The Silver Beach Beat

Silver Beach Neighborhood Association seeks public comment on neighborhood plan

2010-06-04T01:52:00.000-07:00

Silver Beach residents have until July 1 to submit written comments to the president of the Silver Beach Neighborhood Association with input about the recently adopted neighborhood plan , which will effect land use in Silver beach, before it is submitted to the city of Bellingham for approval and implementation.
The plan is organized into nine chapters. Each chapter focuses on how the city and Silver Beach landowners can act to transform the neighborhood into a “model for lake preservation and rehabilitation” by 2020.
The plan was passed by the Silver Beach Neighborhood Association at their meeting on May 13, with the condition that citizens would be allowed to submit written comments to the association’s president David Jefferson until 5p.m. on July 1.
Jim Tragesser is a neighborhood association member who voted in favor of the neighborhood plan. Tragesser said the association has been debating the plan for more than three years because “there is a great divide between people who believe they should be able to do whatever they want on their property, and people who want to protect Lake Whatcom since it’s our drinking water source.”
On May 13, Jefferson encouraged Silver Beach residents to read the plan, and he said he is available to meet with anyone to discuss the plan before the July 1 commenting deadline.
“I’ll do my best to describe the history [of the plan] and why it is the way it is. I always have time for a meeting over coffee and I’m willing to meet with anyone to address their questions or concerns,” Jefferson said.
Jefferson said each submission will be discussed and voted upon at the association’s next meeting on July 8 before it is submitted to the city for approval.

A moss garden is an earth friendly and low-maintenance alternative to a grass lawn in yards where moss grows naturally.

Homeowner Incentive Program underway in Silver Beach Creek watershed

2010-05-27T18:08:00.001-07:00

New Homeowner Incentive Program unites watershed homeowners with city of Bellingham and Whatcom county government to protect Lake Whatcom.
City of Bellingham and Whatcom county government launched the Homeowners Incentive Program in early May to increase lake-stewardship and improve Lake Whatcom’s water quality to meet state and federal requirements.
At the Silver Beach Neighborhood Association meeting on May 13, Environmental Educator Kym Fedale spoke about the program. Fedale said the Homeowner Incentive Program is funded by a $600,000 five-year grant from the Department of Ecology.
Fedale said the program provides homeowners up to $1,000 in compensation for materials and equipment rental, in addition to expert guidance for home-improvement projects that decrease storm-water run-off on their properties. Including an “extremely fast permitting process,” Fedale said.
“With the Silver Beach Ordinance, it’s very difficult to get permits to do anything in our area,” H.I.P. program participant and Silver Beach Creek homeowner Vale Hartley said. “So having them say they will Sheppard us through the permitting process is a huge advantage.”
Homeowners at Silver Beach Creek watershed meeting enrolled first
Hartley said she and her husband enrolled in the Homeowners Incentive Program one month ago, after the program was presented during a city-county Silver Beach Creek watershed-homeowners meeting.
“We came to be one of the very first people to apply, which turned out to be a good thing because the amount of money they had available kind of shifted [to higher compensation] after that [because we got in early] and volunteered to [try to get] some of our neighbors involved in the program too,” Hartley said.
Fedale said after enrolling in the program, representatives schedule a site visit with the homeowner to evaluate the most effective storm-water projects on their property.
“The site visit was painless,” Hartly said. “Basically they just went around and took notes and asked questions and then they went away and two weeks later they sent us a letter.”
Fedale said after a site visit is conducted the homeowner will get a letter in the mail with a menu of recommendations that spells out the potential storm-water projects.
In addition to identifying what may be the most effective projects, the letter describes how the homeowner will be aided by local experts in the future, “but it’s still pretty general,” Hartley said.
Hartley said that the Where Do We Go from Here section of her letter told her the details of the H.I.P. program were still being defined, but she would be contacted by an expert in creek restoration, a native plant expert, and contacted to schedule a meeting to draft project-plans and obtain permits.
“We’re really in the beginning stages of this program,” Fedale said. “We’re looking for people to get involved to define this program.”
Hartly said although the terms are vague, she is very excited and confident in the city’s ability to implement the program.
“They’re basically saying they will provide us with the expertise and we will enroll in said program,” Hartley said. “We can do these projects on our property and be confident that we’re doing the right thing for the lake.”
Hartley recommends enrolling early to get the most incentive
Hartley said she would encourage people who are interested in the Homeowners Incentive Program to enroll early because “we don’t know how long the incentive program is going to last.”
Hartley recalled how she enrolled in a rain barrel program in 2009, and how her gutter-system was outfitted with three rain barrels for free. She was also provided with education about how to use the storm-water and properly maintain the barrel.
Fedale said homeowners who enroll in the Homeowners Incentive Program may receive a higher level of reimbursement for their home-improvement projects if they volunteer to educate some of their neighbors about their experience and the program.
“[In the H.I.P. letter they sent me] they also attached a map of our little neighborhood here, and highlighted the homes I am supposed to visit and talk to them about the program,” Hartley said.
Hartley said she and her husband attend meetings and take a pro-active stance on Lake Whatcom water quality because she thinks people living in the watershed are responsible for protecting it.
“We try to go to all of the meetings and take an active part in [protecting Lake Whatcom water quality], making sure that we understand and to some extent try to communicate that to people in our neighborhood,” Hartley said.
Hartley said she hoped in the future her property could be used as an example to ease Silver Beach neighborhood’s anxiety about permitting-projects through under the Silver Beach Ordinance.
“I think if people are afraid of not getting a permit, or getting a fine if they didn’t get a permit, they can see: ‘these people did it, the city helped with the permits, and they got some money,’ maybe it will help other people become encouraged,” Hartley said.

