our best information at the time it was entered. It may not reflect current conditions at the site.