This week, Ear to the Ground presents highlights from the first-year report card on DNR’s Strategic Plan goals.
A key milestone of DNR’s Strategic Plan achieved during the past year was passage of legislation consolidating the administration of four Washington Conservation Corps (WCC) programs — including one managed by DNR — and creating the Puget SoundCorps for young adults and returning veterans, ages 18 to 25 years. Our blog on January 25, 2011, described what was envisioned.
The WCC program continues but is now administered by the Department of Ecology.
As a part of the WCC, the new Puget SoundCorps will work on projects that support the Puget Sound Partnership’s Action Agenda to restore, protect, and preserve the Sound by 2020. Many projects will supplement work DNR does in its role as manager of state trust lands that lie below Puget Sound and along many areas of the Sound’s nearshore. Corps projects are likely to include beach cleanup, removing bulkheads that are damaging habitat, removing barriers to fish passage in streams, and helping to repair or remove forest roads polluting streams with sediment. The official rollout of the Puget Sound Corps component of the WCC is set for this fall.
The WCC is now seeking 245 young adults, including military service veterans, between 18 and 25 to hire for on-the-ground projects starting this fall in several counties. In addition to an hourly wage, the rewards include a $5,550 AmeriCorps education award upon completing the service year. Applications to the WCC can be completed online.
See more of DNR’s milestones and goals.
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EAR TO THE GROUND WITH DNR & COMMISSIONER FRANZ 