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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Nov. 13, 1997
97-182
CONTACT: John Glynn, Water Quality Program, (425) 649-7033
Robert Wright, Water Quality Specialist, (425) 649-7060
Ron Langley, Public Information, (425) 649-7009
BELLEVUE, WA - Mud that washed from a construction project on State Route 520 late last summer has damaged fish habitat in a Bellevue stream and led to a $12,000 penalty against the state Department of Transportation (DOT).
Heavy rains on August 28 and September 17 overwhelmed an inadequate temporary stormwater system where a bridge was being built by a DOT contractor at SR-520 and N.E. 24th St. Muddy water flowed from the exposed dirt on the site into Valley Creek and temporarily closed N.E. 24th St.
"We expect state agencies and their contractors to set a good example for environmentally sound construction work. At this site, they fell far short of that goal," said Ecology Regional Director Mike Rundlett.
Valley Creek is a tributary to larger Kelsey Creek, both of which have trout and salmon populations in addition to other fish and aquatic life. Sediment released from the DOT project buried aquatic life and degraded potential spawning areas. Rundlett said that the long-term effect of the silt and sediment on fish populations and their habitat in the creeks will likely never be known.
He said DOT has now built adequate stormwater systems to handle storms through the remainder of the rainy season.
Stream damage caused by erosion from construction projects in the Puget Sound area is an especially troublesome problem because Puget Sound chinook salmon may join the federal Endangered Species Act List within the next 18 months. It's also an increasingly common problem. Erosion from construction sites appears throughout the Puget Sound region during the rainy season as contractors work year-round to meet the growing demand for new office buildings, streets, stores and homes.
"Citizens and governments throughout the Puget Sound region are working hard to restore urban streams even in the face of rapid population growth," said Rundlett. "Although many urban streams aren't pretty and have already been heavily affected, they must be protected in the same way as other streams if our salmon have any hope of recovery."
Copyright © Washington State Department of Ecology. See http://www.ecy.wa.gov/copyright.html.
