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Department of Ecology News Release - Jan. 18, 2005
05-015
BELLEVUE - The state Department of Ecology today approved an environmental permit needed by King County to construct the Brightwater wastewater-treatment plant and associated projects.
The permit, known as a water quality certification, outlines the conditions King County must adhere to as it proceeds with project facilities, which will be located in south Snohomish County and north King County. King County provides wastewater treatment to much of King County, southern Snohomish County, and a small area in Pierce County.
"This project will provide badly needed capacity to deal with the sewage-treatment needs of a fast-growing part of the state," said Ecology regional director Ray Hellwig. "Treatment facilities are intended to protect water quality, but the construction phase has the potential to affect streams and other nearby habitats. King County has agreed to meet the highest standards to protect and enhance the natural environment."
The treatment plant in Snohomish County north of Woodinville will harm no wetlands. The 114-acre site will include 37 acres of preserved or restored natural areas in the northern portion of the site and six acres in the south. Work on the site will alter 1.25 acres of wetland. Streams that now flow through pipes and ditches to Little Bear Creek will be relocated into restored, natural-flowing channels, slowing and cooling the water. King County also will take steps to remove pollutants from storm water that drains to the creek from the site.
The outfall at Point Wells will extend more than 5,000 feet from shore, where the water is 600 feet deep. It will be constructed through beach, tidal and sub-tidal habitats, including eelgrass beds. Eelgrass plants will be removed before construction and replaced afterward. Temporary walls along parts of the trench will reduce the area to be disturbed. Construction will halt during fish-migration periods determined by the state Department of Fish and Wildlife.
Pipelines that will bring waste water to the plant and carry treated water to the outfall will be installed by tunneling, which will minimize the effects of construction. To build an access road to one staging area in Kenmore, 900 square feet of wetland will be filled. Compensation will include creating 2,000 square feet of new wetland elsewhere.
"Our wastewater treatment utility has been protecting water quality for more than 40 years," said King County Executive Ron Sims. "This Ecology permit recognizes our careful approach to protecting natural resources while building and operating Brightwater facilities now and far into the future."
King County still must obtain a federal permit from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, additional state permits for constructing and operating the facility, as well as county and city land-use and construction permits.
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Contact: Larry Altose, public information officer, 425-649-7009; pager 206-663-1785
To see the permit on the Web:
http://www.ecy.wa.gov/programs/sea/fed-permit/NWRO_Decisions.html
Click on "401 Decisions." The document will be available by late today.
Copyright © Washington State Department of Ecology. See http://www.ecy.wa.gov/copyright.html.
