Cleanup Plan Released for DuPont Works Site

DUPONT, WA-A draft final document has been released that details the proposed agreement between the state Department of Ecology, Weyerhaeuser and DuPont regarding the continued cleanup of the former DuPont Works site, a 3,200-acre expanse that included an approximately 850-acre explosives plant that shut down 30 years ago.

DuPont Works manufactured explosives from 1906 until the mid-1970s and later sold the entire property to Weyerhaeuser. The cleanup has been in the works since 1991.

The original cleanup site was 841 acres, but the two companies already have spent about $50 million remediating 205 acres where DuPont produced black powder. Weyerhaeuser and DuPont plan to spend another $25 million over the next three years to restore the remaining 636 acres.