Duwamish Alive

DUWAMISH ALIVE!

RESTORATION DAY MARKS 40TH EARTH DAY ANNIVERSARY

Earth Day celebrates its 40th anniversary this April and Seattle celebrates with its 5th annual Duwamish Alive! Earth Day Restoration on Saturday, April 17, at multiple sites along Seattle’s ‘hometown’ river.

Duwamish Alive! brings together  over 30 conservation groups and governmental entities organizing over a thousand volunteers to work at 12 work sites in the river’s lower watershed.

Work sites include a river cleanup by kayak and canoe, shoreline salmon restoration, and forest tree planting. Families, company groups, clubs and fraternities and sororities are encouraged to participate, and no experience is necessary.

These volunteer restoration projects complement government efforts to clean up the contaminated sediments at the bottom of the Duwamish River.  Improvements in the health of the river will benefit people, wildlife, and runs of threatened salmon on the Green/Duwamish River.

“The restoration of the Duwamish depends on community, non-profit, government and corporate partners working together to restore the urbanized environment,” said Dhira Brown, project coordinator for People For Puget Sound.  According to Brown, the Duwamish River Estuary has less than three percent of its original habitat remaining and the project’s goal is to help bring back at least 30 percent of the river shoreline for wildlife habitat.

At the North Wind’s Weir work site, volunteers will be planting thousands of marsh plants and spread mulch around the sapling trees and shrubs at the newest restoration site on the river.  A ribbon cutting ceremony and a ‘run of wild salmon’ will celebrate the official “opening” of the North Wind’s Weir Estuary Restoration Area.

Working at the North Wind's Weir site are People For Puget Sound, King County, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Environmental Protection Agency, and the Environmental Coalition of South Seattle.

The workday at all the sites begins at 10 AM and concludes at 2 PM.  After the workday, volunteers are invited to attend a free Earth Day Festival at Pathfinder School in the Delridge neighborhood. The Festival will feature food, kids' activities, informational booths, music, and special Earth Day surprises.

More information on sites, volunteer signups, sponsors and participating organizations is found at DuwamishAlive.Org. To volunteer, email da@pugetsound.org or call (206) 382-7007.