November 23, 2004

Environmental Watch: Miller joins DEA as biologist

Miller

BELLEVUE — David Evans and Associates recently hired Edward Miller as a biologist for the Puget Sound region. Miller has seven years of experience in wetlands, environmental impact and habitat assessments. DEA is headquartered in Portland and also has an office in Bellevue.

Miller has worked on project permitting for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and the National Marine Fisheries Service. He has a master's in environmental science and management with a focus on watershed management from the University of California-Santa Barbara.

Brown and Caldwell adds staff

SEATTLE — Brown and Caldwell recently added six to its staff. Bruce Ball manages its conveyance division and works on wastewater treatment, pump station design and corrosion control. Alex Reed is a principal electrical engineer.

Dave White and Francis Yuen joined the company's instrumentation and controls department. White is a supervising engineer with 14 year's experience in process control systems for the water and wastewater industry. Yuen is an engineer with experience in water treatment, wastewater treatment and control systems.

Tim Bauman is a cost estimator. Chris Hintz joined the accounts payable department.

Brown and Caldwell is an environmental planning, design and construction management company.

Renewable energy forum in Ellensburg

ELLENSBURG — A half-day forum on renewable energy takes place Nov. 29 at Central Washington University in Ellensburg from 1 to 5 p.m. Hosted by Washington Technology Center and the Northwest Energy Technology Collaborative, the goal is to start talks for a statewide renewable energy strategy.

The focus will be on ways to commercialize sustainable, renewable energy through sources such as wind, geothermal, biomass and bio fuel. Attendees will be business owners, government officials and researchers. Cost is $20.

For more information, contact Thea Medrano at (206) 616-3099 or tmedrano@watechcenter.org. Or see http://www.watechcenter.org/re/events.

19 win Make a Splash grants in Tacoma

TACOMA — The city of Tacoma Surface Water Management awarded 19 grants of $2,500 or less to individuals and groups working to protect water quality.

Among the winning projects are installing rain barrels, clearing non-native vegetation at Blueberry Park and educating youth about the environment.

The city's Make a Splash program gives up to $50,000 a year in grants, which are supported by water utility rates. Applications for 2005 grants will be available in March. For more information, contact special project engineer Christy Strand at (253) 502-2105 or makeasplash@cityoftacoma.org.

New recycling rules, services start Jan. 1

SEATTLE — New recycling rules and services for Seattle residents and businesses will go into effect next year, Mayor Greg Nickels recently announced.

An ordinance goes into effect Jan. 1, 2005, that bans recyclable paper and cardboard in commercial garbage. Yard waste, which is already excluded from residential garbage, will also be excluded from commercial garbage. The ordinance also prohibits recyclable paper, cardboard, cans and bottles in residential garbage.

Changes include free curbside recycling for businesses, commercial food scrap collection, 300 public recycling containers for cans and bottles, and free containers for yard waste subscribers.

King County is ‘StormReady'

SEATTLE — The National Weather Service recently named King County a "StormReady" community, and King County says it earned the highest rating of any county in the country for efforts to protect people and property in flood-prone area.

Floods in King County most commonly occur from November through February during periods of heavy rainfall or rapid snowmelt.

County staff work year round to inspect, repair and monitor more than 500 flood protection facilities at the South Fork Skykomish, Snoqualmie, Sammamish, Cedar, Green and White rivers. Since 1990, the county has repaired or upgraded 180 flood protection facilities at a cost of more than $17 million. More than $10 million of that was leveraged from federal, state and other sources of grant funding.

King County maintains, reconstructs and retrofits levees, and buys or elevates homes that often flood. It also updates flood hazard maps.

A flood warning center alerts citizens, agencies and businesses when rivers rise to certain levels. Staff respond to inquiries on flooding, road closures, weather forecasts and dam operations on a 24-hour basis. Residents can call (206) 296-8200 or (800) 945-9263 to find out about changing river conditions.

The U.S. Geological Service posts real time river gauge information at http://dnr.metrokc.gov/wlr/flood/flood.htm.

USFS says poison best for Ore. lake

MEDFORD, Ore. (AP) — A U.S. Forest Service study has concluded that chemically treating Diamond Lake to rid it of a species of invasive fish is the best route to restoring the lake's water quality, as well as its trout fishery.

Last week the Umpqua National Forest formally finished its environmental studies on the tui chub issues in the eastern Douglas County lake, said Sherri Chambers, leader of a multi-agency team.

The studies conclude the use of rotenone to kill off the chubs before restocking the lake remains the best alternative for reversing poor water quality and reviving sagging angling interest.

Frances Eatherington of the environmental group Umpqua Watersheds railed against the Forest Service conclusion, saying it is motivated by the department's interest in selling fishing licenses.

"Everybody wants clean water and good fisheries, but that's not what's going on here," Eatherington said. "This is greed."

Eatherington said alternative means, such as nets and traps, should first be tried to trim the chub numbers down "instead of periodically flushing it, like a toilet, by poisoning it."