Water Quality

Read more about the article Wallyhood Waters: Our Salmon Neighbors
Salmon swimming upstream (photo courtesy of Mid Sound Fisheries Enhancement Group)

Wallyhood Waters: Our Salmon Neighbors

A Wallyhood Waters series Hello fellow Wallyhooders, This fall, I had the opportunity to learn about our watershed by participating in a training offered through Mid Sound Fisheries Enhancement Group, called Community Action Training School (CATS). Mid Sound helps restore habitat within the Sammamish watershed to support salmon recovery. Through CATS, I’ve developed a newfound appreciation for the rainy season. Here’s why: This fall season kicked off with warm and dry conditions—not ideal for our salmon neighbors, who need abundant cool and…

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Read more about the article Pesticides at the Parks

Pesticides at the Parks

Last week, after reading this piece about Wallingford's sewage ending up in Lake Union and the new incentive program for building rain gardens, I contacted the RainWise program through the City of Seattle. My children attend school in the Lincoln High building, which I learned is eligible for the rain garden program due to its proximity to Stone Way N. So, imagine my surprise when I walked past this a few days later: This sign was posted in the shrubbery that…

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Clear Your Storm Drains – Get Rid of Leaves for Free

It's rainy season - do you know where your storm drains are? Thrill your neighbors and pedestrians by clearing leaves and debris from the storm drains on your block. Don't try to unclog the drain if the clog is below the grate: call SPU at 206-386-1800, then press 2 to report a clogged storm drain. Did you know? Food and yard waste subscribers can place leaves in their container. During the month of November, you are able to place additional bags…

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Stormwater: Life in the gutter

Curious about what happens to stormwater once it runs down into the city's gutters? It may sound like a snoozer (at least for me, I got a "C" in Aquatic Pollution in college), but I get the feeling that Stokley Towles' one man performance, Stormwater: Life in the Gutter, provides an interesting, if not downright funny perspective as to what goes on deep within the bowels of our beloved city (ponder whether beavers should be on the city's payroll? That's damn…

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Welcome new sponsor: Green Cleaning Seattle

So maybe you're saying that none of our assumptions about your New Year's resolutions were true: no exercise regimen, no artistic flowering, no dive bars. Let's take one more guess: "Do less housework". Look, even if it weren't on your New Year's Resolution list, maybe it should have been. Life's too short. Which brings us to our newest sponsor, Green Cleaning Seattle, a group of local folks who are here to free your time and your conscience. Understanding that pouring and…

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Funky Water?

We're catching up on our mail from our vacation, so this is a bit dated, but this past Thursday Aaron wrote: Have you or anyone you know had an issue with funky-tasting water starting yesterday (Sept 2nd)? At our house (N 53rd + Woodlawn Ave N), we starting having some "moldy-tasting" water. Unless its the pipes to our specific house, this should be something others are experiencing in the neighborhood. I'll talk with my neighbors today to see if they have…

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