SKAGWAY ORE TERMINAL

The seabed beneath the Skagway ore terminal is contaminated with thousands of tons of heavy metals from decades of ore shipments.

A November 1985 state memo noted that ″the bottom sediments in the Skagway Harbor have been found to be among the most toxic in the world... The air, waters, streets, even kids’ sandboxes are contaminated with hazardous waste."

The Skagway Ore Terminal under the name Nahku Ore Facility is listed by EPA as a potential Superfund site. (see link under 'Nakhu Ore Facility' on slide) or here.

As of March 18, 2023, Skagway is the sole owner/operator of the Port of Skagway.

Skagway is upgrading its ore port and cruise ship docks over the next 2 years with a $65 Million bond. This will prevent Minto Mine from using Skagway's ore port for the next 2 years during construction. The municipality is in the process of finalizing a 35-year agreement with Yukon mines to ship Yukon ore through Skagway's ore platform.

of contaminated sediment was dredged and removed by White Pass (who hired Turnagain Marine) last spring at an estimated cost of just under $4 million.

200,000 CUBIC YARDS of sediment may have to be removed before the harbor is considered to be remediated, according to a 2014 report by the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation.

-Alaska Public Media

“Folks, don’t harvest shell food and eat it right now. Don’t go get shrimp or crab. We’re trying to come up with a public service announcement about what’s safe, when, and how far away from the Port of Skagway. But be smart about it. Don’t put your crab pots in the vicinity of the Skagway Port right now. We all know people who have gotten cancer. Just be reasonable … go farther away

Assemblymember Orion

News (during the 2022 dredging that stirred up contaminated sediments)