Portland Harbor

Source: PDF pp. 807-808 ↗ · raw: 807 · 808

Breadcrumb: Service Area Summaries > Public Works > Bureau of Environmental Services > Retired Program Offers. . . . . . . . . > Portland Harbor

City of Portland Fiscal Year 2026-27 Proposed Budget Public Works > Bureau of Environmental Services > Portland Harbor Portland Harbor Budget Revenues by Fund 2023-24 Actuals 2024-25 Actuals 2025-26 Revised Budget 2026-27 Proposed Grand Total - Program Expenses by Major Object Program expenses only include personnel, internal materials and services, external materials and services, and capital. 2023-24 Actuals 2024-25 Actuals 2025-26 Revised Budget 2026-27 Proposed External Materials and $3,000 $500 $0 $0 Services Grand Total $3,000 $500 $0 $0 Program Description and Goals This program expired in FY 2020-21 due to the bureau's reorganization. The key functions of this program are now reported in the new Strategy Program. It no longer exists and has been sunset. It will continue to be displayed in the budget book until the budget data drops off. The Portland Harbor Program provides expert services to manage and act on behalf of the City in its participation in the Portland Harbor Superfund cleanup, along with the Natural Resource Damage Assessment (NRDA) settlement process and related restoration efforts. Expert services include legal, policy and program administration, technical support and public involvement support. Because of the City's significant economic, environmental and cultural interest, along with its status as a potentially responsible party, the Portland Harbor Program works closely with other City bureaus to be a leader in accomplishing a successful cleanup as soon as possible. The Portland Harbor Program goals include: • protecting and enhancing environmental and human health • maintaining a working harbor, and • advocating for a fair allocation of cleanup costs among all potentially responsible parties. Services 807

City of Portland Fiscal Year 2026-27 Proposed Budget Equity Impacts The City is a steward and regulator of the Willamette River and is also one of more than 100 parties that are potentially responsible for cleanup costs. As such, the City has long been involved in the Portland Harbor Superfund project, working to ensure that the interests of Portlanders are represented. The Portland Harbor Program is made up of four main support areas that work closely together to achieve programmatic goals. • Policy and program administration support provides leadership and strategic guidance for the Portland Harbor Program, along with services for stakeholder engagement, government relations, program development, operational oversite and coalition building to advance cleanup implementation. • Legal support provides services in defending the City in its involvement and potential liability associated with the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Reliability Act (CERCLA) process, the allocation settlement process, the Natural Resource Damage Assessment settlement process and associated lawsuits. Legal support also provides services in developing partnership agreements to facilitate collective action toward cleanup implementation, and cleanup agreements with EPA. • Technical support provides services by protecting City assets, preventing recontamination of the river, investigating and controlling sources of contamination, planning and implementing cleanup work, performing environmental risk assessments, coordinating with other technical programs throughout the Bureau and City and managing projects. • Public involvement support provides services in developing, implementing and managing a community involvement program designed to build and strengthen relationships with diverse community stakeholders and encourage community involvement in the cleanup process. The public involvement support area also works closely with other government agencies on public health and risk communication, along with environmental justice issues related to the Superfund cleanup. Changes to Program The Superfund cleanup process is heavily influenced by external factors, such as EPA oversite, legal settlement processes, individual site negotiations, and the willingness of potentially responsible parties to move forward with their respective cleanup responsibilities. These factors change frequently, which requires the program to maintain a high degree of flexibility. As the Portland Harbor Superfund Project moves into the remedial design phase, program expenditures are likely to increase in the near term. The FY 2019-20 Adopted Budget included a $6.0 million transfer from fund balance in the Environmental Remediation Fund to the City's Portland Harbor Superfund Reserve to meet the City's first payment obligation under the Settlement with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for Certain Portland Harbor Remedial Design Costs authorized by Ordinance 189509. Under this agreement with EPA, the City and State of Oregon will establish a trust to be funded over the next three fiscal years to advance towards meeting our responsibility as potentially responsible parties. The trust is intended to reduce the City's risk of enforcement action by the EPA, reduce transaction costs that would be incurred during negotiating and performing numerous design agreements, and encourage timely action. 808

Parent: Retired Program Offers. . . . . . . . . · PDF: pp. 807-808 ↗