Azaleas are a native flowering shrub.

Park stewardship keeps rain garden healthy at Bloedel-Donovan Park

2010-05-19T16:54:00.000-07:00

Volunteer Warren Dillon has maintained the rain garden next to the boat launch at Bloedel-Donovan Park for more than 5 years. This rain garden stops run-off storm-water that is loaded with oil, gasoline and other contaminants from mixing with the lake water.
“It’s working,” Dillon said as he swung his hand-tool into the soil and ripped out a patch of stringy-green weeds with his non-dominant, gloved hand. “I’ve never known it to fill up [or overflow], and it can’t hurt.”
In 2003 the city of Bellingham Public Works Department installed three rain gardens: one behind City Hall and two more at opposite ends of the Bloedel-Donovan Park parking lot. The project received an award for environmental excellence from the American Public Works association in 2005.
Although the identity and function of the rain garden is explained on a sign resting on its perimeter, its purpose may be overlooked or misunderstood.
“I never really noticed that that was a rain garden,” Bloedel-Donovan Park patron Ron West said. “I don’t really know what they are… Maybe I should read the sign,” he added with a grin.
Dillion said the most frustrating part about maintaining the garden is the amount of garbage he has to remove.
“This isn’t bad,” Dillion said as he struggled to pull out a resistant weed. “Deeper in there is where the beer bottles and used condoms are.”
Dillion said the city doesn’t pay for a trash can next to the boat launch because it’s too labor intensive.
“Just a little while ago [while I was weeding] I heard someone say ‘just throw it in the bushes, not the lake,’ because they think if they put it in the bushes it will be okay,” Dillion said.
Dillion said that he spends about 30 hours per year at the garden, mostly during spring and summer when gardening maintenance is inevitable.
“It makes a difference and there aren’t a lot of people downtown volunteering to do it….and it’s more fun than watching TV anyways,” Dillion said. “Not to mention, they say volunteering is good for your health…and it might lower taxes.”

A video produced by King County describing rain gardens and other storm-water management solutions. How to build a rain garden during the last four minutes.

Reining in the rain: rain garden project document.

More information on how to volunteer to be a lake steward

Watershed education programs.

Salal is a common native plant that is classified as a shrub but may be planted as a ground cover.

Silver Beach landowners can reduce run-off pollution by making rain water seep deep

