Autumn 2022 starts our second two-year stormwater sampling campaign. This time with a twist: new citizen scientists in three more cities will be monitoring city stormwater outfalls in addition to continuing our work in Anacortes. Oak Harbor, Mukilteo, and Edmonds are now part of the expanded monitoring work that Friends of Skagit Beaches is leading in the North Sound. 

This work is funded by a grant from the National Fish & Wildlife Foundations’ Southern Resident Killer Whale Conservation Program for the purpose of improving habitat, food sources, and conducting research to support recovery of the Southern Resident Orca population within our region. The grant covers the costs for volunteer coordination, recruiting, training, equipping, and managing the data captured by our volunteers.

During the summer of 2022 Friends established a partnership with the Snohomish County Beach Watcher program and the Sound Waters Stewards on Whidbey Island to connect to eager citizen science volunteers in their programs.  We recruited, trained, and equipped volunteers in Oak Harbor, Mukilteo, and Edmonds, as well as new volunteers for Anacortes. All three groups of eager volunteers are ready to get down to the beach and sometimes even in the water (photo left) to sample and take monitoring measurements. 

This volunteer effort addresses a shortcoming in our federal Clean Water Act: no required periodic monitoring of stormwater outfall pipes. Local towns would have difficulty in financially supporting the manpower and equipment costs for this activity. That’s where Friends of Skagit Beaches and our citizen science volunteers come to the rescue.

We have also partnered with the WA Department of Ecology’s regional municipal stormwater permit manager for the area stretching from Everett north to the Canadian Border.  On a monthly basis the data captured by the volunteers is supplied to the town's stormwater manager and the state stormwater discharge permit manager. Between them they engage in the detective work to find the specific source for pollution discharges that our volunteers detect. We’ve had a number of successful resolutions of pollution sources found by monitoring Anacortes outfalls in the past two years  and expect to continue with this great track record. [Photo right: volunteer measured turbidity from silt being discharged into Fidalgo Bay from a large construction project.]

In this new campaign, Friends added E. coli bacteria detection to the stormwater monitoring activity (photo left). E Coli is a bacterium that is indicative of the presence of fecal coliform in the water and is the standard way to detect it in water source monitoring. There is a possibility that perhaps 10% of our stormwater outfall pipes also discharge E. coli bacteria in concentration levels that harms marine life. Shellfish beds are common around our shorelines and can experience closures when levels are too high. High E. coli concentrations render the shellfish harmful to humans, birds, and animals.

Our volunteers follow the Department of Ecology guidelines for analysis. If an outfall pipe is found to consistently exceed a state chemical or bacteria threshold then local and state inspectors investigate for the source, triggered by our data. This action component of the project makes this monitoring work satisfying for volunteers when they see they’ve made a difference. They see the dynamic nature of man-made pollutants that are discharged into our marine waters.

Friends assembled a dedicated group to organize, recruit, and train these volunteers. Through the summer of 2022 this group visited all four cities and hosted training sessions for the volunteers on the use of the test equipment and the micro-biology processes.

Particular thanks goes to Sue Spadoni, Wayne Huseby, Chris Wood, Betty Carteret, Sherry Johnson, and Tim Gohrke. This project expansion was a heavy lift but the group succeeded in organizing and training thirty-three volunteers among all four cities.

Want to know more or have questions?  Contact project lead, Tim Gohrke, at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Compiled by Chris Wood with contributions from
Ellen Anderson, Betty Carteret, Callie Martin, Michelle Marquardt & Carol Sullivan

The eye-catching graphic above demonstrates the Japanese art of wrapping gifts (click to view an example) with fabric called Furoshiki.

This is just one idea for reducing holiday waste our passionate and dedicated volunteers shared at a recent gathering. You will find more of their ideas below to inspire us all towards the goal of a zero waste holiday celebration. Even with the best intentions, we will have some items to dispose of. To help us recycle as much as we can, Callie Martin, Waste Reduction Recycling Education Specialist for Skagit County, put together a holiday recycling guide which you will find at the bottom of this newsletter below our gift ideas.

Volunteer Carol Sullivan shares her philosophy on gift giving with us. "When you receive a gift, receive it and acknowledge it.  Then it is yours to do with as you wish.  Keep it, use it, donate it, sell it or re-gift.  Without guilt. Your job is only to receive it." Carol shares more on using Furoshiki and other creative wrapping ideas below.

