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Miller and Walker Creeks Stewardship
We can all be good stewards of Miller and Walker Creeks! Your actions can create healthy urban forests and cleaner water in the creeks and beyond. Remember —
The Miller and Walker Creeks Basin encompasses approximately eight square miles of land. Miller Creek begins at Arbor Lake and flows roughly six miles, passing through Burien, SeaTac, and Normandy Park on its way to Puget Sound. Walker Creek flows about two miles through SeaTac, Burien, and Normandy Park, joining Miller Creek to enter Puget Sound.
This map shows lakes, streams, streets, and city boundaries in the combined Miller Creek and Walker Creek basins.
This aerial photo shows vegetation, lakes, streams, streets, buildings, and city boundaries.
The cities of Burien, Normandy Park, and SeaTac, the Port of Seattle, the Washington State Department of Transportation, and King County partnered to develop the Miller and Walker Creeks Basin Plan. The planning effort began in 2002 and completed in 2006. The Basin Plan
- describes Basin conditions,
- outlines regional surface water problems within the Basin, and
- gives recommendations to improve creek conditions and to protect the creeks.
Plan Appendices include summaries of technical analyses completed as part of this effort.
Scientists and community members monitor the health of the creeks and the creatures in them. We are measuring
- water quantity (rainfall and streamflow),
- water quality (stormwater runoff and pollution),
- stream bugs,
- adult salmon returns and pre-spawn mortality in coho salmon.
Learn more about these monitoring efforts and watershed data.
Whether you live near or far from Miller and Walker Creeks, your actions can help clean water and reduce pollution! Here are five tips to make your watershed a healthier place:
- Clean up after your dog: scoop every poop, bag it, and throw it in the trash.
- Take care of your car: three small actions to keep your car healthy and keep pollution out of Puget Sound.
- Remove noxious weeds and use natural yard care. Native plants are beautiful and easy to maintain! Create your own native plant landscape.
- Clean stormwater before it enters creeks, streams, and rivers by planting trees or building a rain garden.
- Put hazardous waste in its place: dispose of harmful household chemicals properly and try less toxic alternatives for your lawn or garden.
For shoreline and streamside landowners, here is a great self-paced guide to help you learn the whys behind streamside restoration, create a plan, and carry it out yourself or with help.
Ready for more action? Sign up to volunteer with the Miller Walker Basin Stewardship Program!
The Basin Steward can help you
- volunteer for salmon surveys and forest restoration events
- learn about salmon and water quality in the creeks
- restore healthy stream habitat on your streamside property
- report fish sightings or non-emergency problems with the creeks
Check out the Miller Walker Basin Stewardship Program Brochure to learn more!
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Volunteers mulch young trees and shrubs along Miller Creek Trail.
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Volunteers plant trees at Walker Preserve.
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Volunteers count, measure, and dissect adult salmon in Miller and Walker Creeks.
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A beautiful male coho, pictured with a volunteer surveyor's boot for scale.
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Evidence of pre-spawn mortality: this female salmon died before she had a chance to lay her eggs.
Stewardship of the Miller and Walker Creeks basin is jointly funded by the City of Burien, City of Normandy Park, City of SeaTac, King County, and the Port of Seattle. On behalf of the partners, this page is proudly hosted by King County Department of Natural Resources and Parks - Water and Land Resources Division.
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