FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 5, 2023
MEDIA CONTACT: Kevin Hyde, 360.819.3045, kevin.hyde@psp.wa.gov
The Puget Sound Partnership Leadership Council will meet on Wednesday, June 7, from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., and Thursday, June 8, from 9:30 a.m. to 2:00 p.m., at LOTT Clean Water Alliance Board Room, 500 Adams ST NE, Olympia, WA, 98501.
All are welcome to attend the meeting. With the expiration of the Governor’s COVID-19 State of Emergency, masking for Partnership staff, board members, and attendees is voluntary. We continue to strongly support those who choose to wear a mask.
We’ll be providing all-virtual livestreams of this meeting, through TVW (links below). We highly encourage partners and other members of the public to use this virtual option, if possible, to reduce carbon emissions and to minimize COVID risks for everyone. If you do elect to use the livestream option and wish to submit public comment, please send your written comments to anna.petersen@psp.wa.gov by noon on Tuesday, June 6. We will review public comments submitted by email during the general public comment period on June 7.
TVW web links:
June 7: https://tvw.org/video/puget-sound-partnership-leadership-council-2023061023/?eventID=2023061023
June 8: https://tvw.org/video/puget-sound-partnership-leadership-council-2023061024/?eventID=2023061024
The agenda and meeting materials are available through our board meetings page: https://psp.wa.gov/board_meetings.php
Meeting highlights include:
- A forum about shellfish growing area classification trends. The forum will include a presentation by staff from the Washington State Department of Health's (DOH) shellfish growing area section on shellfish bed classification, target goals and trends, and barriers related to water quality improvement, including actions to overcome those barriers. Staff from DOH's wastewater section will give an overview of onsite sewage system trends and share an example of recent success in onsite sewage system management. Presentation by Scott Chernoff, water quality program lead, Washington State Department of Health, and Jeremy Simmons, wastewater section manager, Washington State Department of Health.
- A forum with Alliance for a Healthy South Sound. The forum will include a presentation by the Alliance for a Healthy South Sound (AHSS) on recent successes and challenges with shellfish and water quality management in the South Sound. AHSS will highlight long-standing local collaboration and local successes around shellfish and water quality programs and promote the importance of investments in keeping shellfish beds open as well as restoring closed beds. The forum will also include a presentation by the LOTT (Lacey, Olympia, Tumwater, Thurston County) Clean Water Alliance on their approach to nutrient reduction, and a discussion about how nutrients are a challenge in the South Sound, where local efforts to improve water quality cannot succeed without broader regional improvements. Forum participants include Tom Kantz, watersheds services supervisor, Pierce County; Jeff Barney, watershed planner, Pierce County; Jane Mountjoy-Venning, environmental health specialist, Thurston County; Kevin Shutty, Mason County commissioner; Matt Kennelly, executive director, LOTT Clean Water Alliance; and Lisa Dennis-Perez, environmental planning and communications director, LOTT Clean Water Alliance.
- A presentation and discussion about the 2023 Washington State legislative session. This session will include a recap of the 2023 legislative session and a discussion about ideas and plans for identifying 2024 legislative priorities. Presentation by Don Gourlie, legislative policy director at the Puget Sound Partnership.
- A presentation and discussion about the 2023 State of the Sound report. This session will include a presentation of the outline of the 2023 State of the Sound and a discussion of themes and key messages for the Leadership Council's letter for the report. Presentation by Jon Bridgman, communications manager at the Puget Sound Partnership, Alex Mitchell, performance management analyst at the Puget Sound Partnership, and Mary Ramirez, monitoring performance analyst at the Puget Sound Partnership.
- A presentation on the addendum to the regional chapter of the Salmon Recovery Plan. This session will include a presentation about the addendum, which includes strategies and actions to move salmon recovery forward, a monitoring and adaptive management framework, and funding strategies for implementing the addendum. Presentation by Melissa Speeg, salmon recovery manager at the Puget Sound Partnership.
- A forum about Sound Safe Infrastructure and funding infrastructure for ecosystems and people. With the passage of the Federal Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and the Inflation Reduction Act, and the 16-year, nearly $17 billion State of Washington transportation funding package, the Puget Sound region will be receiving a large influx of money over the next five years dedicated to improving transportation infrastructure. This session will include a discussion about using this opportunity to direct federal transportation investments to projects that contribute to Puget Sound recovery. Forum participants include Kirsten Feifel, adaptive systems manager at the Puget Sound Partnership, Jenn Grimm, strategic funding manager at the Puget Sound Partnership, Ahren Stroming, special assistant for federal affairs at the Puget Sound Partnership, and Don Gourlie, legislative policy director at the Puget Sound Partnership.
- A presentation and decision about the Leadership Council's 2023-2024 work plan. This session will include a discussion and decision about the Leadership Council's proposed 2023-2024 work plan. Presentation by Dennis McLerran, chair of the Leadership Council, and Jillian Reitz, boards policy advisor at the Puget Sound Partnership.
- A presentation and discussion about the Puget Sound Federal Leadership Task Force (PSFLTF). This session will include an update on the recent activities of the PSFLTF and its work groups. Partnership staff will also share a summary report about 2023 Puget Sound Day on the Hill events. Presentation by Peter Murchie, program manager, EPA Geographic Programs Section, and Ahren Stroming, special assistant for federal affairs at the Puget Sound Partnership.
The full Leadership Council agenda and meeting materials are available through our board meetings page at: https://psp.wa.gov/board_meetings.php.
If you need special accommodations to participate in this meeting, please notify Special Assistant to the Boards Anna Petersen at 360.338.2384.
About the Leadership Council
The Leadership Council is the governing body of the Puget Sound Partnership. Its seven members are leading citizens chosen from around the Sound and appointed by the Governor to serve four-year terms. Dennis McLerran currently chairs the Leadership Council.
About the Puget Sound Partnership
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 government agencies, 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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