Give the Gift of Swaps

One of the primary goals of our program is to encourage people to swap out single use plastics and replace them with a reusable alternatives. Just search for "simple swaps for plastic" on the internet and you'll find a wealth of ideas and gift possibilities. 

Simple Swaps was the motivation behind the gifts several volunteers created for the friends and families on their shopping list.

Michelle's Purse Shopping Bag

Michelle put her considerable design and sewing skills to use. Her cleverly designed outside pocket doubles as a way to fold and secure the bag into a small easy to stash package. 

Michelle's Grocery & Produce Bag Kit

Michelle’s No Styrofoam Take Away Kit

If you don't sew or have the time, you can put together similar kits with purchased items.

Another great idea is Ellen's Travel Place Setting which includes:

• a cloth placemat
• cloth napkin
• eating utensils

She used the placemat as the wrapping, rolled it all up and held it in place with a decorative hair tie. You could sew the placemat and napkin yourself or do what Ellen did and go on a treasure hunt to your favorite thrift shops to collect the items. Of course you'll find a number of local thrift shops listed in our "Beyond the Bin" recycling guide.

Favorite Homemade Consumable Gifts

Several volunteers shared recipes for delicious edibles and thoughtful pampering gifts. Everything from spice mixes to DIY bath salts!  Save glass or mason jars to put consumables in and top with a circle of holiday fabric.  If you like to paint, use the jars as a small canvas and add artistic embellishment. Those glass and mason jars can also be used to send guests home with leftovers from holiday meals.

Betty’s Creamed Honey: Creamed honey is a spreadable honey that will not crystallize. It is easy to make using a store bought creamed honey as your starter. Mix 1-part creamed honey with 10-parts honey (clear with no crystals.) Let filled jars sit in a cool dark place for 2 weeks before using. If you share the steps with the gift, the receiver will be able to use your gift as a starter to make more. Visit these links for a recipe to make creamed honey and for a pdf file of Betty's labels you can print (tip: print double sided on card stock).
 
Favorite Recipes:  Betty also shares her favorite cornbread and soda bread recipes as holiday gifts by simply combining all the dry ingredients in a quart size mason jar and including the recipe. She makes 12 times the recipe of dry ingredients and divides it into 6 quart jars, which provides two batches per jar. Download her Rich Corncake recipe and package labels. Many favorite recipes can be shared as gifts this way.

Everything Bagel Topping – Shared by Callie Martin
Combine the following ingredients:

• 1 T dried minced garlic
• 1 T black sesame seeds
• 1 T dried minced onion
• 2 T sea salt
• 1 T white sesame seeds
• 2 T poppy seeds

Add them to a shaker jar and use liberally on almost everything! Heads up - we love salt! If you're watching your sodium levels or aren't a huge fan of salt, you can reduce it to one tablespoon.
 

Hot Cocoa Mix – Shared by Callie Martin
Combine the following ingredients in a food processor:

• 1½ cups nonfat dry milk powder
• 1 cup powdered sugar
• ¾ cup Dutch-processed cocoa powder
• ¾ cup white chocolate chips
• ⅛ teaspoon salt

Lock food processor lid into place. Hold down pulse button for 1 second, then release. Repeat until chocolate chips are finely ground, about ten 1-second pulses. Transfer cocoa mix to airtight storage container. Mix can be stored at room temperature for up to 3 months.
 

To make hot cocoa combine ⅓ cup cocoa mix and 1 cup milk in a large mug. Heat in microwave until hot, about 2 minutes. Stir with spoon until well combined. And top with whipped cream or mini marshmallows, desired.
 

Magnesium Rose Bath Salts - Shared by Callie Martin
Combine the following ingredients

• ¼ cup Himalayan pink sea salt
• 1 cup Epsom salt
• 10-20 drops Rose Absolute essential oil
• ½ cup dried rose petals

Stir ingredients together until well combined. Store in an air tight, glass container.
 

Magnesium Rose Bath Ritual: Add the bath salts (the entire 1 ¼ cups) to a small amount of hot water in your tub. Swirl to dissolve. Fill tub with warm water and soak for 30 minutes. After soaking use a towel to dry off your body but do not rinse off. You should nap or rest for at least 30 minutes after your detox bath. I take my baths before going to bed for a great night’s sleep. Be sure to drink plenty of water during and after the bath.

