Education comes through volunteering at Brightwater habitat restoration event

More than 60 community members, including many school children and scouts, have done their part to improve habitat along a salmon-bearing stream while learning about native species at a Brightwater Treatment Plant project land restoration project.

King County is investing $8 million to restore 43 acres of underused, environmentally damaged land on the north portion of the 114-acre Brightwater site.

Volunteers spent several hours on Oct. 20 planting hundreds of native plants as part of the restoration project. They also learned about the variety of plants native to this area, proper planting techniques and how native vegetation benefits the environment and fish and wildlife.

This event is just one of the many educational opportunities that are part of the Brightwater project. In the future, King County will construct the Brightwater Environmental Education and Community Center a state-of-the-art regional environmental education facility designed with input from the community.

This multi-purpose facility, which will be built next to more than 70 acres of public open space and natural habitat, will create educational opportunities where the public can learn about wastewater treatment processes and the history of protecting water quality in the Puget Sound region, plus wildlife and native habitat issues.

People enjoy clean water and a healthy environment because of King County's wastewater treatment program. The county’s Wastewater Treatment Division protects public health and water quality by serving 17 cities, 17 local sewer utilities and more than 1.4 million residents in King, Snohomish and Pierce counties. Formerly called Metro, the regional clean-water agency now operated by King County has been preventing water pollution for more than 40 years.