Sound Stewards
April 2022
go with the flow - free the Deschutes!
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Message from the Executive Director |
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Now that it’s getting warmer out, let me tell you an anecdote about how I first learned about the woes of the Deschutes Estuary. This is 2015, and I had just moved to Olympia. My husband and I were exploring Olympia, stoked to be in a city with a vibrant downtown and beautiful waterfront. That was, until we saw Capitol Lake. Or, actually, we smelled it first. You’ve all seen Capitol Lake in the height of summer– overwhelming algal blooms in a seemingly stagnant body of water. This was confusing for us. How could there be this giant eutrophic eyesore in the heart of Washington, a state known for beautiful waterways and a robust environmental ethos? The Capitol campus is, of course, a major tourist attraction… it’s not just locals who are confronted with this neon green spectacle, which, interestingly enough, is not even the most eutrophic local lake. Eutrophication is only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to Capitol Lake issues, yet it leaves such an impression. I immediately felt that this lake, and the water quality in the South Sound as a whole, cannot possibly represent who we are as Olympians, and who we are as the people of Washington. This place should reflect our values as residents of the Evergreen state– don’t we want the center of our Capitol city to feature a mighty free-flowing Deschutes?
As I got to know Olympia, I began to see the Yestuary! Bumper stickers around town, and became increasingly curious about the advocacy campaign to remove the 5th Avenue dam and restore our urban estuary. Flash forward a few years, and I now have the honor of serving as DERT’s Executive Director. It’s my privilege to advocate every day for the restoration of the Deschutes Estuary. We can do better than Capitol Lake, and we will– thanks to the community advocacy that pushed the Environmental Impact Statement to happen. At this point in the EIS process, the state has identified the Estuary as the likely preferred alternative to Capitol Lake. (more info about what that looks like here). The push is far from over, but let us take a moment to celebrate the inevitable removal of the 5th avenue dam! In a lot of ways, our work is only just beginning. One day, the estuary will be the gem of Olympia, and the symbol of our values as the Evergreen State.
If you feel the same way, I urge you to get involved. We are raising funds to continue our programs to educate citizens, students, teachers and decision makers as to the environmental and economic benefits of restoring the estuary to a naturally functioning highly productive ecosystem. Our purpose is to create dialogue around reconnecting the Deschutes River to its estuary– and we cannot do that without you.
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Welcome to our new staff member, Jae!! |
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Jae has resided in Olympia for about 8 years, and is a lifelong resident of Washington State. They graduated from The Evergreen State College in 2018 with a Bachelor's of Science focused in Forest Ecology. Right out of college, Jae volunteered as an AmeriCorps and paired with WDFW to conduct forage fish sediment surveys. Since then they spent about two years working with the South Sound Reading Foundation and two years at Captain Little toy store. Jae has worked/lived in the Downtown area for about 5 years and they absolutely love the sense of closeness and community. Jae enjoys planning for the future, hiking/camping, learning and forgetting (and relearning) botanical nomenclature, embroidery, and spending time with their wife and cat. |
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If you’re looking to get involved in the watch for algal blooms, join us next Saturday, April 30th at 2:00 pm at Boston Harbor, as we monitor Budd Inlet's water quality via kayak! Learn about watershed health and find out what's blooming in South Sound alongside guest expert Aimee Christy (Pacific Shellfish Institute). Learn more about our kayak patrols at https://deschutesestuary.org/kayak-boat-patrols/. Registration is free! Visit the volunteer center by clicking the button below.
Every week, PSI biologists dip their net into Budd Inlet to track plankton communities and screen for harmful algal blooms, or HABs. HABs are blooms of phytoplankton that cause harm to people, animals, or local water quality. This data will be submitted to NOAA’s SoundToxins program, a phytoplankton monitoring network designed to provide early warning of HABs in an effort to protect human health and economic losses to fisheries. Ever wonder what microscopic organisms you’re swimming with? During this kayak activity, we will collect water quality data and plankton samples that will be analyzed onshore using microscopes. Click here to learn more about PSI’s What’s Blooming program.