A note about ingredients: All ingredients can be sourced from Mountain Rose Herbs https://www.mountainroseherbs.com/. Epsom salt can be found in the pharmacy/health & wellness area of your local drugstore or grocery store. If planning ahead, rose petals can be wild harvested in the month of June in the Pacific Northwest and dried to use in gifts for loved ones during winter.

 Gifts of Experiences

Time spent with friends and family is precious and memories of shared experiences will last well beyond the holiday. Customized to the person getting the experience, these gifts can be as simple as coffee hour at a favorite spot to elaborate weekend getaways for adults or train trips with grandkids to a nearby city. To a youngster, even a “stay-cation”, where you become a tourist in your hometown, is memorable. The possibilities are endless! 

A gift of cooking is something fun to share with young kids. Homemade pizza is fun for all ages. Bagels are surprisingly easy - try this King Arthur Flour recipe. If your a skilled cook, give a culinary evening of teaching a favorite advanced recipe, like paella, followed by sitting down to enjoy it together. Or treat the cook on your list to a class at the King Arthur Baking School located out by the Skagit Regional Airport. They offer a variety of seasonal one-day and week-long baking classes.

Giving Gifts

With the goal of fostering social awareness and responsibility, give children or grandkids the opportunity to choose a local or international charity to receive their “giving gift.” You provide the funds, and they do the choosing.  Very young children might need a concrete “item” to donate, like an animal that gives a family food or a product to sell (Heifer International was Carol's choice for young grandkids.  A tree ornament animal symbolized their choice for that year.)  Older kids can be introduced to websites, like Charity Navigator, to help them select well run charities.

Alternative Wrapping Options from Carol, Your Skagit BYObag Lady!

Furoshiki is a Japanese method of gift wrapping that uses reusable cloth (think origami-like.) The gift is opened in the presence of the giver, who then takes the wrapping home to use again for another gift occasion. Check out Spoonflower’s video tutorial to learn more about the Japanese style of wrapping gifts in decorative cloth and scarves at https://blog.spoonflower.com/2019/11/6-ways-to-wrap-a-gift-with-furoshiki/

I'm not inclined to learn all the techniques, but I love the idea of reusing/repurposing a pretty scarf, piece of fabric - or a long-sleeved shirt - to fashion reusable gift wraps! A child’s long-sleeved shirt from the second-hand store makes three gift bags. Cutting the sleeves off straight across, stitching the bottom closed and adding a color coordinated ribbon at the cuff makes a great gift for small items.  I made several, and gave them along with the gift to share the idea. The body of the shirt becomes a larger bag by stitching the sleeves and shirt bottom.  On some, I’ve used a larger width ribbon and tied it as a man’s tie.  Others just get the normal bow tie.  

Many consumable gifts can be in glass jars you’ve saved from the kitchen. Top them with a circle of fabric tied on with ribbon.  Get real clever, and make those rounds out of fabric coated with beeswax (plus pine resin and jojoba oil) to cover that jar and others.

The idea is to RETHINK how we give, and how we present what we give to reduce single-use materials.  Remember that most all gift wrap paper is not recyclable, nor is it compostable. Plain tissue paper can be recycled with mixed paper, and brown Kraft paper or newsprint can be recycled or composted. But they are still single-use . . . . RETHINK!

& How Compostable are Compostables?

October 2019 - by Callie Martin,

Waste Reduction Recycling Education Specialist, Skagit County Public Works

You’ve likely been here before: Wearing the organizational badge of honor, you’re charged with the task of purchasing dishware, cups, and utensils for a family reunion, club picnic, or work event. With so many disposable options to choose from, how do you decide what to buy? Let’s walk through this together.

Traditional Plastic

The main offender of disposability is petroleum-based plastic ware. These items have been sold for several decades and include Styrofoam cups, plastic cold cups, straws, plastic cutlery, and lids for paper coffee cups. Nothing from this group of serviceware can be recycled. Currently, the best place for most of these items after single-use is the trash can. Best efforts for reuse could be washing them to use at another time, though they are less durable than other materials.

