Washington State -Cascade Chapter

South King County Group

Our Ongoing Challenges
 

 

Tub Lake

The City of SeaTac gave this part of the Tub Lake park and bog to the Port of Seattle for development of a maintenance facility.

 

 

 

 

 

Such a development and its runoff could well prove fatal to this beautiful area.

 

 

 

 

Third Airport Runway

 

This site includes fill excavated from the Duwamish/Hamm Creek Superfund cleanup site. Even without proper permits, the Port continues to devastate the environment, including the headwaters of Miller Creek runway.

 

 

 

 

Links to Third Runway action sites: 

 

Regional Commission on Airport Affairs

 

No Third Runway

 

 

 

Maury Island

 

Glacier Northwest, a local gravel mining company, wants to increase their output from Maury Island to over 300 times the currently permitted level, and barge the fill across Puget Sound.  Were this to be permitted, Maury Island's sole aquifer would be imperiled. It would be dangerous to disturb the arsenic on the ASARCO site; and one of the largest healthy stands of madronas in the Northwest would be cleared.

 

This activity would also destroy eelgrass and other near-shore aquatic life, as salmon migration corridors have been identified within and adjacent to the project and reserve sites. Damage to Puget Sound's shorelines, especially eelgrass beds, is a critical survival issue for salmon. Salmon from as far away as the Skagit River use this shoreline.

 

Right: The South King County Group sponsored an outing to Vashon and Maury Islands to learn more about the Glacier Northwest gravel mining operation.

 

Other reasons why gravel mining on Maury Island should not be increased:

  • Orca whales feed in Vashon-Maury Island waters, including the project area; their fishing and travels

  •  would be disrupted by the noise and traffic of the dock, loading, and barging operations.

  • Oil spill risks increase with more vessel traffic. The same species that are vulnerable to disruption from construction and operation of the dock and mine (including salmon and orcas) are harmed by oil spills.

  • Puget Sound's health is in jeopardy. Rather than more damage to its shorelines and waters, we need to improve and restore its water quality and its habitats.

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