More rain gardens, fewer toxics, restored wetlands: Executive Constantine announces $5.4 million to support community-led projects that improve water quality

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King County Executive Dow Constantine announced $5.4 million for 61 projects led by cities, schools, nonprofits, and research groups that will protect and improve water quality in the Puget Sound region starting in 2024 following unanimous approval by King County Council.

Examples include helping install more rain gardens in Latino communities, investing in water stewardship education for youth of color based on Indigenous knowledge, helping immigrant and refugee communities reduce pollution and toxics in their homes, and using high-resolution satellite data to detect harmful algal blooms in King County lakes.

“Cities, schools, nonprofits, and researchers in King County have the expertise and commitment needed to improve the water quality of our region,” said Executive Constantine. “What they need is additional funding, and that’s what we’re providing with our WaterWorks Grant Program.”

“I am always impressed with the creativity and caliber of projects that are selected for WaterWorks funding each year and this year is no exception,” said King County Councilmember Jeanne Kohl-Welles. "With these grants, local organizations lead inspiring water quality improvement and education projects that make our region a healthier and more beautiful place. The Puget Sound and our regional waterways are some of the most important natural resources we have, and we can and should all be stewards for their protection."

"This year’s projects and organizations receiving WaterWorks Grants demonstrate the best in innovation and regional problem-solving to restore, clean, and protect our local waters," said Councilmember Rod Dembowski, chair of the Council’s Transportation, Economy and Environment Committee. "As recent studies have shown the County’s investments in our urban streams are working, and water quality and stream health are being restored. I thank Executive Constantine for his continued leadership and commitment to environmental protection."

The WaterWorks Grants Program, funded and administrated every two years by the King County Wastewater Treatment Division, has provided more than $22 million for 305 community-led projects since it began in 2015. Each grant recipient has demonstrated community involvement and partnerships.

Here are a few of the 61 projects that will receive WaterWorks grant funding beginning next year:

• Mother Africa will receive $200,000 to educate immigrant and refugee communities on reducing pollution and toxics in the home by distributing safer, non-toxic product kits. This will benefit water quality by providing education and mitigation strategies for common household pollutants that damage individual health and local water quality.
• United Indians of All Tribes will receive $72,000 to continue a program providing education, paid internships, and training opportunities on water stewardship education for underserved youth of color, especially Native youth, based on Indigenous knowledge and heritage; and to maintain an on-site rain garden and cisterns that manage stormwater.
• The Latino Community Fund of Washington State will receive $199,156 as the fiscal sponsor of Comunidad in a community-led initiative to expand the reach of rain gardens and other stormwater solutions. The development of a rain garden demonstration site on Vashon Island at Beulah Park will help create new revenue pathways for Latino landscapers.
• American Rivers will receive $195,543 to return Roxhill Bog in Seattle, headwaters of Longfellow Creek and one of the most diverse, urbanized sub-basins of the Green-Duwamish River, back to a functioning wetland.
• Whale Scout will receive $121,579 to support diverse students with a living wage who are leading community efforts to restore the Sammamish River’s banks and a nearby stream with native plants.
• Lake Advocates will receive $33,250 to investigate the use of high-resolution satellite data to detect harmful algal blooms in King County lakes, which will help direct water quality sampling to overlooked beaches where public health could be impacted and contribute to understanding climate change.
• City of Kirkland will receive $91,151 to engage with private property owners along Juanita Creek to assist with ways to improve the riparian buffer and reduce the impacts of urban development on water quality in Juanita Creek.

See the complete list of WaterWorks grant recipients

The King County Wastewater Treatment Division protects public health and the environment by collecting and cleaning wastewater and recovering valuable resources for a thriving Puget Sound region.

Related

• See the complete list of WaterWorks grant recipients
• King County’s WaterWorks Grant Program
• How to apply for King County environmental grants

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