September 20, 2005

Environmental Watch: Brown and Caldwell adds staff

SEATTLE — Brown and Caldwell, an environmental engineering company based in Walnut Creek, Calif., with 45 offices nationwide, has added several people to its Seattle area office: Andrew Lee, Neil Reid, Darin Johnson, Sean Halliburton and Michael Rawls.

Lee was hired as a senior civil/environmental engineer to work on projects for Seattle Public Utilities. Reid is a managing engineer. Johnson is a principal engineer. Halliburton was a temporary technical editor and now works full time. Rawls was a former contractor in the electrical department.

Rick Kelly and Tom Chapman joined the company's mechanical group. Bin Ge joined the firm as a structural engineer. Kelly Kimball is an electrical engineer. Matt Maring is a principal civil engineer with more than 12 years of experience, and is working on water projects.

Lauren Smith joined as a marketing coordinator.

In the Olympia office, Kimberly Murillo has joined to help with county water projects.

AWB names enviro policy director

OLYMPIA—The Association of Washington Business named Chris McCabe governmental affairs director of environmental policy. He has 15 years of experience in governmental affairs.

He worked as a land use lawyer in Olympia and was also in Washington, D.C., as a legislative assistant to former Alaska Senator Frank Murkowski. He also did work for former Washington State Rep. Tim Hickel (R-Federal Way).

He replaces Kristen Sawin, who took a job at Weyerhaeuser. McCabe will share environmental issue responsibilities with staff member Grant Nelson.

USDA gives grants for energy projects

OLYMPIA — Two Washington state businesses recently won grants from the U.S. Department of Agriculture for renewable energy projects.

George DeRuyter & Sons Dairy, based in Outlook, will get $499,200 for an anaerobic digester in Yakima County. Natural Selection Farms in Sunnyside will get $99,500 to buy equipment to turn canola into biofuel.

Almost $21 million will be distributed in 32 states. Other recipients include farmers, co-ops and rural small businesses doing wind, solar, biomass, geothermal and conservation technology projects. For more information, see http://www.rurdev.usda.gov/wa.

Pierce County open house on basin plan

TACOMA — Pierce County planners will hold an open house Wednesday on the sources of fecal coliform bacteria that were found during studies to update the Clear/Clarks Creek basin plan.

The open house will be at the Summit Library, 5207 112th St. E. from 4 to 8 p.m. A public hearing on the updated plan will be Sept. 27 at the Pierce County Public Services Building (Annex), 2401 S. 35th St. at 8:30 a.m.

Fecal coliform can indicate that viruses or other pathogens are in water. Bacteria can get into water from human and animal waste. Swan, Clear and Clarks creeks are on the state's list of polluted water bodies because of high levels of fecal coliform bacteria.

Researchers found birds and rodents contribute the most bacteria, followed by dogs, then humans.

The plan addresses pollution, as well as stream channel erosion and invasive vegetation management. It proposes spending $65 million over 10 years. Copies are at libraries in Summit, Puyallup, Swan Creek, South Hill and South Tacoma. Comments may be presented Sept. 21 or to the Planning Commission Sept. 27.

Meeting on how to sell green buildings

BELLEVUE — The Cascadia Region Green Building Council is one of the sponsors of a Sept. 27 breakfast meeting on how to market green buildings.

The event will be held at the Meydenbauer Center from 7:30 to 9 a.m. RSVP by Sept. 21 at bellevuedowntown.com/events.

Other sponsors are the Bellevue Downtown Association and Urban Land Institute Seattle.

The main topic will be the benefits of high-performance buildings, which organizers say are healthier and cost less to operate. Speakers include Tom Paladino of Paladino and Co., Douglas Howe of Touchstone Corp., Dan Ivanoff of Schnitzer Northwest and Pat Callahan of Equity Office Properties.

Grants available for aquatic habitat

SEATTLE — Projects designed to improve habitat along Seattle waterways can get funds under Seattle Public Utilities' $300,000 Aquatic Habitat Matching Grant Program. Grants start at $2,000.

Projects that qualify include: removing fish passage blockages in creeks on private property, taking out invasive plants and putting in native plants near stormwater outfalls or creek mouths, removing bulkheads, restoring creek channels and creating shallow-water habitat.

Work must be done along Seattle creek, marine and lake shorelines that have been impacted by the city's drainage system. Urban creeks can be damaged by fast-moving water during storms, as well as stormwater flowing out of pipes or creek mouths.

Deadline for submissions is Friday. For more information, see http://www.seattle.gov/util/aquaticgrant.

Hanford schedules free public tours

RICHLAND — The Department of Energy has scheduled free bus tours of the Hanford site for Oct. 13, 14 and 15.

Tours will cover how plutonium was made. There will be a walking tour of B Reactor, the world's first large-scale plutonium production reactor. Fuel was manufactured in Hanford's reactors, nuclear fuel was irradiated here and production reactors were located along the Columbia River. Today, cleanup work focuses on cocooning former reactors and cleaning up waste sites.

The free, four-hour tours start and end at Volpentest Hammer Training & Education Center at 2890 Horn Rapids Road in Richland. They will be at 7:30 and 9:30 a.m. and at 12:30 p.m. Check the Web site for available slots, www.hanford.gov/information/sitetours/registration.

For more information on Hanford tours, see www.hanford.gov/information/sitetours.