Compostable Plastic

A bit tricky to decipher from traditional plastic, compostable or plant-based plastics were all the rage beginning in 2010. Compostable plastics come in the same forms as traditional serviceware, and today there is a compostable plastic alternative to just about any traditional plastic item you can find. Many thought compostable products might end the destructive impacts of plastic pollution, and create a less wasteful disposable option for activities on the go.

An important characteristic of compostable plastic is that it is meant to break down in an industrial-scale composting facility, rather than a backyard compost pile. This is because a typical backyard compost pile does not grow hot enough to break down the chemistry of compostable plastics.

If you have access to a collection bin that is hauled to a composting facility, compostable products are an acceptable alternative to traditional plastic. However, we have a second caveat at play. Industry studies have found that many compostable plastic serviceware items do not break down fully during the industrial composting process. Bits and pieces of compostable plastic are found floating about the finished compost. The impact of this lowers the market value for finished compost products, and deteriorates the future success of community composting systems.

While compostable to a certain degree, nothing in the compostable plastic family is recyclable in the blue curbside bin. Combined with the confusing fact that these products look a lot like traditional plastic, compostable plastics aren’t the obvious answer to plastic pollution we were hoping for.

Wait though, compostable plastic MUST be better than traditional plastic. Right? It is true, when compostable plastic enters as litter into the environment it does have an easier chance of breaking down without adding as much pollution as traditional plastic. Letting it out of our hands and into the environment without proper disposal has never been the goal though, and shouldn’t be something to bank on.

If you find yourself heading in the direction of purchasing compostable plastic for your next event, be sure to use the following guidelines:
 

• Purchase compostable plastic if the only other option available is traditional plastic.
• Make sure any compostable plastic purchased is ASTM 6400 or ASTM D6400 Certified by the Biodegradable Products Institute. This guarantees is can break down fully in an industrial-scale composting operation.
• Be sure you have access to municipal composting in the form of a curbside green cart or yard waste pick up service.
• Check with your local industrial composting facility to verify that they accept compostable plastics for composting.
• In Skagit County, yard waste carts are hauled to Skagit Soils, where compost is made on an industrial-sized scale. Currently, compostable plastics are not accepted for composting at Skagit Soils or anywhere in Skagit County.

Compostable Paper

Since soiled or dirty paper cannot be recycled, it is often a great option to compost it instead. There are an array of compostable paper products out there for use at gatherings and events. In order to be composted successfully, paper serviceware needs to be unlined. This means no thin, traditional plastic liners on the tops or bottoms, or around the inside of the paper. Though regular bleached paper can be composted without much consequence, the gold-star standard for compostable paper serviceware would mean the products were not only unlined, but also unbleached. Compostable paper products do eliminate the issue of plastic pollution entirely, as they compost very effectively using industrial composting methods. It is important to remember that paper products do have a significant impact on the environment through natural resource use. When trying to move away from plastic, compostable paper products offer a good transition.

Follow these guidelines if you want to host your next event using compostable paper products:

• Paper coffee cups are often lined. Be sure to purchase only those treated with polylactic acid (PLA) as the form of liner, as it can be fully composted. Eco Products offers a variety of options for PLA lined compostable paper products.
• Ideally, look for unbleached paper products. These will usually be brown in color, rather than white. If brown can’t be found, white is okay too!

Bamboo & Wooden Products

Another disposable alternative you may have placed on your radar are wooden or bamboo products. These items are often one hundred percent compostable, and offer a good alternative to both traditional and compostable plastics. Compared to other large-scale crops, bamboo comes out ‘greener’ than most with regard to the overall environmental impact. A fast growing grass, it requires no fertilizer and self-regenerates from its own roots, so it doesn't need to be replanted. The downside to bamboo and wooden serviceware are that they are often expensive. Greenwave, Bambu Veneerware, and Green Paper Products offer bamboo options.

Washable & Reusable

The best thing to do for Mother Earth is to avoid disposable options for serviceware altogether.

Washables do take resources to create, and use water to clean, but after a certain amount of uses create little to no additional pollution. When choosing what to buy, talk to other organizers. Purchasing washable plates, cups, and silverware may actually prove less expensive over time. Consider hosting gatherings or meetings in a space that already has washable dishware available to borrow, like a church or community center. Come up with solutions for dishwashing, or better yet, have everyone invited to the event bring their own plate, mug, and silverware from which to enjoy the meal. This creates a larger sense of community, and sometimes even a way to meet new friends!

