Puget Sound Resources

Contents

• Introduction
• News Notes
• Puget Sound Laws and Regulations
• Puget Sound Government Resources
  • Federal
  • State and Regional
• Selected Local Government Resources related to Puget Sound
• Nonprofit Organizations related to Protection of Puget Sound
• Puget Sound Fish and Habitat Issues
• Puget Sound Recreation and Shoreline Use
• Related MRSC Pages

Introduction

The purpose of this page is to provide links to information regarding the protection of Puget Sound's water quality and resources. Puget Sound is an ecosystem in trouble. Polluted by decades of development and industrial, residential, and agricultural runoff, many critical species in the water and near the shore are declining. The decline in valuable salmon runs has been a primary concern in recent years.

Puget Sound is an estuary, a semi-enclosed, glacial fjord where salt water from the Pacific Ocean is mixed with fresh water draining from the surrounding watershed. Puget Sound proper consists of four interconnected basins: the main basin, southern basin (south of Tacoma), the Whidbey basin, and the Hood Canal basin. Puget Sound is deep, with an average depth of about 450 feet.

From a water quality planning perspective, Puget Sound includes the Sound from south of Admiralty Inlet (including: Hood Canal; the marine waters north to the Canadian border, including portions of the Strait of Georgia; the Strait of Juan de Fuca south of the Canadian border, extending westward to Cape Flattery and Saratoga Passage); and all the land draining into these waters.

The Puget Sound Partnership is a state agency that replaced the Puget Sound Action Team. The Partnership is responsible for integrating the work of state, local, and federal governments, as well as local watershed planning and salmon recovery efforts. In December 2008, the Partnership released the Puget Sound Action Agenda, a strategy for cleaning up, restoring, and protecting Puget Sound by 2020.

News Notes - RFP for Managing Land Use and Working Lands in Puget Sound Watershed

The Washington State Department of Commerce has issued a Request for Proposals from local and tribal governments for grants to reduce the conversion of ecologically important rural, forest, and agricultural lands, and to direct new development and population growth to existing urban growth areas (UGAs). Pre-proposals are due by September 19, 2011. More detailed information s is available at Ecology's Federal Puget Sound Grant Program and at Commerce's Puget Sound Watershed Protection & Restoration Grants.

Puget Sound Laws and Regulations

• Ch. 90.71 RCW - Puget Sound Water Quality Protection Act
• Ch. 341, Laws of 2007, Engrossed Substitute Senate Bill 5372, 2007 - Legislation to create the Puget Sound Partnership as a state agency
• Ch. 70.118A RCW - On-Site Sewage Disposal Systems - Marine Recovery Areas - Authorizes enhanced local programs in marine recovery areas to inventory on-site sewage disposal systems, provide for inspection and repairs to failing systems, and monitor these programs to ensure that they are working.
• RCW 77.50.010 - Limitations on commercial fishing for salmon in Puget Sound waters
• RCW 88.16.170 - RCW 88.16.200 - Oil tankers - restrictions related to oil tankers on Puget Sound and the Columbia River - including prohibition on oil tankers over 125,000 deadweight tons on Puget Sound waters
• Ch. 90.58 RCW - Shoreline Management Act of 1971
• RCW 90.58.160 - Prohibition of surface drilling for oil and gas in Puget Sound and Strait of Juan de Fuca waters
• Ch. 90.88 RCW - Aquatic Rehabilitation Zones - Watersheds draining into Hood Canal designated as aquatic rehabilitation zone.

Puget Sound Government Resources

Federal

• Puget Sound, U.S. EPA - Includes information on grants and funding, ecosystem indicators, partnerships, and more
• U.S. Department of Commerce, Northwest Regional Office, National Marine Fisheries Service, NOAA - Links to information on Endangered Species Act, salmon recovery, and protection of marine mammals
  • Sound Science: Synthesizing Ecological and Socioeconomic Information about the Puget Sound Ecosystem, ( 13 MB) 01/2007, Mary H. Ruckelshaus and Michelle M. McClure, coordinators; prepared in cooperation with the Sound Science collaborative team. U.S. Dept. of Commerce, National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration (NMFS), Northwest Fisheries Science NOAA report on Puget Sound science.
• U.S. Geological Survey (USGS)
  • Coastal Habitats in Puget Sound (CHIPS)
  • Puget Sound Basin NAWQA - Puget Sound basin study unit assessment of National Water Quality Assessment
  • USGS Sound Waves - Monthly coastal science and marine research newsletter.