2010-05-18T02:27:00.000-07:00

Watershed residents can prevent rain water from polluting Lake Whatcom by reducing run-off on their property.
Silver Beach residents can decrease phosphorus-loading in Lake Whatcom by taking proactive steps on their property to collect rain-water and prevent it from running off of their land.
It is estimated that as much as 55 percent of rain-water in an urban watershed becomes run-off because it flows off of driveways, roofs and other solid surfaces instead of seeping into the ground.
Bellingham Environmental Educator Kym Fedale said there are numerous actions watershed residents can take to reduce their households’ storm-water pollution.
“[Depending on the property,] it could be as simple as [using rain barrels] or, [planting] native plants…removing a lawn section and replacing it with native plants…or something a little bit more expensive like a rain garden, porous concrete, or pavers,” Fedale said.
Fedale said the main objective of every storm-water conservation project is to encourage rain-water to seep into the ground.
Bloedel-Donovan Park uses rain gardens to reduce pollution
In 2003 the city of Bellingham Public Works Department installed two rain gardens at opposite ends of the Bloedel-Donovan Park parking lot and one behind City Hall. Rain gardens are specialized super-gardens that are engineered to reduce storm-water pollution through natural infiltration and pollution-uptake.
Bellingham Environmental Planner Kim Weil said rain gardens are designed to accommodate a high volume of storm-water and may be used to treat phosphorus.
“[A typical rain garden is] excavated about 18 inches deep but they have to be excavated 36-48 inches to capture phosphorus,” Weil said. “Then they put gravel in the bottom and cover it with fetter clot…the soil is amended so it’s loose with sand and organics, not clay because clay doesn’t let water [pass through] and finally several different native plant species are planted [depending on the garden’s intake.”
Weil said there is a formula that is used to determine how large a rain garden needs to be to tolerate the amount of rain-water it receives. Rain gardens may be engineered to accommodate the run-off from a home’s gutter system and/or driveway, and may be the best storm-water solution for some Silver Beach landowners Weil said.
According to the 2007 Rain Garden Handbook for Western Washington Homeowners, installing a rain garden capable of treating phosphorus would cost $1,410.00 and take up approximately 250 square feet. This estimate, adjusted to $1457.33 for inflation, does not account for labor or planning but it does factor in the cost of: excavation, soil amendments, hauling, plant material and drainage mechanisms.
Installing a rain garden is a more expensive storm-water management project than planting a native plant garden bed, but it is an effective and fairly low-maintenance solution Fedale said.
Recent legislation focuses on controlling storm water pollution
Weil said the government is funding programs and passing legislation—such as the 2009 Silver Beach Ordinance amendment—to encourage water in the watershed to stay on-site instead of polluting the lake.
Weil said current development laws are designed to decrease storm-water pollution and mimic natural forested conditions. The Silver Beach Ordinance requires landowners to maintain a percentage of forested land and/or use engineered technology to control storm-water run-off.
Fedale said that Silver Beach homeowners who are interested in storm water management projects will have more educational resources and financial incentives available to them in the coming months, as recently grant-funded programs— like the Homeowners Incentive Program and Silver Beach Creek Pilot Project—are implemented.

A video produced by King County describing rain gardens and other storm-water management solutions. How to build a rain garden during the last four minutes.

Rhododendrons are a native plant.

Lake Whatcom reservoir management draft-plan targets phosphorus reduction

2010-05-05T18:22:00.000-07:00

Lake Whatcom's proposed management program strives to decrease phosphorus loading in Lake Whatcom but may fall short as a restoration plan.
The team of city and county representatives responsible for fulfilling water-quality laws and cleaning up Lake Whatcom met Monday at Bellingham City Hall to hear the public’s comments about a five-year lake-management plan.
The plan was drafted in response to the 2007-8 TMDL study that was conducted by the Department of Ecology because Lake Whatcom has been on the 303(d) list—a polluted water body that requires a TMDL study—since 1998 for low dissolved-oxygen levels.
` The study was conducted in 2007 to determine the lake’s “Total Maximum Daily Load” for phosphorus and bacteria inflow—calculating how much of each pollutant the lake will naturally manage and supply enough dissolved oxygen to obey water-quality laws.
The study determined “phosphorus levels would meet dissolved oxygen standards if they were equivalent to 85.5% fewer acres of 2003 development, or 94.6% fewer acres than the total development under 2003 zoning.”
Small representation of public awareness
About 25 people attended the meeting— the majority of the audience included city and county staff members or public officials.

Three individuals asked questions about watershed soil water-holding capacities and where the highest concentrations of pollutants are being deposited in Lake Whatcom. Their questions were met with uncertain responses.
“There is a lot we still don’t know,” said Assistant Public Works Director John Hutchings. “Regardless of what we do today the effects [of Lake Whatcom’s phosphorus levels] have the potential to continue [because the phosphorus cycle is not entirely understood]. The best we can do is control what comes into the lake today.”
Hutchings said many research projects are in progress on the watershed soil, Lake Whatcom water itself and several of the tributaries that drain into the reservoir.
“We’re still gathering data and doing research to determine where the [pollution is] coming in [to the lake] at the greatest concentrations…we’re relying on the research to tell us where we’ll get the biggest bang for our buck,” Hutchings said, referring to a question about the draft-plan’s budget.
Council members are disappointed with the plan
Before the meeting adjourned, Hutchings asked council members Barry Buchanan, Stan Snapp, and Michael Lilliquist for their comments about the plan.
“I’m disappointed in the plan but not the people,” Lilliquist said. “I don’t think we will see the 90 percent reduction [in phosphorus] that we need to see to satisfy the TMDL with the plan the way it is now. We need a restoration plan and I don’t see it in this draft.”
Lilliquist expressed concern about the portion of money and resources that are being devoted to community outreach and lake stewardship in the current draft of the plan.

