Tacoma Smelter Plume: Yard Cleanup Program (Part 1)

This video explains the Tacoma Smelter Plume history, the health risks and provides an introduction to the Yard Sampling and Cleanup Program. The Department of Ecology is working to clean up arsenic and lead contamination from the former Asarco copper smelter in Tacoma. Ecology’s Yard Sampling and Cleanup Program provides free soil sampling for over 4,500 yards in north Tacoma and on southern Vashon-Maury Island. Ecology is offering free soil cleanup for portions of yards with levels over:
• 100 parts per million (ppm) for arsenic; or
• 500 ppm for lead.
To learn more, please visit ecology.wa.gov/Tacoma-smelter.
Credits and acknowledgments:
Video created by GOAL Productions and WA Department of Ecology
Health information from Tacoma Pierce County Health Department