The numbers are in: Facts from the West Bay creosote removal project

Before and after removal. Looking south down West Bay toward the Washington State Capitol.
Top photo: Jordanna Black/DNR
Lower photo: Toni Droscher/DNR 

In February 2013, DNR and partners from the Squaxin Island Tribe, the Port of Olympia, the South Puget Sound Salmon Enhancement Group and private landowners joined together to remove toxic derelict pilings and structures from much of the southern end of Budd Inlet in Olympia.

With funding from the Washington Legislature’s 2012 Jobs Now Act, DNR hired Blackwater Marine, a diving and salvage firm from Kirkland, to do the removal project.

What was removed:

• 400 tons of pilings
• 394 pilings
• 23 piling stumps cut below the mud line (too impractical to remove them completely)
• 7,600 square feet of overwater structure

Plus:

• 12 tons of steel recycled
• 32 tons of concrete recycled

And finally:

• The project provided 1,350 hours of work for the local contractor and its employees
• Total cost of project: $360,700

Learn more about DNR’s Creosote Debris Removal Program.

View photos of the West Bay creosote removal project.

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Governor Inslee signs derelict vessel bill into law

Deep Sea is raised June 3, 2012, from where it sank in Penn Cove on Whidbey Island. Photo: DNR

Flanked by representatives of the marine trades, business, legislature, environmental community, DNR, the Washington Department of Ecology, and others, Gov. Jay Inslee today signed into law a bill that will strengthen the state’s ability to address derelict and abandoned vessels.

In the past year alone, several high-profile incidents caught the attention of the public and legislators—raising awareness about the problems these vessels cause to the environment, public safety, and the state’s economy.

Just a little more than a year ago, the 140-foot former crab-fishing vessel, the Deep Sea, caught fire and sank in Penn Cove. This unfortunate incident cause a world-renown shellfish farm to shut down for nearly a month.

The new law (ESHB 1245) holds vessel owners more accountable, helps prevent vessels from becoming derelict in the first place, improves enforcement, and shores up funding to help the state deal with these vessels.

Read more in our news release.

DNR manages the Derelict Vessel Removal Program, which provides funding and expertise to assist public agencies remove and dispose of vessels all over the state.

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San Juan County waterfront landowners: No-cost help now available for creosote-debris removal projects

Creosote-debris removal project in the San Juan Islands. Photo: DNR

Are you a waterfront landowner in San Juan County? Are your tidelands home to a variety of old, derelict creosote-treated pilings or structures? Would you like to see these relics from the past removed from your property?

If so, you can now get help to remove these toxic structures from your tidelands, thanks to a partnership with FRIENDS of the San Juans and the Washington State Department of Natural Resources (DNR). And it won’t cost you a thing.

WA State Legislature moves forward on derelict vessel bill

Tugs from Global Diving & Salvage prepare two derelict vessels for towing from Guemes Channel to Seattle, April 12, 2013. Photo: Dennis Clark/DNR

Late Friday afternoon, the Washington State Legislature gave their seal of approval to legislation that strengthens the Washington State Department of Natural Resources’ (DNR) Derelict Vessel Removal Program while alleviating the taxpayers’ burden.

Both houses have passed the bill, ESHB 1245. The next step is for the House to concur on Senate amendments to the bill. Then, the bill will proceed to the Governor’s Office for signature.

Before the bill was introduced this legislative session, DNR met with stakeholders to listen to their ideas on how to address the growing problem of derelict and abandoned vessels in Washington’s waters. We met with many diverse groups, but everyone shared a common concern for the health and safety of our state’s waterways.

Stakeholders included legislators; recreational boaters; tribal governments; shellfish growers; local, state, and federal agencies; commercial fishing industry representatives; marine trade associations; ports; and conservation groups.

Thanks to everyone who participated in these discussions. And a big thanks to the legislators who worked so hard to pass this vital bill.

Learn more about DNR’s Derelict Vessel Removal Program.