State and Regional

• Puget Sound Partnership - A community effort of citizens, governments, tribes, scientists and businesses working together to restore and protect Puget Sound
  • Puget Sound Action Agenda, 12/2008 - Strategy for cleaning up, restoring, and protecting Puget Sound
  • Puget Sound Partnership Document Downloads
  • Partnership News - News releases
  • Puget Sound Assessment & Monitoring Program (PSAMP)
  • State of the Sound ( 20 MB), 2009 - A report on Puget Sound ecosystem status and a performance report to track Action Agenda implementation
  • ECONet (Education, Communication, and Outreach Network) Network that builds and strengthens relationships among organizations working in Puget Sound
  • Stormwater & Low Impact Development (LID) Also see L.I.D. Local Regulation Assistance Project - Past technical assistance program to help local governments integrate LID into their development standards and regulations
• Washington State Department of Ecology, Saving Puget Sound
  • Puget Sound Shorelines - Information on exploring, enjoying, and helping to preserve Puget Sound
  • Shoreline Aerial Photographs
  • Washington Coastal Atlas
• Puget Sound Nearshore Ecosystem Restoration Project, Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife - Partnership among local, state and tribal governments, federal agencies, industries, and environmental organizations for habitat restoration in the Puget Sound basin
• Nearshore Habitat Program, Washington State Department of Natural Resources.

Selected Local Government Resources related to Puget Sound

• King County
  • Central Puget Sound Watershed, Department of Natural Resources and Parks
  • Puget Sound Stewardship Guidebook
• Pierce County, Puget Sound Starts Here - Tips on preventing surface water runoff pollution
• Snohomish County, Aquatic Habitat and Salmon Recovery Programs, Public Works, Surface Water Management Division
• Whatcom County, Marine Resources, Public Works, Stormwater Division.

Nonprofit Organizations related to Protection of Puget Sound

• People for Puget Sound - Citizens' group established in 1991 to protect and restore the health of Puget Sound's land and waters through education and action
• The Alliance for Puget Sound Shorelines - Partnership of three leading conservation groups, People For Puget Sound, The Trust for Public Land, and The Nature Conservancy, to work collaboratively to save and protect Puget Sound
• Cascade Land Conservancy Shorelines and Estuaries
• Northwest Straits Marine Conservation Initiative - Authorized by congress; commission and working groups involved in projects to protect marine resources in seven counties (Clallam, Island, Jefferson, San Juan, Skagit, Snohomish, and Whatcom)
• Puget Sound Restoration Fund - Washington-based nonprofit dedicated to restoring marine habitat, water quality, and native species in Puget Sound
• Puget Soundkeeper Alliance - Organization with mission to protect water quality and prevent pollution in Puget Sound; part of the National Waterkeeper Alliance.

Puget Sound Fish and Habitat Issues

• Shared Strategy for Puget Sound - Collaborative initiative by Puget Sound communities to restore and protect salmon runs
• Salmon Recovery in Puget Sound, Puget Sound Partnership
• Salmon Recovery in Washington, Washington State Recreation and Conservation Office
• NOAA National Marine Fisheries Service, Northwest Region
  • Endangered Species Act Status of Puget Sound Killer Whales
  • Puget Sound ESA Salmon Recovery Domain
• Key to the Fishes of Puget Sound, Burke Museum of Natural History and Culture, University of Washington
• Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife
  • Priority Habitats and Species (PHS) - Comprehensive information on important fish, wildlife, and habitat resources in Washington
  • Puget Sound Rockfish Conservation - Includes Rockfish Conservation Plan
  • Fisheries Management – Saltwater
• Salmon and Trout Topics, King County Department of Natural Resources and Parks.

Puget Sound Recreation and Shoreline Use

• Beachapedia - Coastal knowledge resource
• Marine Tourism Best Management Practices (), A Practical Guide for Puget Sound, by Heidi Siegelbaum, People For Puget Sound and Washington SeaGrant, 09/2005
• Puget Sound Shorelines - Exploring the Beach, Washington State Department of Ecology
• Water Recreation - Washington State Marine Parks, Northwest Journal Online.

Related MRSC Pages

• Water Resources and Water Issues Information - General information on water resources, including water quality, storm and surface water management, watershed planning, and water rights, in Washington State.
• Endangered Species: Salmon, Bulltrout, and Rockfish
• Shoreline Management Act
• Storm and Surface Water Management
• Critical Areas
• Watershed Planning.

Related MRSC Resources
MRSC Index – Water pollution and general water quality standards