Washington Natural Resources Dept. Begins Cleanup of Puget Sound Pollution
Officials with the Washington Department of Natural Resources are removing makeshift tire reefs from Puget Sound as part of the agency’s new Tire Pile Removal Program, which is part of a strategy to protect and restore salmon habitat.
The tires were installed as artificial reefs from the 1960s to1980s by several Washington state groups to increase habitat or swindling rockfish and lingcod populations.
On Oct. 24, Washington State Public Lands Commissioner Hilary Franz said it was important to remove pollutants like these tire reefs now, before they become a larger problem across Puget Sound.
The polypropylene rope holding bundles of tires together is wearing down, causing tires to drift and pollute waterways and beaches. Once on land, the tires break down faster, which can result in microplastics spreading into the environment.
The piles also collect fishing line and other debris underwater that can entangle wildlife.
The Natural Resources department said that it has identified 14 sites with tire reefs in Puget Sound. It’s crews spent several years mapping thee tire reefs with multibeam sonar and Geographic Information System.
The first removals began in mid-October, with crews using an excavator and die team removing some 2,500 tires from the site of Tolmie State Park near the mouth of the Nisqually River.
According to DNR spokesperson Zoe Love, the Natural Resources Department has received more reports of tires washing ashore in the past several years. This, she said, poses a risk as tires may break down faster on shore and create microplastics and micro-rubbers in the environment.
With so many removal sites left, the agency said that it hopes to secure more funding for more removals in the upcoming legislative session.
DNR officials also said that cataloging and surveying the tire piles of Puget Sound has been a joint effort that includes the collaboration of the Washington Department of Ecology, the Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission, the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, the Washington Scuba Alliance and Native nations and tribes of Washington state.
