Press release issued on 10. 18. 16 from the governor's website
SEATTLE – Today officials from the Obama administration and Washington Gov. Jay Inslee, U.S. Sens. Patty Murray and Maria Cantwell and U.S. Reps. Denny Heck, Derek Kilmer and Rick Larsen announced new federal actions to help protect and recover the health of Puget Sound, one of the nation’s largest estuaries. These actions demonstrate a firm commitment from the federal government to help restore Puget Sound, and are similar to federal actions taken in recent years to protect other large aquatic ecosystems, such as the Chesapeake Bay and the Great Lakes.
Christy Goldfuss, managing director of President Obama’s White House Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ), joined federal, state and tribal officials in Seattle to announce a new memorandum of understanding that directs federal Puget Sound restoration activities and that recognizes the pressing need to address salmon recovery and protect tribal treaty rights. This MOU creates a Puget Sound Federal Task Force that includes several members of Obama’s cabinet and will enhance coordination among federal and state agencies, tribes and local restoration efforts.
In addition to this landmark task force and MOU, today the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and Environmental Protection Agency announced more than $600 million in new federal funding commitments for habitat restoration, stormwater runoff, shellfish sustainability and other key strategies to improve the health of Puget Sound.
“A healthy Puget Sound provides key economic, cultural and ecological benefits, and serves as the cornerstone of the region's high quality of life. Building on decades of conservation efforts from federal, state, local and tribal agencies, today's actions will strengthen federal efforts to bolster conservation, restoration, and enhance tribal treaty rights within the Puget Sound at a critical juncture in the ecosystem's recovery,” Goldfuss said.
“Today’s announcements mark an important step on the path to restoring the health of Puget Sound, the recovery of our salmon species and fulfilling our nation’s commitment to Washington’s tribes,” Inslee said. “The federal commitments build upon our state’s investments and the strong partnership between all levels of government that are working to restore this estuary central to our state’s history, commerce and future.”
Kilmer and Heck lauded today’s federal executive actions, which closely reflect policy changes they have sought through their Promoting Unified Government Efforts to Save Our Sound (Puget SOS) Act.
“Too often, conversations in Washington, DC, on restoring America’s waterways start with the Chesapeake Bay and end with the Great Lakes. Today we are pushing our nation’s conservation priorities westward and bringing attention to Puget Sound, the iconic estuary that is part of our national identity and the heart of the Pacific Northwest,” said Heck, who with Kilmer co-chairs of the Congressional Puget Sound Recovery Caucus. “With this announcement, we are reaffirming that Puget Sound recovery will be a central part of our federal government’s conservation priorities moving forward. I look forward to working with our next president and Congress to provide the necessary resources to save our Sound.”
"Puget Sound is central to our region’s identity, history and culture,” said Kilmer. “It helps attract visitors to our area, supports critical habitats you won’t find elsewhere and powers our economy. In order to keep it healthy for future generations, the time for action is now. That’s why I’m glad we are here today to announce a new playbook that ensures the federal government is working in tandem with local partners and Native American tribes to more effectively protect and restore our Sound.”
The new federal MOU and task force will prioritize the protection of Puget Sound through development of a Puget Sound action plan to better coordinate federal programs, complement the state action agenda from the Puget Sound Partnership and focus on restoration work. The task force will develop the action plan in collaboration with state officials and in consultation with tribal governments. ---read more
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