Protecting & Enhancing Puget Sound
Puget Soundkeeper has worked to address the risks of catastrophic oil spills for many years, with a focus on oil transportation safety, in an effort to protect our waters and marine life by preventing the devastating effects of an oil spill.
After a great deal of thought and reflection during what has been an extraordinarily tumultuous and challenging year, I have decided to focus on my family and loved ones, and will be stepping down as Puget Soundkeeper and Executive Director. Though my role will change, I will continue to wholeheartedly support the work of Puget Soundkeeper. I am confident that Puget Soundkeeper is in good hands and will continue to be a leading voice for protecting and preserving the waters of Puget Sound.
Yesterday, Puget Soundkeeper and Seattle Iron & Metals Corp. filed an amended consent decree in the US District Court after SIMC failed to meet pollution control deadlines established in an initial settlement filed last year. To protect the health and welfare of Duwamish Valley residents impacted by air and water pollution from SIMC’s operations, Soundkeeper and SIMC negotiated a new agreement which requires SIMC to pay an additional $90,000 to community organizations to fund local restoration and pollution mitigation work.
Polluted stormwater run-off is the number one threat to the Puget Sound. One major contributor to stormwater pollution is and stormwater from construction sites, which can convey muddy water, debris, and toxic chemicals into our waterways. Soundkeeper believes the permit could be strengthened through language changes and clarifications, the elimination of a testing exemption for sites smaller than one acre, and creating a requirement for reporting hazardous chemicals stored on site to Ecology.
Puget Soundkeeper’s San Juan Island Marine Debris Project aims to remove harmful marine pollution from the shores and waters of the iconic San Juan Islands. With the help of Aquatic Research and Monitoring’s 34 foot landing craft, “The Voyager”, we’re able to patrol San Juan Island waters to remove harmful debris.
Youth from Soundkeeper’s Lost Urban Creeks project took to the field last week to see what a functioning salmon habitat really looks like. Dan Eastman, the Capital Project Manager for King County’s Water and Land Resources Division, Ecological Restoration and Engineering Services Unit and Nathan Brown III, Cedar River Council Coordinator and Project Program Manager met Lost Urban Creeks program participants at the Cedar River to show them the Rainbow Bend Restoration Site.