Partnership Newsletter—March 2016
The Puget Sound Partnership is hosting three open houses to provide information about the 2016 Puget Sound Action Agenda Update and solicit public comment. The draft update is scheduled to be released at the end of March. An online open house and online survey will also be available for anyone unable to attend an open house in person.
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Tuesday, April 5, from 5 to 7:30 pm: Edmonds Library Plaza Room, 650 Main Street, Edmonds
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Thursday, April 7, from 5 to7:30 pm: Center for Urban Waters, 326 East D St, Tacoma
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Tuesday, April 12, from 5 to 7:30 pm: Best Western Plus, 2300 Market St., Mount Vernon
The Puget Sound Action Agenda is our region's shared roadmap for Puget Sound recovery. It identifies ongoing programs and priority actions—or Near Term Actions (NTAs)—to be initiated over the next 2 years. For more information, see the Action Agenda Update homepage
 BAINBRIDGE ISLAND NEARSHORE PROJECT
The
nearshore habitat along Puget Sound provides important feeding ground
and refuge for young salmon, as well as critical spawning habitat for
forage fish. Placing concrete walls along the shoreline to stabilize
property has been a common practice in Puget Sound for years. But the
walls disrupt nearshore processes and remove important fish habitat—so
some shoreline property owners are taking steps to restore their
shorelines using techniques that also protect their property. One such
landowner is the Powel family, of Bainbridge Island, who recently
removed nearly 1/4-mile of concrete wall from the shores of their
11.8-acre property. Read more about this project http://psp.wa.gov/evaluating-effective-action.php#bainbridge
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More
than 50 representatives of agencies, organizations, and tribes keen to restore
and protect Puget Sound traveled to Washington D.C. to meet with elected
representatives on March 1 and 2. The goal of the meetings was to advocate to
have Puget Sound designated as an estuary of national significance and for
policies that would help save our Sound. Check out the Facebook and Twitter
posts about Puget Sound Day on the Hill through #SaveOurSound and
#SaveAmericasSound.
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On Feb. 9, the President released his proposed budget, which includes an investment of more than $30 million for Puget Sound recovery and cleanup – $2 million more than last year’s allocation. The budget also allots $65 million to the Pacific Coastal Salmon Recovery Fund. These investments, if they go forward, would supplement state and local efforts to implement the Puget Sound Action Agenda, the region’s shared roadmap for restoring and protecting Puget Sound. Read more about the President’s budget proposal: https://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/budget/
Hear Congressman Heck educate the President about the value of Puget Sound: https://www.facebook.com/CongressmanDennyHeck/videos?fref=photo
 Polluted
stormwater runoff from urban areas contributes three-fourths of the water
pollution added to Puget Sound every year. That’s why one of the Partnership’s
top three priorities for action to restore Puget Sound is to prevent pollution
from urban stormwater runoff. Washington’s federal representatives, Congressman
Denny Heck and Congressman Derek Kilmer recently introduced legislation that
would provide incentives to help state,
tribal, and local governments invest in Green Stormwater Infrastructure.
This type of
infrastructure uses natural and engineered systems to promote the uptake and
filtration of stormwater at its source to protect habitat and reduce flood risk.
Find out more in Congressman Kilmer’s news release.
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The Puget Sound Partnership is the state agency formed to lead the region’s collective effort to restore and protect Puget Sound. Working with hundreds of governments, tribes, scientists, businesses, and nonprofits, the Partnership mobilizes partner action around a common agenda, advances Sound investments, and tracks progress to optimize recovery.
For more information, go to www.psp.wa.gov.
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