Environmental firm Maul Foster Alongi seeks a conditional use permit to begin cleaning up historical pollution at the former Astoria Marine Construction Co. on the Lewis and Clark River.

Environmental firm Maul Foster Alongi is seeking a conditional use permit to begin the long-awaited cleanup of the former Astoria Marine Construction Co. shipyard on the Lewis and Clark River.

The shipyard began to manufacture and repair wooden-hulled vessels in 1924. During World War II, the Korean War and the Vietnam War, the company made military vessels, at one time employing 400 people.

Investigators found petroleum, heavy metals and tin-laden organic compounds in the groundwater and soil around the shipyard and surrounding riverbed. The state Department of Environmental Quality in 2017 finalized a plan to excavate, replace, cover and cap contaminated soil.

The cleanup is expected to cost between $3 million and $3.5 million, paid for by $3.8 million Astoria Marine recovered from insurance policies issued in the 1960s and ’70s.

Carson Bowler, an attorney for Astoria Marine, has previously said the cleanup will be completed around the end of the year.

Clatsop County is taking comments on Maul Foster’s application until 4 p.m. Monday. Email comments to comdev@co.clatsop.or.us or mail them to: Community Development Department 800 Exchange Street, Suite 100 Astoria, OR., 97103.