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Thursday, June 18, 2015

Clean Marina Washington announces winners of the first Clean Marina of the Year competition






FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
June 18, 2015

MEDIA CONTACT
Andy Gregory, Puget Soundkeeper Alliance
(206) 297-7002; andy@pugetsoundkeeper.org



Clean Marina Washington announces winners of the first Clean Marina of the Year competition

The Clean Marina program is proud to announce the winners of the first ever Clean Marina of the Year competition! Shilshole Bay Marina has won in the Public Ports Category and Foss Harbor Marina in the Private Marina Category. Both facilities are recognized for their exemplary leadership in pollution prevention and environmental protection.

Winners were announced on National Marina Day (Saturday, June 13) during ceremonies held at each facility.

Shilshole Bay Marina is recognized for their work promoting Required Management Practices among their 1400 tenants, hosting an oil spill response trailer and developing a prioritized Environmental Management System to take a comprehensive look at potential environmental hazards. Tracy McKendry, Sr. Manager of Recreational Boating accepted the award on behalf of Shilshole saying, “We are extremely proud of our marina team and community.  It takes creativity, persistence and cooperation to continually work towards improving our environmental practices.  We are lucky to have such great partners in our environmental endeavors and would like to thank them for their continuing support.”

Shilshole has been a certified Clean Marina since 2001 and has been awarded a 5-star ranking by the King County EnviroStars Program.

Foss Harbor Marina is recognized for switching to paperless billing and correspondence and eliminating all plastic and Styrofoam cups as well as transitioning to high-efficiency bulbs and fixtures to reduce energy consumption. Foss Harbor is very active in the local community, working with organizations such as Citizens for a Healthy Bay and Tacoma Waterfront Association and cross-promoting initiatives through social media to provide volunteer resources. Marina staff recently leveraged Clean Vessel Act (CVA) funds from WA State Parks to purchase and operate a sewage pumpout boat, providing free and convenient slip-side sewage disposal for tenants.

“The entire Foss Harbor Marina team was honored and excited to learn that we were awarded the Washington State Clean Marina of the Year for 2015,” said Marina Manager Ian Wilkinson. “While it's always been our mission to provide guests with an outstanding marina experience, we've challenged ourselves to do so while contributing positively to our local marine environment.”

Foss Harbor Marina has been a certified Clean Marina since 2003 and has been awarded a 5-star ranking by the Pierce County EnviroStars Program. In a recent renewal certification, Troy Rowan of the Pierce County Health Department noted, “I am very impressed with the many projects that have taken place over the last two years that continue to demonstrate Foss Harbor Marina’s commitment to environmental stewardship.”

Presenting the award on behalf of the Clean Marina Program was Andy Gregory, Pollution Prevention Director for Puget Soundkeeper and Clean Marina Program Manager. “Our marine resources are under tremendous pressure these days from rapid development and upland sources of pollution,” said Gregory. “Every bit helps in our fight to save Puget Sound and preserve this extraordinary place for the future. No one knows this better than the boating community, many of whom have built their lives around spending time in, on and around the water.”

With over 70 Certified Clean Marinas in Washington State, this network of dedicated business owners and marine professionals are at the forefront of the exciting and innovative work being done to teach a new generation of boaters about how to care for and steward the marine environment for the future.

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Clean Marina Washington is an incentive-based certification program in which marinas assess their operations and implement improvements to better protect the environment. Clean Marina Washington was created in 2005 as an expansion of the EnviroStars program. For more information, visit www.CleanMarinaWashington.org

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