The Eco-logical Efforts of The Washington Sea Grant

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Words by Steve Fennell

Following a productive 2019 boating season, Washington Sea Grant (WSG) is continuing its mandate of promoting the Pumpout Washington and Small Oil Spill Pollution Prevention programs to recreational boaters, marine operators and industry members for 2020.

Based at the University of Washington, WSG partners with the Washington State Parks Department that manages the state’s Clean Vessel Act Program and the Washington Department of Ecology and – through the programs – educates boaters and marine operators on effective ways to protect marine life and preserve water quality.

To date, their efforts have been very effective with successful results year over year.

This year marks WSG’s 11th season promoting the programs in Washington State waters and parts of Western Canada with a focus on the San Juan Islands. There are no signs of slowing down either. More projects are currently in the works to create even more awareness for 2020 and beyond.

Currently, WSG effectively educates the boating public and marine operators through the efforts of its outreach staff, which includes Boating Program Specialist Aaron Barnett, Coastal Policy Specialist Bridget Trosin, and Communications lead MaryAnn Wagner. With staff support from the Washington State Parks Department, the team visits marinas, boat shows, yacht clubs and regional events, promoting best environmental boating practices.

To reinforce its message, the team distributes universal sewage pumpout adapters and oil spill prevention kits free of charge among recreational boaters to prevent waste spillage when emptying holding tanks or when re-fueling. All-new for 2019 was the addition of fuel bibs, which were also distributed at no charge, and consist of a hydrophobic oil absorbing material that fits around the fueling port, eliminating small oil spills in the water.

“There are approximately 22,000 boats with holding tanks in Washington State and so far we have given out about 12,000 of the pumpout kits,” says Barnett. “They are always very well received and we are continuously seeing a lot of enthusiasm from U.S. and Canadian boaters. They are even advocating the message themselves and passing along these products to their boating friends.”

WSG’s efforts also extend to marine operators by providing essential tools and information to pass along to its customers, further emphasizing the importance of managing waste from holding tanks and fueling on the docks.

This past summer, Captain’s Landing on Shaw Island in the San Juan Islands added a new pumpout station to its dock. The pumpout station was funded in part through government grants, which continue to be available to marinas. WSG supports this effort by offering grant training workshops for marina operators each year on available facility improvement funding opportunities. Under the grant guidelines, marine operators may be entitled to receive up to 75 percent of the costs for pumpout equipment, maintenance expenses and depending on the circumstances, infrastructure costs for new docks.

What’s new for 2020

To more effectively spread the message, WSG recently launched its instructional online video on how to prevent small oil spills and can be viewed at wsg.washington.edu. An additional video on pumping out sewage from boats will be ready in the coming weeks, and illustrates the function that pumpouts serve, how they operate, and more importantly, where boaters can schedule or find a pumpout station.

“Looking ahead, we are currently in the planning stages for projects covering the next three years,” says MaryAnn Wagner, Assistant Director for Communications for WSG. “One of the initiatives is a series of videos targeting new boaters, encouraging them to pump out sewage at designated stations at every opportunity.”

Wagner also explained that WSG is working to expand its social media presence throughout the year– rather than just seasonally – to better prepare boaters for the new boating seasons. They are also continuing to meet with marina and port operators to more closely review The Clean Vessel Act program.

“Washington Sea Grant is continuing to work closer with marina and port operators as well as harbour masters,” says Barnett. “We inspect their pumpout facilities, conduct testing to ensure its operating properly, and gather information on the quality of the equipment to determine its condition, or if it needs to be replaced.”

WSG only meets with marine operators south of the border in the San Juan Islands, but they are increasing efforts to reach out to Canadian recreational boaters who frequently cruise to Washington State waters.

“We talk to a lot of Canadian boaters,” added Trosin. “They are thrilled to see us advocating our message and service, and they want to do the right thing. We will also be going to the 2020 Vancouver International Boat Show from February 5 to 9 (booth #509), letting Canadian boaters know about our programs, promoting our website (pumpwashington.com), and basically letting them know what we are accomplishing.”

When Pumpout Washington was initially launched, just four million gallons of black water was discharged into pumpout facilities by recreational boaters in Puget Sound. As of 2018, the amount of wastewater broke the 11 million-gallon mark, an impressive feat and a significant accomplishment for the program.

“Overall, we hope to achieve a continued increase in the total amount of waste water redirected to pumpout stations and we are seeing that,” says Wagner. “We also want to increase our communications with Canadian boaters and greatly expand the knowledge of their options when visiting Washington State.”

For more details and information visit https://wsg.washington.edu