The following selection of media coverage about recent derelict vessel crises illustrates the need to strengthen the state’s derelict vessel program:

• Abandon-ed ships (Skagit Valley Herald, April 14, 2013)
• State orders removal of derelict Tacoma ship (Seattle Times, April 2, 2013)
• Give DNR more tools to deal with derelict vessels (Tacoma News Tribune editorial, March 20, 2013)
• Editorial: State needs to get tougher on derelict vessels (Seattle Times, February 4, 2013)
• Two derelict ships sink at Tacoma marina (KING 5 TV, February 25, 2013)
• Sinking incident points to state’s struggle with derelict vessels (KPLU/NPR, January 25, 2013)
• DNR takes possession of derelict boat in Port Ludlow (Peninsula Daily News, January 3, 2013)
• Taxpayers on the hook for state’s derelict boats (KOMO 4 News, October 26, 2012)
• Ballard Diving & Salvage raises derelict vessel from Sinclair Inlet (Port Orchard Independent, October 25, 2012)
• Sunken boat to be removed from Port Orchard waterfront (October 21, 2012)
• Derelict vessels create headaches on NW waters (Seattle Times, September 9, 2012)
• The Deep Sea Debacle: State needs to address threat of derelict boats (Seattle Times Guest Editorial, June 12, 2013)
• Sunken crab boat could be raised Sunday (Whidbey News-Times, May 30, 2012)
• Sunken fishing boat is leaking fuel, endangering marine life (KOMO 4 News, May 14, 2012)
• Famed shellfish in jeopardy after boat fire, sinking (Seattle PI, May 13, 2012) 

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Eelgrass, DNR scientist featured in series about the health of Puget Sound

Jeff Gaeckle, DNR seagrass ecologist, studies an eelgrass bed near Mosquito Pass on San Juan Island. Photo: Anja Schanz.

Last week, Ear to the Ground reported on DNR scientist Helen Berry’s work to study the effects of the Elwha River dam removals on eelgrass and kelp in the Straits of Juan de Fuca.

This week, eelgrass continued to capture local media attention. The Kitsap Sun’s yearlong series: “Taking the Pulse of Puget Sound” took a closer look at eelgrass and the challenges to restoring  this key barometer of the health of the Sound’s marine environment. Reporter Chris Dunagan interviewed DNR eelgrass ecologist Jeff Gaeckle for this story.

In 2011, the Puget Sound Leadership Council formally adopted eelgrass as an indicator of Puget Sound’s health and set an ambitious target for recovering eelgrass by 20 percent by the year 2020.

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DNR weekend reading: The sand dune filtration system for polluted runoff water

The Fuzzy Top Trail takes hikers into the finest stand of old-growth trees in Capitol State Forest near Olympia, WA . Photo: Jessica Payne/DNR.

Here are links to articles about natural resources, climate, energy and other topics  published recently by universities, scientific journals, organizations, and other sources:

North Carolina State University: Researchers Devise Hidden Dune Filters To Treat Coastal Stormwater Runoff

When it rains, untreated stormwater can sweep pollutants into coastal waters, potentially endangering public health. Now researchers from North Carolina State University have developed low-cost filtration systems that are concealed beneath sand dunes and filter out most of the bacteria that can lead to beach closures.

Scripps Institution of Oceanography: Scripps Scientists Discover ‘Lubricant’ for Earth’s Tectonic Plates

Scientists at Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UC San Diego have found a layer of liquefied molten rock in Earth’s mantle that may be acting as a lubricant for the sliding motions of the planet’s massive tectonic plates. The discovery may carry far-reaching implications, from solving basic geological functions of the planet to a better understanding of volcanism and earthquakes.

Daily Bulldog: UMF’s biggest geothermal project set to begin May 19
Some 80 geothermal wells will be dug in the heart of the University of Maine at Farmington campus starting this May. The $1.55 million project, which is expected to save upwards of 30,000 gallons of fuel oil each year, is part of the university’s goal of reaching carbon neutrality by 2035.

