Every day is Earth Day

Every year on April 22, millions across the planet celebrate Earth Day. It's an opportunity to honor our planet and a reminder that we all can take action to protect it.

For Ecology, Earth Day is more than just one day a year — it’s our mission every day. From responding to climate change, protecting air and water, reducing waste, cleaning up contamination, and preventing and reducing toxic threats, our staff are the driving force behind our environmental work across the state.

We show up every day to work towards a brighter future for the planet, and we don’t do it alone. Our partnerships with local and Tribal governments, state agencies, organizations, and communities all over Washington make this work possible.

As we reflect on Earth Day this year, we’re taking a moment to share and celebrate some “snapshots” of our work in communities near you.

Hanford: Cleaning up for the community

In Richland, our Nuclear Waste Program focuses on keeping residents and the environment safe from toxic and radioactive contamination at the Hanford Site.

Ecology partners with EPA to regulate the U.S. Department of Energy’s groundwater cleanup of Hanford. More than 35 billion gallons of contaminated groundwater have been treated since the 1990s — out of that number, more than two billion gallons have been treated each year for the past 10 years. We’re also on track to begin solidifying nuclear waste in a glass form through a process called vitrification this summer. This includes heating up two first-of-its-kind melters to 2,100 degrees, creating test glass, and soon going through environmental testing.

This cleanup work is important for both current and future generations surrounding Hanford and the Columbia River. Our team is passionate about engaging with the community, especially students, to share more about Hanford. Completing Hanford cleanup is going to take a long time — at least into the 2070s. Keeping the public aware, informed, and engaged for the long-term is crucial for getting this multi-generational cleanup done. 

Partnerships in Pasco provide habitat for burrowing owls

In Pasco, the expansion of the city’s Process Water Reuse Facility has been an example of how successful wildlife conservation and clean water infrastructure projects can go hand-in-hand.

This facility takes wastewater from food processing companies and treats the water (using algae) so it can be used in other ways. Recycling water reduces the burden on the city's public wastewater treatment plant and helps protect water quality in the Columbia River.

When the Pasco facility was expanded, the City of Pasco was awarded financial support from Ecology’s competitive clean water funding. We partnered with Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife to ensure that shrubsteppe habitat for the burrowing owl was protected in the process. Artificial burrows were installed on the site to house any owls that were displaced by construction. This project navigated the challenging situation of displacing owls from their natural burrows during the non-breeding season, without a noticeable loss of their productivity during the breeding season.

This project serves as an important example of how careful planning and mitigation strategies can support community infrastructure without negatively impacting our ecosystems.

Supporting communities impacted by storms in Issaquah

This November, the Washington Conservation Corps responded after a bomb cyclone hit the Puget Sound area and left many in King County with extensive damage to their homes and property. The State Emergency Operations Center requested WCC to assist with debris removal, and we activated three local crews for a one-week local deployment. Our crews removed fallen and hazardous trees from residential properties south of Tiger Mountain.

"The cyclone took down a ton of trees and branches in the Mirrormont neighborhood near Issaquah, and we were sent out to help homeowners move debris off their property to be collected by the county,” said Aidan Manzanares, a deployed crew member. “It was a lot of hard work, but it was an unforgettable experience to help these homeowners!"

And our help has extended beyond just our state — WCC has deployed on two waves of hurricane relief efforts. After deploying to St. Lucie County, Florida, to support Hurricane Milton relief in November, WCC also joined the third wave of Hurricane Helene relief efforts in Asheville, North Carolina.

Fighting air pollution with electric vehicles

Diesel exhaust is one of the most harmful air pollutants in Washington. Nearly five million people live or work close to a major road where they are exposed to high levels of diesel exhaust. That’s why we have invested $78.3 million dollars to replace approximately 220 diesel school buses with electric school buses and install charging infrastructure.

Earlier this year, Redmond unveiled Washington’s first electric fire truck. The new truck will keep around 20 tons of greenhouse gas out of the air each year. That’s equal to the emissions from driving a gas-powered car around the world twice.

Most recently, Tacoma Public Schools showed off 14 new EV buses, 3 of which were funded by Ecology grants. And even more buses are on the way! Our partnership with Tacoma Public Schools, First Student, and to Tacoma Public Utilities (for building out charging infrastructure) ensures that students will have a cleaner, quieter commute to school.

Reducing food waste and feeding communities

Washington wastes more than 295,000 tons of edible food each year, and we’re working to reduce 50% of that by 2030. In Pullman, our partnerships are working to rescue waste-bound edible food and divert it to feed hungry college students. We partnered with Safeway and Washington State University to help re-launch the Cougar Food Pantry on campus with new equipment and resources.

The pantry is a resource for college students to provide free food and basic needs items. Stocking this pantry with donations helps keep food out of landfills and provides a service that is crucial for the one-in-four college students who experience food insecurity. Connecting food to the people who need it most is good for both our communities, and the environment.

Check out our Use Food Well page for information about food donations, meal planning, proper storage, using leftovers, and more ways to keep food waste out of landfills.

Measuring the health of our streams

Every summer, we send field crews out to 80 sites across the state to monitor the health of our watersheds and streams. Last summer, our crews of scientists could be found wading through Smith Creek in Bellingham or collecting algae samples in the Middle Fork Teanaway River, near Cle Elum. This summer, you’ll find us in streams and rivers in the Snake River region.

Each stream is different, providing new opportunities to learn about stream dynamics and the biological communities living in them. Healthy streams tend to have cold water, plenty of shade, an appropriate pH, and not too much silt or sand — creating a thriving habitat for aquatic critters. We can also track when sites have poor stream health due to physical and chemical “stressors” that vary in each region.

Overall, our staff have surveyed 1,920 streams across the state. This consistent, long-term data allows us to keep a pulse on the health of Washington’s streams and track changes over time.

Safe cosmetics will never go out of style

In Seattle, staff from Ecology and the Washington State Department of Health participated in the Reign of Style Hair Show and Competition. This event brought together hairstylists, beauticians, makeup artists, cosmetology students, and fashion designers to showcase their talent, creativity, and passion. We shared information with cosmetologists and beauty industry professionals about new restrictions on toxic chemicals in cosmetics.

We also hosted a Q&A session on the new law and how businesses can comply. This event was a valuable opportunity to empower beauty professionals with the knowledge and resources to safeguard their own health and that of their clients by reducing exposure to toxic chemicals in everyday products.

Learn more about Washington’s Toxic-Free Cosmetics Act and how we’re restricting use of toxic chemicals in cosmetics, so the products you use every day are safer.

What you can do

Protecting the planet is a team effort. We’re proud of the ways our staff and partnerships accomplish this important work — and we invite you to join us! There are actions all of us can take to protect Washington's environment. On Earth Day, and every day.

Visit our Earth Day page to find ways you can join us in protecting the environment (including printable coloring and activity pages for kids).

Subscribe to our blog and follow us on social media to see regular updates on our environmental work.