Anchorage will ship contaminated concrete to Oregon after the state tightened disposal rules, adding $850,000

The Anchorage School Board voted unanimously Tuesday to send contaminated concrete from the old Inlet View Elementary School to Oregon for disposal, adding about $850,000 to the district's contract to replace the school.

The cost traces to a change in state disposal rules. A little over a year ago, a facilities official told the board, the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation raised its standard for handling PCBs — industrial chemicals banned in 1979 that were used for decades in caulks, paints and sealants — so the material can no longer go to the Anchorage landfill. The district hit the same problem at the closed Ursa Major building on Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, and between the two buildings the rule change has added roughly $6.25 million.

Board member Rachel Blakeslee pushed for a cheaper alternative, pointing to state guidance that low-concentration material can sometimes be left in place under an engineered cap. "It feels very significant in a resource-scarce environment like the one that we're in," she said. The district said it had no design, permits or cost estimate for burying the concrete on site, and the board tabled the item so staff could look into it.

The answer came back against it. The facilities official reported that the slab tests above the state limit for PCBs, that groundwater sits just three to five feet down, and that regulators were doubtful they would allow contaminated material to be buried in contact with it. Blakeslee said that resolved her concerns, and she voted for the added cost.

The change keeps the replacement project about $9 million under budget, the official said, and the new playground should be ready by mid- to late October if work stays on track.