Lilliquist said that lake stewardship programs account for 20 percent of the current plan’s budget, contrasting against the $14 million budget for land acquisition and upkeep—60 percent of the draft-plan’s budget. Lilliquist’s apprehensions about the plan’s current budget were echoed by his colleagues.
“I’m concerned that there is very little in the plan about residential areas,” Snapp said. “We’re spending more on undeveloped properties which is a minor component when most is developed property.”
Environmental planner is optimistic about community outreach programs
Although council members think the plan’s budget falls short in community outreach, Environmental Educator Kym Fedale spoke optimistically about the lake stewardship projects being funded by the plan.
Fedale said several government-funded projects will be launched in the coming months to educate the watershed community and increase lake stewardship.
“The most exciting thing happening in the next couple of months is the Homeowners Incentive Program that awards up to $1,000 of reimbursement for materials and training,” Fedale said. “We do site visits and help homeowners do things like install porous pavers, rain barrels, rain gardens, plant natives, and remove grass lawns.”
Fedale said landowners are also helped through the permitting process under the program and that the permit process is very fast.
The Homeowners Incentive Program is being piloted by five households in the Silver Beach neighborhood by residents who expressed immediate interest in the program several months ago when the program was being conceptualized.
“[To immediately improve the health of Lake Whatcom,] people can do things like washing their cars away from their homes so the soapy water doesn’t turn into run-off water. Take care to properly dispose their pet waste in the garbage and their yard waste in appropriate containers. Reduce automobile transportation, plant natives and never use a fertilizer or other products with phosphorus in it,” Fedale said.
Concerned residents can access a database of information regarding the health of Lake Whatcom by visiting www.cob.org and looking under the “Top Issues” tab of the website.

Native Strawberry plants are an excellent low-laying ground cover.

Silver Beach landscaping effects Lake Whatcom pollution and restoration

2010-05-04T00:43:00.000-07:00

Residential development and landscaping increases storm-water run-off and pollutes Lake Whatcom.
Lake Whatcom continues to be polluted by storm-water run-off despite more than a decade of federal and state attention, proving that government action cannot reverse water pollution without citizen aid.
Bellingham Environmental Resource Manager Clare Fogelsong said that the biggest challenge the city faces in the restoration of Lake Whatcom is “getting people to understand that they’re all part of the solution.”
“It’s been hard [to get people to look at Lake Whatcom water quality] proactively and to get people to take a serious look at the threats we have,” Fogelsong said. “People are really good at responding if something’s imminent in their face and the further it gets from their present reality the less talented they are at responding proactively.”
Fogelsong said watershed landowners will make the biggest impact by taking measures to eliminate phosphorus pollution on their properties.

Fogelsong said people should stop using fertilizers or car-washing soaps and detergents that contain phosphorus so it doesn’t run-off into the lake. Animal waste and yard waste, including grass clippings, also have high phosphorus content and should be properly disposed of and/or contained in a compost bin Fogelsong said.
“Everything people do makes a difference…I don’t think [watershed landowners] realize that every little thing they do on their property effects the lake,” Fogelsong said.
Whatcom County depends on Lake Whatcom for healthy drinking water
More than 95,000 people in Whatcom County depend on Lake Whatcom as a fresh water source. The health and amount of money it costs to purify the lake water is dependent upon the cleanliness and amount of storm-water run-off into the lake from the roofs, driveways, and yards of watershed landowners.
“[Grass lawns are] partially impervious, some water [seeps through the soil] but there is still a lot of run-off…we want to slow that water down when we get those rainy Washington days,” Bellingham Environmental Planner Kim Weil said.
Weil said Silver Beach residents will have a positive impact on the lake by minimizing their lawns, planting native plant species, using mulch, installing a rain garden or using rain barrels.
Increasing permeability reduces storm-water run-off
When the land surrounding a lake is covered by forest the ground acts like a sponge and natural filtration system. Its' elaborate network of plants and fungi capture and retain 90 percent of the rain water before it is introduced to the water basin.
According to the Federal Stream Restoration Group, natural watershed ground-cover produces 10 percent storm-water run-off compared to 30 percent run-off in a slightly developed watershed and 55 percent run-off in a largely developed, impermeable watershed.
“Every property [in Silver Beach] should try to be more like a forest, capturing water [before it can run off into the lake] and putting it back into the ground over time,” said Bellingham Water Quality Engineer Steve Hood.
Hood said that impermeable or partially impermeable surfaces prevent soil from absorbing rain water, resulting in run-off that delivers contaminants directly into to Lake Whatcom.

Sword Fern is a native plant.