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2015 Puget Sound Factbook Book | v3.0 Key industries 17. Ports: Imports and exports at the ports of Seattle and Tacoma totaled a combined $77 billion in 2013. Taken together, the two seaports were the equivalent of the 4th largest U.S. seaport by export value in 2013 (Northwest Seaport Alliance, 2014). 18. Aerospace: Puget Sound’s aerospace industry remains an economic leader, with Boeing contributing about 70 billion dollars to the state economy each year (Washington Aerospace Partnership, 2013). 19. Information technology: Seattle’s information technology industry includes giants like Microsoft and Amazon, and according to the Washington Technology Industry Association, the state’s tech companies bring in a combined $37 billion in annual revenues (Washington Technology Industry Association, 2015). Information technology provides 144,000 jobs in the Puget Sound region (Puget Sound Regional Council, 2015). 20. Fishing and seafood processing account for nearly half of all maritime-related employment in Puget Sound (Puget Sound Regional Council, 2015). Shellfish aquaculture 21. Washington State is the leading producer of farmed bivalve shellfish in the United States, generating an estimated $77 million in sales and accounting for 86% of the West Coast’s production in the year 2000 (Northern Economics, 2010). Within Puget Sound, farmed shellfish (clams, mussel, geoduck, oyster, and scallops) harvests have ranged from 3.8 million pounds in 1970 to 11.4 million pounds in 2008. 22. Overall, shellfish in Puget Sound have a commercial value of almost $100 million a year. The non-native Pacific oyster accounts for close to $60 million of this value, with the remainder coming from native crabs, clams, and mussels.(Dethier, 2006). 23. As of May 2015, the Department of Health (DOH) classified just over 190,000 acres as shellfish growing areas within 92 different growing areas in the Puget Sound (PSP, 2015). To ensure the health of those consuming shellfish harvested in these areas, the DOH additionally classifies these growing areas on a basis of approved, conditionally approved, restricted, and prohibited. As of May 2015, over 36,000 of the 190,000 acres were prohibited (PSP, 2015). Governance and policy 24. Unlike many coastal states that maintain public ownership of shorelines, between 60- 70% of Washington’s tidelands and beaches are privately owned (Osterberg, 2012). 25. In 1854-1855, five treaties (Treaty of Medicine Creek, Treaty of Neah Bay, Treaty of Olympia, Treaty of Point Elliott, Treaty of Point No Point) were signed that provided tribally reserved rights to “taking fish at usual and accustomed grounds and stations” and “hunting and gathering roots and berries on open and unclaimed lands” (Treaty of Point Elliott, 1855). These rights received little attention, however, until the 1974 Boldt Decision defined tribal fishing rights to half the harvestable number of salmon passing through tribes’ usual and accustomed fishing places, including salmon produced in hatcheries. Additionally, the Boldt Decision established tribes as co-mangers of the 24
Human dimensions state’s salmon, restricted the state’s ability to regulate tribal fishing, and established the duty of state and federal governments to protect salmon habitat (Northwest Indian Fisheries Commission, 2015). a. The Rafeedie Decision in 1994 extended this clarification of treaty rights to include half of all shellfish from usual and accustomed places, except for those “staked or cultivated” by citizens (Northwest Indian Fisheries Commission, 2015). 26. Since 1990, the State of Washington’s Growth Management Act (36.70a RCW) has required state and local governments in counties with a population of 50,000 or more and population growth between 10-20% for the years 1985-1995 to manage growth by identifying and protecting critical areas and natural resource lands, designating urban growth areas, preparing comprehensive plans, and implementing them through capital investments and regulations (Washington State, 1990). While the state establishes goals and deadlines for compliance, local governments choose the specific content and implementation strategies of their comprehensive plans. This has resulted in significant collaboration among counties and cities to protect natural areas in fast-growing areas (Puget Sound Regional Council, 2009). a. Between 1986 and 2007, urban land cover increased from 8% to 19% in six Central Puget Sound counties (King, Pierce, Snohomish, Kitsap, Thurston, Island), with the largest and fastest increases happening outside urban growth boundaries (Hepinstall-Cymerman et al., 2013). During that same time, lowland forest coverage decreased from 21% to 13% and grass and agriculture decreased from 11% to 8%. 27. Washington’s Shoreline Management Act requires all cities and counties to prepare and adopt a Shoreline Master Program (SMP) that designates shoreline use, environmental protection, and public access to all marine waters, streams and rivers with greater than 20 cubic feet per second mean annual flow, lakes 20 acres or larger, shorelands that extend 200 feet landward, wetlands, and floodplains. These programs must be approved by Washington State Department of Ecology. As of August 2015, 33 of Puget Sound’s cities had completed SMPs. Six of Puget Sound’s coastal counties had completed SMPs, three had SMPs under review, and three were still under development (Washington State Department of Ecology, 2015). 28. About 15% of Puget Sound falls within a marine protected area (Osterberg, 2012). There are 110 officially designated marine protected areas in Puget Sound, encompassing 366,503 acres and about 600 miles of shoreline (Van Cleve, 2009). These protected areas have been established and or managed by 10 different local, county, state and federal agencies and are classified into 12 different types, varying in allowed levels of access and harvest (Osterberg, 2012). 25
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