Weekly Report – September 10, 2021

State Representative Tina Orwall will be attending the September 14th City Council Meeting

The City of Normandy Park is honored to have State Representative Tina Orwall participate in the Tuesday, September 14th City Council Meeting. Every year, the City Council invites our representatives to join a meeting to discuss the important issues that face Normandy Park and its residents. This meeting creates the opportunity for a meaningful conversation that allows us to work together and improve our city.  While multiple legislative topics could be discussed, the City Council and Representative Orwall have agreed to talk about House Bill(HB) 1220 and House Bill(HB) 1477. In case you are interested, here is more information on these two bills:

• HB 1477, sponsored by Representative Orwall, is related to implementing the national 988 crisis hotline system. This system will enhance and expand behavioral health crisis response and suicide prevention services statewide by imposing an excise tax on certain telecommunications services.
• HB 1220 requires local governments to provide for emergency shelters and housing through local planning and development regulations. This legislation is meant to encourage cities to take active steps to accommodate transitional housing, emergency shelters, and similar homelessness-related facilities through local planning and changes to local development regulations. The City Council has decided to take no action until they have discussed this legislation with Representative Orwall.

I know this will be an informative discussion. I encourage you to join the Zoom City Council Meeting this Tuesday, September 14th,  at 7:00 pm.

Celebrate “Puget Sound Starts Here” Month

This September, Normandy Park is coming together with other cities and counties to celebrate Puget Sound Starts Here Month. Puget Sound is important to our community, provides endless recreational opportunities, and is home to irreplaceable animals. It’s also in trouble.

We say Puget Sound Starts Here because every single day, pollutants from our neighborhoods flow through storm drains to nearby creeks, streams, and lakes, which flow into Puget Sound. We rely on clean water for our wellbeing, and so do salmon, orcas, and other wildlife that live in our shared habitat. What we do here has an impact on our local waterways and, eventually, on Puget Sound. Join us this month in helping to raise awareness and committing to at least one action that will protect our water quality. We can keep pollutants out of the Sound by making small changes to our daily activities.

To help, we are asking residents to focus on vehicle-related contaminants. With three small changes to how we drive and take care of our cars, we can keep pollution out of our creeks, lakes, rivers, and Puget Sound. When it rains, pollution from cars wash into storm drains and then straight into local streams, lakes, rivers, and Puget Sound. Pollutants like oil, car wash soaps and chemicals, and bits of tire dust are bad for water quality and harm people and wildlife that depend on clean water to survive. Here are three simple suggestions that can help:

1. Car Washing – When washing your car, the rinse water contains harmful pollutants like oil, grease, heavy metals, and soaps. If you wash your car on the street or in your driveway, the pollutants run on the road and into the storm drain and then flow untreated into the water system. Instead, consider taking your car to a commercial car wash or wash your car in a grassy area. Commercial car washes are required to treat their dirty water, and the grass and soil will soak up the wash water, preventing it from running down the street into a storm drain.
2. Don’t Drip and Drive – Even a small oil leak can have a significant impact on your car and our creeks, lakes, rivers, and Puget Sound. Take these steps to maintain the health of your vehicle and the environment:
   1. Check your vehicle for leaks regularly and get them fixed promptly.
   2. Always dispose of used motor oil properly by bringing it to your local auto shop for recycling. Call or visit 1-800-RECYCLE to find a location near you.
   3. Use ground cloths or drip pans if you find a leak or are doing engine work. Clean up spills immediately.
3. Tire Maintenance – Pollution from car tires that flows into our waterways is extremely poisonous to Coho salmon. Research shows that the newly discovered toxic chemical associated with tires (6PPD-quinone) is the reason large numbers of salmon are dying in Northwest creeks before they have a chance to spawn. Please keep your tires properly inflated so that they will wear down more slowly. Check your tire pressure once per month. Get your tire alignment checked and rotate tires according to the manufacturer’s instructions. Proper alignment and regular rotation prevent uneven wear on your tires, reducing the amount of tire particles that wear off as you drive.

Thank you for being part of the solution!

If you have any questions about these or other topics, please contact me at aarrington@normandyparkwa.gov. Have a great week!

“We say Puget Sound Starts Here because every single day…”