November 23, 1999

Environmental Watch

PBS Environmental shuffles execs

PORTLAND -- In a change that reflects the continuing growth of PBS Environmental, two of the firm's top executives are changing jobs within the firm. Stephen Smiley, one of founding principals, has been named CEO and chairman of the board. Ronald Petti will succeed Smiley as the firm's president, after managing operations for eight years. PBS, with offices in Portland, Seattle, Eugene and Bend, Ore., provides a range of environmental consulting and testing services.

Count salmon 'round the clock

SEATTLE -- Put on your rain gear, pick up your night-vision goggles and head out to Pipers Creek this weekend to keep tabs on spawning chum salmon. Seattle Public Utilities and the Seattle Department of Parks and Recreation are sponsoring the "Pipers Creek 24-Hour Salmon Count," which will start at 3 p.m. Friday, Nov. 26, and end at 3 p.m. the next day. Volunteers really will be issued night-vision goggles for the dark hours, during which time they will record the number and species of salmon returning to spawn. Volunteers should call (206) 615-0866 to enlist.

MTCA revisions get public hearings

OLYMPIA -- The state Department of Ecology has scheduled five public hearings in December to gather comments on proposed changes to the state's environmental laws. The changes affect:

• Chapter 173-340 WAC, Model Toxics Control Act cleanup regulations;
• Chapter 173-322 WAC, MTCA Remedial Action Grants and loans regulation;
• Chapter 173-321 WAC, MTCA Public Participation Grants regulation; and
• State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA), Draft Environmental Impact Statement.

Ecology staff will present an overview of the changes and answer questions before each hearing. In addition, the proposed changes will be posted on the agency's Web site.

Public hearings will be held:

• Dec. 9 in Vancouver. 6 p.m. at the Washington State University Satellite, Room SS129, 14204 Salmon Creek Ave.

• Dec. 14, twice in Seattle. 1:30 p.m. at the Mountaineers Building, Tahoma 1 Room, 300 Third Ave. W.; and 6 p.m. in the Seattle Parks Board Room, Denny Park on Dexter.

• Dec. 15 in Spokane. 6 p.m. at the Department of Ecology, Eastern Regional Office, First Floor Conference Room.

• Dec. 16 in Yakima. 6 p.m. at Ecology's Central Regional Office, Waterfall/Seafoam Conference Room, 15 W. Yakima Ave., Suite 200.

Written comments are due by Jan. 17, 2000. Send them to Trish Akana, Toxics Cleanup Program, Washington State Department of Ecology, P.O. Box 47600, Olympia, WA 98504-7600.

For more information, call (360) 407-6186.

Everett smelter cleanup plans available

OLYMPIA -- The state Department of Ecology has finalized plans for cleanup of the upland area of Asarco's Everett smelter site. The plans are described in a document entitled "Integrated Final Cleanup Action Plan and Final Environmental Impact Statement for the Upland Area."

Among the actions described in the plan are removal of contaminated soil, removing contaminated material from the former arsenic trioxide processing area, construction of a containment facility, protecting groundwater, monitoring of the cleanup, developing contingency plans and related measures. The plan can be found on the Web.

Energy alliance elects officers

PORTLAND -- The board of directors of the Northwest Energy Efficiency Alliance has elected new officers. Charlie Grist, a senior policy advisor in the Oregon Office of Energy and the Northwest Power Planning Council, is the new chairman of the board. He replaces Carol Brown of Portland General Electric.

Darlene Nemnich, an economic analyst at Idaho Power, was elected treasurer. Mat Northway, manager of energy management services at Eugene Water and Electric Board, will serve as secretary.

Besides electing officers, the board voted to continue funding seven NEEA projects to the tune of $3.6 million. The projects involve residential lighting, clothes washers, windows, compressed air equipment and educational programs for architects and developers.

For more information, call Stacey Hobart at (800) 411-0834, ext. 228.

Water management for fading species

SEATTLE -- At its 35th annual conference, the American Water Resources Association will explore "watershed management to protect declining species." The program will look at the successes and failures of water management programs across the country as they respond to Endangered Species Act requirements.

The conference is set for Dec. 6-9 at the Sheraton Hotel in downtown Seattle. It will feature 57 technical sessions, about 200 presentations and tours of water-resources infrastructure in the Seattle area.

For more information, go to the AWRA Web page.

EPA puts sustainability on CD-ROM

SEATTLE -- The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Region 10 Office of Innovation has hatched a bright idea. It has produced a CD-ROM containing a broad overview of sustainable business strategies, global climate change and smart growth efforts. The interactive CD contains a project evaluation guide, practical ideas for actions individuals can take and many other elements.

To run the disk, computers must have processors equivalent to a 166 megahertz Pentium; 8-bit color with monitor resolutions of 640 by 480 lines; a working sound card for CD audio; and a Windows 95 or 98 operating system. The CD has not been tested on Windows NT.

Barbara Lither and Anne Dalrymple, both on the CD-ROM development team, can answer questions and would like feedback on the disk. They can be reached at (206) 553-0199.

Plant a spade, save trees and salmon

SEATTLE -- Come rain or shine, on Dec. 4 a corps of hardy volunteers will dig up a load of native plants at a development site northeast of Redmond and save them for replanting along salmon streams in King County. The event has two parts: digging in the morning, potting in the afternoon. Volunteers may sign up for either or both.

The digging section will meet at 9 a.m. at the salvage site. Potters work from 12:30 to 4 p.m. in the Redmond holding facility. Volunteers should be prepared for rain, mud and debris. Bring work gloves and a coffee mug. Light refreshments will be provided by King County's Department of Natural Resources.

To offer your services, call Greg Rabourn at (206) 296-1923.

Live your dream: become a master composter

SEATTLE -- Applications are now being accepted for Seattle Public Utility's Community Composting Education Program. This program trains five lucky Seattle residents who are interested in becoming a master composter -- and who then spend 40 hours apiece educating other residents about composting and green gardening.

Applications may be submitted until Feb. 11, 2000. For more information, or an application, call the compost hotline at 633-0224. Or stop by Seattle Tilth at 4649 Sunnyside Ave. N., Room 1, Seattle. The hours are Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.