Science Daily: Suggestions for a Middle Ground Between Unlogged Forest and Intensively Managed Lands

In the world’s forested regions, two management systems — retention forestry and agroforestry — are being used to alleviate conflicts between preserving biodiversity and addressing human needs in production landscapes. A new article draws a parallel between the ecological effects of the two systems.

Scientific American: Noisy Ships Creep Out Crabs (Podcast)

The cacophony of ships at sea is stressing shore crabs and could be bothering other marine life.

Dam fascinating: DNR’s nearshore team studying what happens to marine vegetation during and after Elwha River restoration

Sediment pours out of the Elwha River into the Straits of Juan de Fuca. Photo: Tom Roorda.

Just west of Port Angeles, an unprecedented scientific experiment is taking place on a grand scale. Researchers from a variety of disciplines are watching and studying what happens following the removal of the two large dams on the Elwha River.

Since the removal of the entire Elwha Dam and part of the Glines Canyon Dam last year, millions of cubic yards of sediment, held back by the dams for 100 years, have spilled down the course of the river and oozed out along the shoreline in the Straits of Juan de Fuca.

Helen Berry, DNR nearshore scientist, has been studying the effects of Elwha dam removals on nearshore ecology and marine vegetation.

Scientists from DNR’s Nearshore Habitat Program want to know how the escape of these sediments will affect marine vegetation in the area.

In these early, post-dam days, they expected to see some changes; however…“What we’re seeing is a striking and dramatic impact from the outflow of sediments into the Straits,” says Helen Berry, DNR’s lead nearshore resource scientist.

During the dams’ rein over the natural flow of the Elwha, which effectivley stopped up sediments,  kelp beds became the dominant vegetation in the marine shoreline’s rocky substrate.

Free seminar on ocean acidification in Bellingham–March 28

Ocean acidification is having a profound effect on the development of young oysters. Photo: WA State Department of Health

The Whatcom County Marine Resources Committee and numerous co-sponsors are hosting a free seminar about ocean acidification on March 28 in Bellingham.

Learn about strategies and actions to protect the state’s marine resources.

Several members of the state’s Blue Ribbon Panel on Ocean Acidification and others will provide their perspectives on this important issue.

What:    Ocean Acidification Forum
When:   6 to 8 p.m., March 28
Where:  Bellingham Cruise Terminal
355 Harris Ave., Bellingham
Directions

Agenda:

• What is Ocean Acidification?
  Dr. Brady Olson, Western Washington University, Shannon Point Marine Center
• Local Impacts, Local Solutions
  Betsy Peabody, Puget Sound Restoration Fund, Member of the Blue Ribbon Panel on Ocean Acidification
• Recommendations, Partnerships, and Actions
  Brad Warren, Sustainable Fisheries Partnership, Member of the Blue Ribbon Panel on Ocean Acidification

A question-and-answer period follows the presentations.

For more information, contact Melissa Roberts, Whatcom County Public Works, 360-676-6876, ext. 50259 or visit the Whatcom County MRC webpage.

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DNR weekend reading: Lots and lots of sediment yet to flow down Elwha River, and other articles

Eocene continental sedimentary deposit of the Chuckanut formation in northwest Washington state. The formation’s deposits—fine-to-medium grained sandstones with lesser amounts of interbedded shale, conglomerate, and coal—and the presence of plant fossils indicate that the area was once a low-lying coastal plain with a subtropical climate. Photo: David Jeschke.

Here are links to articles about natural resources, climate, energy and other topics  published recently by universities, scientific journals, organizations, and other sources:

University of Washington: Tracking sediments’ fate in largest-ever dam removal
Salmon are beginning to swim up the Elwha River for the first time in more than a century. But University of Washington marine geologists are watching what’s beginning to flow downstream—34 million cubic yards of sediments from the largest dam-removal project ever undertaken.

