Habitat restoration project planned at Horse Creek in Bothell

Activity could begin this summer following environmental review

A project to restore native plants and improve aquatic habitat in a section of Horse Creek in Bothell could begin this summer following an environmental review under the State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA).

King County’s proposal would entail placing 12 root wads and logs in a section of creek just west of the Bothell-Woodinville Highway and east of 93rd Place Northeast. The project’s second phase, which would get under way in the fall, would include suppressing invasive weeds and planting native vegetation along approximately 5,000 square feet of creek bank. King County would also monitor and maintain the site for up to five years as required by permit conditions.
 
“Horse Creek is a tributary to the Sammamish River, so these improvements would have an even broader environmental benefit,” said King County Wastewater Treatment Division Director Pam Elardo. “The project presents a unique opportunity to restore the area to a better condition and we’re eager to move forward on it.”

King County is proposing the project as mitigation for three inadvertent air releases that occurred during Brightwater tunnel construction in 2008, which caused bubbling and sediment disturbance in Horse Creek in Bothell. Water quality testing showed no evidence that bentonite or any toxic chemical was released into the creek and there were no reports of illness or injury to people or wildlife. King County reported the incidents to the state Department of Ecology.

The project SEPA document is available on the web at http://www.kingcounty.gov/environment/wtd/Programs/EnvPlanning.aspx.

Documents will also be available to review at the Bothell branch of the King County Public Library, 18215 98th Ave. NE, Bothell.

People can submit written comments on the SEPA determination by mail through June 17, 2011, to:

Wesley Sprague, Supervisor, Community Services and Environmental Planning
King County Wastewater Treatment Division
201 South Jackson Street, MS: KSC-NR-0505
Seattle, WA 98104-3855.

For questions or additional information about Brightwater, please call the project office at 206-263-9453 or 711 TTY Relay.

Note to editors and reporters: Visit the WTD Newsroom, a portal to information for the news media about the Wastewater Treatment Division, King County Department of Natural Resources and Parks: http://www.kingcounty.gov/environment/wtd/Newsroom.aspx

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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, the environment and the economy by serving 17 cities, 17 local sewer districts and more than 1.5 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 nearly 50 years.

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King County Wastewater Treatment