Here at Surfrider, one of our core values is the love of the ocean and the joy we find in recreating in it. Washington has some incredible coastal places, and many of us enjoy swimming, paddling, surfing, and playing along the 3000+ miles of coastline. But the unfortunate reality is that it’s not always safe to get in the water (cue ironic Jaws theme music).
When water quality goes down the drain...
Throughout Washington (and much of the country), when it rains, our wastewater treatment facilities can get overwhelmed, spilling raw sewage into our waterways. This is due to an unfortunate combination of having old and outdated infrastructure (something we at Surfrider advocate for funding to fix at the federal level every year), as well as a changing climate, which causes more frequent and severe storms that overwhelm our outdated systems.
These heavy rain events contribute to combined sewer overflows (CSOs), during which untreated sewage mixes with stormwater and spills into Washigton’s waterways. This sewage can carry a number of harmful pathogens - bacteria, viruses, and parasites - that can cause gastrointestinal symptoms, rashes, skin and eye infections, flu-like symptoms, and worse. They can also release harmful toxics, solids, and excessive nutrients that wreak havoc on our marine ecosystems, fueling harmful algal blooms, depleting oxygen, and leading to fish kills. You can read more about the problem of sewage spills here.
Here in Washington, dozens of sewage spills occur every year, but few are widely reported to the general public. Most often we are only made aware if the spill is severe enough to cause closures of recreation areas or limit fish and shellfish harvests. We can do better.
Luckily, we live in a state that cares deeply about our marine resources and public health. A great example of this is Washington’s Dept. of Ecology’s BEACH Program, which our Blue Water Task Force volunteers work closely with to help test water samples for harmful bacteria and notify the public if it’s unsafe to swim. Last year, volunteers in Washington collected and tested 178 samples from 24 sites. All these data are publicly accessible through our Blue Water Task Force database.
The South Sound Chapter's Blue Water Task Force results are publicly available but show bacteria levels from sampling that occurred days ago.
While monitoring our waterways is critical to protect public health (and identify chronic issues so we can address them), it’s not enough. Sewage spills are a direct threat to human health, and nobody wants to the news days after the fact that they were swimming in untreated feces. Gross.
Enter: Sewage Spill Right to Know
This bill, spearheaded by partners at Washington Conservation Action, Puget Soundkeeper, Seattle Aquarium, Environmental Priorities Coalition, and others, would require the Dept. of Ecology to aggregate spill data on a publicly accessible platform so the public knows of a sewage spill within hours, not days. For more information on this effort, including resources and one-pagers about the bill, head to our legislative landing page.
Action Alert!
Both the House and Senate versions of this bill are scheduled for hearings on Feb 4th and 7th, respectively. Take 60 seconds to sign in Pro before the hearings to help show your support for these bills!
Other ways you can help protect clean water in Washington:
-
- Join the Blue Water Task Force
- Plant an Ocean Friendly Garden
- Participate in Coastal Recreation Hill Days to lobby federal leaders on behalf of the ocean and ask them to fund EPA Clean Water programs like the BEACH Act and Clean Water State Revolving Fund
- Support your local chapter
- Spread the word!