When you flush the toilet, it’s generally out of sight, out of mind. But that’s not the case for the operators of the approximately 300 municipal wastewater treatment facilities in the state. It’s their job to keep those systems running, getting wastewater …
Thousands of willow whips and hundreds of potted stock were recently planted along Hangman Creek, amounting to the single largest riparian restoration effort in Spokane County’s history. The project was the first of its kind in Eastern Washington and will …
For our next edition of Let’s Talk About Hanford, we're welcoming our very own George Peck, an environmental specialist from Ecology’s Nuclear Waste Program! George works in our program’s waste management section but is also a professional entomologist …
The Central Waterfront site of the Bellingham Bay cleanup is on course for cleanup construction to begin in 2026. In general, cleanup will be a combination of removing and capping contaminated soil, treating contaminated groundwater, safeguarding indoor …
DES MOINES, WASH. – Heavy rains coinciding with high tides at the Lakehaven Water and Sewer District’s Redondo wastewater treatment plant caused incompletely treated wastewater to flow into Cold Creek on three days in early 2022, contributing to …
Ecology’s 2022 statewide litter study, the first one done in almost 20 years, made several shocking findings: Not only did it show that nearly 38 million pounds of waste accumulates each year, but Washington’s roads have more litter per mile than the …
This post follows Ecology’s latest update documenting the environmental investigation at the DTG-Anderson Landfill in Yakima, where we’re looking into potential contamination. Earlier this year, DTG Recycle discovered high temperatures in a localized area …
OLYMPIA – Washington businesses, Tribes, nonprofits, public entities, and multi-family residences are eligible to apply for new funding for electric vehicle (EV) charging infrastructure. The Washington Department of Ecology is offering a total of $3.5 …
Production of apple butter is becoming a little leaner and greener. As part of Ecology’s pollution prevention technical assistance program, toxics reduction experts are working with the J.M. Smucker Company and a local consultant, Systems Interface Inc, to …
OLYMPIA – For the first time in nearly 20 years, a comprehensive statewide litter study catalogued and analyzed the assorted debris that ends up on Washington’s roads and public areas. What did the study find? So. Much. Trash. The statewide litter study, …
Even surprise droughts aren’t surprising anymore. Washington has recently seen a pattern of increasing droughts in the face of a warming climate. In 2015, the state experienced its first severe drought in almost a decade. It was a snow drought, caused when …
When an oil spill happens, the success of cleanup is only as good as the equipment and training of the responders, and the time it takes to get on location. Ecology’s Spills Program provides grants to local governments, fire departments, and other first- …
OLYMPIA – The Washington Department of Ecology has proposed new rules to clarify aspects of the Allowance Price Containment Reserve (APCR) – a tool used to provide cost controls for businesses and organizations participating in the cap-and-invest program …
RICHLAND – The Hanford Advisory Board (HAB) is seeking new members to advise federal and state agencies on the ongoing cleanup of the Hanford Site in southeast Washington. The Tri-Party Agreement agencies — the U.S. Department of Energy (Energy), …
Puget Sound is home to many types of invertebrates, each playing a different role in the sediment ecosystem. Taxonomically identifying them to genus and species can give us information about the health of the communities in which they live…. but we can’t …
OLYMPIA – The Washington Department of Ecology is awarding $63 million to 12 recipients including tribes, counties, and conservation group cross Washington as part of a program to designed to transform how floodplains in the state’s major river basins …
If you are reading this, odds are good it’s raining. For some reason, anytime we publish a blog about drought, it rains. (And, sure enough, there is rain in the forecast across much of Washington this week.) Don’t be fooled. Your lawn may be soaking up a …
An Ecology environmental specialist uses ultrasonic detection equipment to find a compressed air leak at Mikron. Reducing air leaks benefits both businesses and the environment. Many industrial processes, such as machining, painting, and extrusion, use …
The increasing pace of our high-tech world allows less and less time for teens to have summer jobs, much less to perform public service. This year, 72 Central Washington teens are doing both and making a difference one piece of litter at a time. As members …
Stormwater runoff is a leading pollution threat to rivers, streams, lakes, and Puget Sound in urban areas of Washington. As rain and snowmelt runs off buildings, paved roads, and parking lots, it increases in speed and volume, and can pick up pollution …
