This letter is reproduced here exactly as sent on June 5, 2026 (mail), with no wording changed for this website — including its original formatting and any typographical or factual errors present in the letter as sent. The one explicit exception is David’s personal phone number, redacted per his standing instruction for this site (matching how every other letter in this set has had its phone number redacted). The signature block's street address has also been omitted to match this site's standard convention for the signature line used across every other letter in this archive. Name, email, and the full text of the letter are unchanged. The original signed PDF is available via the Download PDF button above.
June 5, 2026
Chief Executive Officer
Jefferson Healthcare
834 Sheridan Street
Port Townsend WA 98368
360-385-2200 | jeffersonhealthcare.org
RE: Port Townsend Paper Company White Liquor — Hospital Preparedness and Community Health — V_1.17
Dear Chief Executive Officer,
I write with a simple and direct request: we want Port Townsend Paper Company to make safety, health, and the environment their number one priority. Not their second priority. Not a consideration balanced against production schedules and profit margins. Number one.
I am a Port Townsend resident writing to Jefferson Healthcare about two interconnected concerns: hospital preparedness for a potential white liquor release at PTPC, and the documented community health impact of PTPC’s ongoing emissions.
On May 26, 2026, the Longview disaster demonstrated what a white liquor release requires of a hospital system. Legacy Oregon Burn Center Medical Director Dr. Nik Eshraghi reported that his team mobilized seven surgeons and that it was the first time many of his providers had treated white liquor injuries. He described the burns as ‘deep and devastating’ with recovery timelines of ‘weeks to months to a lifetime.’ Patients required specialized decontamination before hospital transport.
Jefferson Healthcare is the sole hospital serving Jefferson County. PTPC is five miles away. The closest major burn center is Legacy Emanuel in Portland — approximately four hours from Port Townsend. In a major white liquor release, Jefferson Healthcare would be the first point of medical contact.
PTPC operates a kraft pulp and paper mill on 450 acres bordering Port Townsend Bay, five miles from residential neighborhoods in Jefferson County. The mill produces 950–1,000 tons per day using the kraft process — the same chemistry that killed 11 workers in Longview, Washington on May 26, 2026, when a white liquor tank imploded at the Nippon Dynawave mill in the deadliest industrial accident in modern Washington State history.
PTPC’s documented compliance record is a matter of public record in US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)’s EPA Enforcement and Compliance History Online (ECHO) database (FRS ID: 110000490326):
Clean Air Act: High Priority Violation every single quarter for the past three years — 12 consecutive quarters
Clean Water Act: documented spills into Port Townsend Bay including: 800 gallons of untreated process wastewater (November 2021–March 2022, fine $27,000); 114,000 gallons of untreated wastewater near Glen Cove (April 2025, fine $20,000 — less than 9 cents per gallon); and 1,000 gallons of condensed water (January 2025) — plus two additional Ecology penalties issued in 2023 for 2022 water quality violations; two new formal enforcement orders April and May 2026
Hazardous Waste (Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA)): June 2025 inspection found 9 violations including emergency preparedness and prevention procedure failures
National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES): permit expired October 2018; renewed May 2025 after 6+ years on administrative extension
Total penalties all statutes five years: less than $100,000
Daily discharge of effluent (liquid waste or wastewater discharged into the environment): 12 million gallons into Port Townsend Bay — the largest discharger in Jefferson County
In 2024, the federal Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) specifically studied Port Townsend and found hydrogen sulfide, methyl mercaptan, dimethyl sulfide, and dimethyl disulfide measured near PTPC above US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) chronic health reference concentrations. The Washington State Department of Health guidance still tells residents these odors are ‘rarely at levels that harm health.’ The federal science says otherwise — for our specific community.
What I Am Requesting from Jefferson Healthcare:
Assess Jefferson Healthcare’s current preparedness for treating white liquor chemical burns — including caustic decontamination capability, burn treatment protocols, and transfer arrangements to Legacy Oregon Burn Center in Portland
Request that PTPC provide Jefferson Healthcare with its facility emergency response plan, the location and capacity of all white liquor storage tanks, and Material Safety Data Sheets for all hazardous chemicals on site
Formally participate as a required member of the Jefferson County Local Emergency Planning Committee (LEPC) once it is activated, contributing hospital capacity and medical response planning to the white liquor emergency scenario
Consider whether Jefferson Healthcare should formally communicate to Jefferson County commissioners, the Port Townsend City Council, and the Washington State Department of Health that the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) 2024 finding of toxic Total Reduced Sulfur (TRS) compound levels near PTPC warrants a community health response — particularly for patients with cardiovascular and respiratory conditions
Jefferson Healthcare exists to serve the health of this community. The health of this community is affected daily by PTPC’s emissions — confirmed by federal scientists — and could be catastrophically affected by a white liquor release. Your voice on both preparedness and community health accountability matters enormously.
Respectfully,
David Ginsberg
Port Townsend WA 98368
davidbginsberg@gmail.com