2/13/2008 10:50:00 AM Styrofoam, tires make up bulk of 5,220 pounds of trash removed from Dabob Bay
The Rock Point Oyster Co. contributed this barge to the three-day Dabob Bay cleanup effort, which netted 5,200 pounds of trash. – Photo by Alix Hosin
A cleanup at Dabob Bay on Feb. 3, 4 and 5 brought in 5,220 pounds of litter, including 59 tires, reported Ed Shier of the state Department of Natural Resources. Volunteers and agency staff members faced bitter cold and, on Tuesday, high winds, rain and hail to complete the cleanup.
"You wouldn't believe how much Styrofoam we pulled out of there," said Alix Hosin, a volunteer for The Nature Conservancy who participated in the cleanup with her husband, Howard O'Brien. "The spit is at the north end of Hood Canal, and it catches everything that's blown up the canal."
The cleanup of the Dabob Bay Natural Area Preserve and the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife reserve at the mouth of Tarboo Creek was organized by the DNR, with staff and volunteers from DNR, The Nature Conservancy, the state Department of Fish and Wildlife, Northwest Watershed Institute, and the help of the Rock Point Oyster Co., which donated a barge and operator for the effort.
"The barge made a world of difference in our ability to remove the large pieces of Styrofoam off of the spits. Some of the Styrofoam was up to 6 feet long, 6 feet wide and 3 feet thick, weighing more than 100 pounds," said Janet Kearsley, DNR Natural Area manager. A total of 12 volunteers worked on the cleanup, which was funded by the Washington Department of Ecology through a litter control grant. In addition, the Dabob Bay Natural Area Preserve has three dedicated site stewards who do monthly cleanups on the preserve.
This 356-acre preserve supports one of the few sites within Puget Sound to harbor coastal spits with native saltmarsh plants in good condition. The preserve also includes tide flats and forested slopes that protect the marsh. Important salmon runs pass through the preserve to spawn in Tarboo Creek, and an oyster farm manages tidelands for shellfish. In order to protect the fragile plant communities at this site, it is not open to the public except by special permission for educational or research purposes.
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