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While this event is free to everyone, if you have the means, we encourage a small donation to support DERT's mission of protecting and restoring the Deschutes Estuary. If a donation isn't feasible, please consider sharing our posts with others. Thank you and we'll see you on the water!" |
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May 7th kayak patrol with Liz Schotman, from Surfrider Foundation! |
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Liz Schotman, Surfrider Foundation’s Washington Regional Manager, will discuss how Surfrider works to ensure the protection and enjoyment of our ocean, waves, and beaches for all people through a powerful activist network. She’ll discuss how our volunteer-run campaigns and programs, such as Rise Above Plastics, Ocean Friendly Restaurants, and the Blue Water Task Force, can fight plastic pollution, protect clean water, and address the threat of climate change to our coasts and communities. Surfrider has a proven strategy of leveraging these on-the-ground grassroots efforts towards scalable change by not only connecting people with their waterways, but by enabling them as leaders of our coastal communities, lobbying on behalf of our waterways to pass local, state, and federal policies to protect our coasts and our access to them.
complete a volunteer application.
*NOTE: All kayaking events are subject to cancellation due to inclement weather. We use windfinder.com to monitor the wind and weather forecast. Local marinas generally do not rent kayaks when the winds are in excess of 8 MPH.
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April 23: Earth Day at Traditions Cafe. Registration here. Join us for the 1st annual Earth Day gathering of local Environmental Organizations at Traditions Cafe, from 3-6 pm. Bring your “Free the Deschutes” and “Yestuary” signs to wave after the presentations, when we take to the avenue to make our voices heard as folks pour into town for Arts Walk. Other participating organizations include Sunrise Movement, Citizens for a Clean Black Lake, Center for Responsible Forestry, and Olympia High School Climate Action Team.
May 31: Community Forum EIS Series Part I: Climate Change. This will be IN PERSON, details TBD!
June 28: Community Forum EIS Series Part II: Deschutes Watershed and Puget Sound Wildlife. This will be IN PERSON, details TBD!
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Seeking volunteers for particular projects: ArcGIS, graphic design, event setup, and for our Flyer Brigade. If you would like to be involved in any of these, please reach out to our Outreach Coordinator, Jae Harris-Townsend.
Deschutes Estuary Restoration Team (DERT) is looking for community-focused estuary enthusiasts to join our Board of Directors. DERT’s Board of Directors are members of our community that have chosen to volunteer their time and resources to advocate for restoration of the Deschutes Estuary through the removal of the 5th avenue dam in downtown Olympia. We can’t achieve this vision without your help. DERT welcomes those from all backgrounds and identities. If interested, please visit https://deschutesestuary.org/volunteer/join-derts-board/ or email our Executive Director, Paige Anderson, at anderson@deschutesestuary.org
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We had a wonderful time learning from a number of experts about water issues in our region during DERT's two part Human Water Cycle community forum!! Great presentations and conversations. Thank you so much to our guest speakers: Jesse Barham, Sean Dixon, Kevin Hansen, Katrinka Hibler, Matt Kennelly, Dave Peeler, and Ted Sturdevant! If you were unable to attend, worry not! We have uploaded videos of the two forums to our community forum webpage. You can also view them below. Part I is on the left, and Part II is on the right. Stay tuned for updates on our May forum-- we hope to see you there!
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A special thanks to Olympia’s Works in Progress newspaper for including a feature article on the latest EIS news in their April Issue. |
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An important milestone that could lead to a free-flowing ...
PERSPECTIVE: The Washington Department of Enterprise Services has announced the "Estuary Alternative" will likely be the preferred option for the Capitol Lake/Deschutes Estuary. The Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) team expects that...
Read more
olywip.org
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Do our emails get lost in your promotion tab? Here is a quick trick to make sure our newsletter goes directly into your primary inbox*. Simply click on the email in your promotions tab, and drag it up and over to your primary tab. Voila! From now on, every DERT email will go directly to your primary tab! |
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*This tip is for those who use Gmail,but it may be applicable to other platforms.
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Pollution Reporting Resources |
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As a community dedicated to protecting the Deschutes watershed and South Puget Sound, we must all keep an eye out for pollutant sources when out and about. We have added a new page to our website that lists contacts for reporting pollution.
Read more
deschutesestuary.org
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DERT's South Sound Healthy Watershed Program operates thanks to our sponsoring foundations and donors like you. Did you know that donors are now able to set up automatic recurring monthly donations in any amount? Follow the link to the right to get set up. Thank you for working with us towards a free Deschutes! |
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Thank you to our supporters!
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