See how King County protects environment; 2009 DNRP annual report now available

King County residents can learn how their county's natural resources are managed by reading the Department of Natural Resources and Parks (DNRP) 2009 annual report, "Environmental Stewardship in King County," now available online.

The report, which is posted on the DNRP Web site at http://your.kingcounty.gov/dnrp/library/natural-resources/annual-report/2009.pdf, outlines many of the DNRP's activities and accomplishments during 2009. The department is comprised of four major divisions - Parks and Recreation, Solid Waste, Wastewater Treatment and Water and Land Resources. DNRP also houses the county's Geographic Information Systems Center.

Highlights for the year include:

• Celebrating completion of the gas-to-energy facility at the Cedar Hills Regional Landfill, which will pipe cleaned gas created by decomposing garbage to Puget Sound Energy’s power plant, supplying energy to thousands of King County homes.
• Providing advanced technical leadership to support levee raising and other flood-protection activities on the Green River in response to the reduced flood storage capacity at Howard Hanson Dam, in close coordination with Green River Valley cities and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
• Investing more than $500 million in clean-water infrastructure to protect public health and support broad regional environmental and economic goals, such as protecting Puget Sound and creating jobs.
• Enhancing important community amenities, such as completion of the Marymoor Connector Trail, and securing a trail easement within the right of way of the BNSF rail corridor along the Eastside.

"The annual report provides detailed information to the public and our stakeholders about the work we do every day, as part of our effort to be open and accessible,” said DNRP Interim Director Bob Burns.

The 2009 report also includes updated performance measurements and financial information.

The mission of the King County DNRP is to: be the steward of the environment and strengthen sustainable communities by protecting our water, land and natural habitats, safely disposing of and reusing wastewater and solid waste, and providing natural areas, parks and recreation programs.

A limited number of printed copies of the 2009 annual report will soon be available. For a printed copy, contact DNRP at 206-296-6500.

Related information

2009 Annual Report

King County Department of Natural Resources and Parks