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Vashon - Maury Island environment

Vashon - Maury Island environment

The Vashon-Maury Island page provides environmental information and services from King County and its partners related specifically to the island.

For more information about Vashon-Maury Island or to get involved in Water and Land activities, please call Greg Rabourn, Vashon/Maury Island Watershed Steward, at 206-477-4805. Related information can be found for the Central Puget Sound Watershed, of which Vashon-Maury Island is a part.

Basin Steward Program
Find out what Water and Land Resources' Basin Steward Program does and how to contact your Basin Stewards.

Shore Friendly King County Program
Waterfront property owners on Vashon-Maury Island are eligible for a free site consultation to help you decide which shoreline management options are best for you and the creatures that share your shoreline.

Beaches, nearshore and marine environment

Sea level rise

Sea level rise projections for Washington State

Sea Level Rise Risk Area

Learn about the Sea Level Rise Risk Area and associated regulatory requirements adopted in 2020 to prepare for sea level rise on Vashon-Maury Island.

View with Sea Level Rise Risk Area in King County iMap. The layer is located in the /Flooding info layer list.

Enter an address or parcel number in the King County Districts and Development Conditions report to see if the parcel is included in the Sea Level Rise Risk Area. If you don't know your parcel number, use King County's Parcel Viewer to find it.

Marine monitoring data

Marine Shoreline Inventory Report
Inventory of selected shoreline habitat features that support juvenile salmonids, presented in part using high-resolution aerial photos with overlays that classify habitat types.

Quartermaster Harbor Nitrogen Management Study
This study will evaluate the role of nitrogen in the risk of lethal, low-level dissolved oxygen events in Quartermaster Harbor, a sensitive marine embayment of Vashon-Maury Island in Puget Sound.

Juvenile Salmonid Composition, Timing, Distribution, and Diet in Marine Nearshore Waters of Central Puget Sound in 2001-2002
Scientific report essential to protect and recover Puget Sound salmon stocks.

Prioritization of Marine Shorelines of WRIA 9 for Juvenile Salmonid Habitat Protection and Restoration (2006)
Identifies Puget Sound shoreline habitats in southern King County that should be preserved or restored to help salmon.

Puget Sound Shoreline Stewardship Guidebook
Provides info and contacts for residents of beach and bluff shorelines to learn about natural shoreline protection, manage runoff, use native plants, control aggressive non-native plants, and maintain septic systems in an ecologically friendly way.

Hermicen - Marine InvertebratePuget Sound marine life photos
A photo collection of Puget Sound fish, invertebrates, and algae to aid the identification of marine species.

Puget Sound Nearshore Environment

Small stream mouth

The Puget Sound Nearshore Environment. An illustrated presentation.

Go to

Beyond the Beach:
Learn about the Nearshore Environment and what you can do to help protect it from damage.

image of report cover
State of the Nearshore Report

Summary and assessment of the state of our current knowledge of ecological processes and conditions, natural resources, and ecosystem health in nearshore portions of Central Puget Sound. Intended to provide a foundation for future environmental work and decision making.

Projects

Dockton Bulkhead Removal Project
Learn about King County's work to remove a bulkhead to restore the Quartermaster Harbor shoreline at Dockton, on Vashon-Maury Island.

Cove Creek Restoration Project
King County is replacing a culvert with a 12-foot-wide box culvert to improve fish access to Cove Creek and associated wetlands, and is placing gravel on the beach to replicate a more natural shoreline.

Maury Island Natural Area Fill Removal Project
Project to remove fill and to restore habitat at the Maury Island Natural Area.

Maury Island Aquatic Reserve Armoring Removal
Project to acquire marine shoreline and remove shoreline armoring to improve nearshore habitat quality and to create recreational access and amenities.

Recreation and appreciation

Vashon–Maury Island parks & natural lands map and guide
Places for residents and visitors to get outside across Vashon-Maury Island.

Island Center Forest
363-acre working forest and ecological lands in the middle of Vashon Island.

Island Center Forest recreation map

Maury Island Marine Park recreation map

Dockton Forest recreation map

Vashon-Maury Island nearby tide graphs, courtesy of NOAA

Salmon recovery

WRIA 9 Salmon Recovery (includes Vashon-Maury Island)
For the purposes of salmon conservation planning, Vashon-Maury Island was transferred from WRIA 15 (Kitsap County) to WRIA 9, the Green/Duwamish and Central Puget Sound drainage area. The salmon recovery site provides status and actions about the recovery of threatened salmon species in WRIA 9, including an overview of the planning process, scientific information, and meeting records. We welcome your participation.

Surface water, groundwater, and drinking water

Introduction to watersheds

Report problems: drainage and water quality

Protecting Our Liquid Assets - informational mailer describing Vashon-Maury Island's valuable water resources.

Vashon-Maury Island Watershed Plan
Plan assessing the water resources on Vashon and Maury Islands and to help resolve surface water issues.

Pollution monitoring
Ongoing water quality sampling in Vashon-Maury Island streams. Water quality data are available online for:

Vashon-Maury Island Rapid Rural Reconnaissance - Draft Report
Inventory of the island's surface water needs. This report lists priority drainage and water quality projects, acquisitions, studies and programs that would receive funding through surface water management fees.

King County's surface water management fee for unincorporated King County & Vashon Island
Provides a history of King County's surface water management program, its services and fees, and contacts for more information.

Vashon - Maury Island Water Resources Evaluation
Read about this long-term project to understand what affects the quality and quantity of the island's groundwater, and update it's drinking water budget based on new knowledge.

Vashon-Maury Island Groundwater Management Area
Read the groundwater sampling and analysis plan, an interactive map, and learn about the area's groundwater protection committee.

Rain barrel information and sources for the Pacific Northwest
How to design a rain barrel or cistern system and where to buy them.

Wastewater treatment

Vashon wastewater treatment plant
Learn about this treatment plant including details about a project to upgrade it. This page provides notices of public meetings, news releases, contact information and a map showing where the plant is located.

Lands

Noxious weed infestation map
Interactive map showing location of regulated noxious weed infestations.

Agriculture in King County, Washington

Quality assurance project plan for regulatory effectiveness monitoring for developing rural areas
Framework to monitor and evaluate land use regulations to help ensure their effectiveness, using indicators for hydrology, water quality, biology, and stream complexity.

Maury Island Ecological Economic Evaluation
Report describing the island's ecological assets and estimating their economic value to help inform decisions related to resource conservation, land use planning and sustainable practices.

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