North Sound Waterkeeper

Thanks everyone who helped us monitor microplastics last month! And thanks to everyone who'll be out on the beaches today helping us cleanup after July 4th or help us monitor intertidal at Cherry Point!

Environmentalists find fewer microplastics ‘than expected’ on Bellingham beach Citizen scientists help researchers gather plastic for EPA research

Help us change the way toxic sites are cleaned up across WA state! Join us and partners this Thursday, April 13th at 5:30 PM for a webinar to learn more and how to have your voice heard. RSVP now: https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_X5gkgqcfQVqOh37k9B_MSw

We all deserve to live in a community where we can breathe clean air, drink clean water, and recreate safely in greenspaces, rivers, and lakes. Indigenous people must be able to harvest healthy salmon, free from toxics, as they have since time immemorial.
There are over 14,000 toxic waste sites throughout Washington, most of which are still awaiting cleanup. They are not just industrial facilities – they’re in neighborhoods at every corner of the state and disproportionately affect people of color and tribes. Despite this, the state’s environmental cleanup law doesn’t prioritize cleanups where they are desperately needed.
The data is clear – people of color and low-income communities bear a disproportionate share of health risks from exposure to toxics. This has serious environmental justice ramifications, including increased risk for serious health problems like cancer and neurodevelopmental disorders in children. The environmental cleanup law doesn’t currently factor this into deciding when and how toxic waste sites are cleaned up, but we have an opportunity to change this.

The Department of Ecology is updating the state environmental cleanup law after nearly 30 years. It’s time to incorporate environmental justice and climate change considerations to reduce the burden on our most impacted communities. Please join us for a webinar on Thursday, April 13th at 5:30 PM where we’ll discuss an opportunity to change how toxic waste sites are cleaned up, hear stories of how these sites affect tribes and communities, and learn how to make your voice heard through public comment.

Join us for WA Water Lobby Days the week of January 30th! Help us ensure clean and abundant water for salmon, orca, and more! No experience needed. Sign up today at the link below~

https://www.re-sources.org/initiative/wa-water-lobby-days-2023/

We just helped some folks at the University of Florida as they explore the pattern they've noticed of elevated PFAS in foam. This was a win-win as we are looking forward to seeing the results of the samples of foam and water from Squalicum, Whatcom, and Padden creeks.

Sea star wasting syndrome devastated our shorelines almost a decade ago. Community science has helped us better understand how local sea star populations have responded, and you can still continue to help us collect data! Healthy sea stars, unhealthy or absent sea stars are all data!

Devastating wasting illness of influential, iconic sea stars still a mystery - Salish Current Sea star wasting syndrome still threatens area sea stars, but community scientists and researchers are helping to shed light on the mysterious illness.