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Home / Washington Business - January/February 2007 / Saving Puget Sound |
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Saving Puget Sound |
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Written On: January/February 2007 |
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Written By: by Daniel Brunell |
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Puget Sound is one of the things that makes the Northwest such a special place to live. The area has attracted humans since the first Native American tribes arrived in dugout canoes to fish the rich waters of the Sound. The presence of humanity, though, has had a profound impact on the ecosystem of Puget Sound.
Since the rise of the environmental movement in the 1970s, great strides have been made in improving the health of Puget Sound’s environment. However, some felt that more needed to be done. With this in mind, Gov. Chris Gregoire created the Puget Sound Partnership in December 2005. The goal of the partnership was to "develop recommendations for preserving the health and ecosystem of Puget Sound, and to help educate and enlist the public in achieving recovery of the Sound by 2020."
This public-private group of regional leaders has 14 members and four legislative liaisons, including Ecology Director Jay Manning, former EPA head William D. Ruckelshaus, Lands Commissioner Doug Sutherland, and U.S. Representative Norm Dicks. After hundreds of hours of meetings, studies and input, they released their final report in December 2006.
The Puget Sound Partnership’s final report has identified five areas in need of immediate attention and leadership from the state government: Cleanup of areas with immediate septic problems; protection of Puget Sound wildlife habitat; implementation of priority projects to restore damaged forests, rivers, shorelines, and marine waters; acceleration of control and cleanup of pervasive toxic pollution; and significant reduction of polluted runoff.
In many ways, the report merely refocuses attention on issues that have been discussed in the past. But the report places a new emphasis on domestic environmental concerns like septic tank cleanup, stormwater runoff, and compliance with existing environmental laws. Above all, the report calls for a renewed effort on the part of state government, business and private citizens to clean up the Sound.
"Cleaning and protecting Puget Sound must be at the top of our state environmental agenda," said Gov. Gregoire. "But I know from experience that state government can’t do it alone."
So what happens now? The ball is in the state government’s court, and legislation is already being discussed by key policy-makers. One of the biggest battles will be over financing. The report states that "A major increase in funding from the state in the 2007-09 biennium budget will help accelerate progress immediately. This investment by the state would stimulate additional contributions from other levels of government."
The governor has already earmarked more than $220.2 million in her initial budget for cleaning up Puget Sound. Many environmental advocates say this is a nice down payment but nowhere near what will be needed to clean up the Sound by 2020.
"There is a real hesitation to move too fast on this," said Maureen Frisch, vice president of public affairs and human resources with Green Diamond Resources, one of several large employers represented in the partnership. "Everyone knows ... that the public will not support additional taxes to restore Puget Sound. The state needs to have a solid structure in place and show the public that we can be successful in these efforts. I believe that we will see a lot of emphasis on the governance structure this legislative session."
Figuring out this governance structure is a potential stumbling block. Puget Sound encompasses hundreds of city, county, state, and federal jurisdictions. Each one has their own governance structure, environmental regulations, permitting requirements, and political makeup. Creating a framework that includes all of these competing interests is a tall order, at best.
The report also calls for restraint in making new laws. "Before we start adding new laws, we need to make sure that we are enforcing the existing laws on the books," said Frisch. In the past, a point of contention in the environmental debate has been the standards used to measure environmental impact. "We need to make sure that the science that is used is impartial and we can all agree on it."
Facing these challenges, the partnership’s recommendations now move on to the Legislature. The general message from the governor and Legislature is that they are taking a cautious, pragmatic approach.
Meanwhile, the environmental well-being of Puget Sound hangs in the balance. So, too, does the economic viability of the businesses and communities on its shores.
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