University of California-Santa Cruz: Bats not bothered by forest fires, study finds
A survey of bat activity in burned and unburned areas after a major wildfire in the southern Sierra Nevada mountains found no evidence of detrimental effects on bats one year after the fire. The findings suggest that bats are resilient to high-severity fire, and some species may even benefit from the effects of fire on the landscape.

Scientific American: Clearing Forests May Transform Local—and Global—Climate
In the last 15 years, 200,000 hectares of the Mau Forest in western Kenya have been converted to agricultural land. Previously called a “water tower” because it supplied water to the Rift Valley and Lake Victoria, the forest region has dried up; in 2009 the rainy season—from August to November—saw no rain, and since then precipitation has been modest.

Virginia Tech: Researchers propose innovative solution to ensure biofuel plants don’t become noxious weeds
Some plants that are ideal for bioenergy production can potentially become invasive weeds that can cause billions of dollars in economic damage. A Virginia Tech researcher proposes changes in the regulatory methodology for evaluating the invasive potential of plants that are under consideration for large-scale cultivation as biofuel feedstock.

Stanford University: Stanford scientists calculate the carbon footprint of grid-scale battery technologies
Solar and wind power pose a challenge for the U.S. electrical grid, which lacks the capacity to store surplus clean electricity and deliver it on demand. Researchers are developing grid-scale storage batteries, but the fossil fuel required to build these technologies could negate some of the environmental benefits of new solar and wind farms, say scientists.

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DNR weekend reading: Warmer waters, less snow may challenge Northwest shellfish and energy industries

A unnamed tributary to Deer Creek in the Upper Washougal Northern Spotted Owl Management Area managed by DNR in Skamania County. Photo: Florian Deisenhofer/DNR

Today’s DNR Weekend Reading post begins with three developments that could have a direct impact on the Pacific Northwest: reduced snowmelt for water and power supplies, how warming waters affect shellfish, and another approach to using pine resin to make ‘greener’ plastics.

Princeton Journal Watch: Forecast Is for More Snow in Polar Regions, Less for the Rest of Us
A new cli­mate model pre­dicts an increase in snow­fall for the Earth’s polar regions and its high­est alti­tudes, but an over­all drop in snow­fall for the globe, as car­bon diox­ide lev­els rise over the next century. The decline in snow­fall could spell trou­ble for regions such as the west­ern United States that rely on snowmelt as a source of fresh water.

Scientific American: Warmer Waters Make Weaker Mussels  (PODCAST)
The work of University of Washington research scientist Emily Carrington is discussed. Her findings indicate that mussels’ attachment fibers weaken in warm water. As climate change raises ocean temperatures, these shellfish may be forced to cooler waters.

University of South Carolina: Turning Pine Sap Into “Ever-Green” Plastics
Scientists the University of South Carolina are developing new plastics that are “green” from the cradle to the grave because they are derived from the natural resins found in trees, especially evergreens. The rosin and turpentine derived from conifer wood are rich in hydrocarbons and similar, but not identical, to some components of petroleum.

Stanford University: Going negative: Stanford scientists explore new ways to remove atmospheric CO2
Because reducing CO2 emissions may not be enough to curb the current global warming trend, Stanford scientists suggest developing carbon-negative technologies that remove large amounts of CO2 from the atmosphere. One approach they favor is converting plant wastes (that release CO2 into the air) into biochar – a charcoal-like substance that can be used as fertilizer to permanently lock the carbon underground.

Science Daily: Coldness Triggers Northward Flight in Monarch Butterflies: Migration Cycle May Be Vulnerable to Global Climate Change  A new study by scientists at the University of Massachusetts Medical School published in Current Biology, suggests that it is exposure to coldness in the microenvironment of the monarch butterfly’s  overwintering site that triggers its return north every spring. If a warming  climate reduces this cold exposure, the monarch butterfly might just continue flying south instead of returning to upper latitudes each spring.

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