Our volunteers share their best strategies for reducing single-use plastic

Okay, you’ve taken the Plastics Pledge and, according to our survey results, you’re doing a pretty darn good job of reducing single-use plastics and improving recycling. You’re working hard to adopt the four major Simple Swaps:

• Swap out that single-use bottled water by bringing your own reusable water bottle
• Swap out that plastic grocery bag by bringing your own grocery totes to the store
• Swap out that plastic cutlery by bringing your own reusable cutlery when you eat on the go
• Swap out that single-use coffee cup and plastic lid by bringing your own reusable coffee mug

Now, let’s think about taking the challenge a bit farther. Let’s swap out some of the single-use plastic in our lives that are a little less obvious.

First, identify a couple single-use plastic items you tend to use a lot. Do you eat a lot of single-serving yogurt? Do you buy single-serving chips for school lunches? How about those plastic produce bags at the grocery store? Pick the thing that you use most and figure out how to swap it out for a non-plastic or reusable option.

We asked our many volunteers who you’ve met around the County hosting our interpretive display to tell us what single-use plastic items they use and what they do to reduce their use. Some of their ideas might just fit your lifestyle, too!

Bulk up on bulk foods! The most frequent answer to the question of what single-use plastic you use the most is, as predicted, food packaging. How to avoid all those tubs and plastic jars? Lots of our volunteers buy in bulk. Dale buys spices, nuts, and beans in bulk. Linda buys her tea in bulk. Ellen buys nut butters in bulk. And she buys blocks of parmesan cheese and grates it herself. And Mae buys dried milk instead of milk in plastic containers.

And don’t forget those cleaning supplies and soaps. Maureen buys those in bulk, too! And in the ‘every bit counts department,’ Joan considers dental floss a triumph of packaging over product, so she buys her dental floss in big dispensers.

And bring your own containers. Those plastic produce bags are easily swapped out for mesh bags available for purchase. Craig brings his own cotton bags for bulk items, too. Some stores allow and even reward you for bringing your own containers to buy their bulk products. Linda reports that the Vinegar and Oil store gives you credit for reusing glass bottles.

Speaking of yogurt, Betty has eliminated those single-serving tubs by making her own yogurt in her Instant-pot. Some of our other volunteers have been resurrecting their latent kitchen talents, too. Dale makes her own guacamole and salsa. Maureen and Betty make their own hummus (recipe below). Ellen makes her own salad dressing. Heidi makes her own crackers and granola. And Susan bakes her own bread. And how about using real lemons and limes instead of those little plastic fruit replicas?

And whatever happened to glass? If you must buy packaged goods, look for glass containers, or paper packaged products to avoid plastics. Some products that are still readily available in glass or paper are salad dressing, pasta sauce, honey, wine (thank goodness), bar soap, vinegars, and soy sauce.

But its summertime and what about all those plastic plant pots? They are NOT RECYCLABLE as you know, so don’t put them in your recycling bins. Ruth reports that Sanitary Service Center in Bellingham does take them to recycle. But you have to drop them off there. If you can’t reuse them yourself, Jan reports that Master Gardeners and Native Plant Society have a bin in the parking lot of the Mount Vernon Extension Center for large size, square pots. You can avoid them entirely by buying plants bare root or in plugs. Joe’s Garden in Bellingham sells some plugs of vegetables. And, of course, you can start your plants from seeds yourself.

That’s not all! Do you have some great ideas to help us all reduce our use of single-use plastic? We’d love to hear them. Comment below or send us an email at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. And look for us at local Farmers Markets this summer. Stop by to say hi and share your simple swap ideas!

Easy Homemade Hummus

Got 10 minutes?  Get out that food processor hiding in the cabinet. This recipe can be adapted to your own tastes by adding more/less of some ingredients and topping with your favorite additions such as roasted garlic, pine nuts, roasted peppers, or whatever suits your fancy. Enjoy and pat yourself on the back for not buying that plastic container in the store.

2 to 4 garlic cloves to taste

¼ cup water; additional to thin at end to taste

¾ cup tahini

¼ cup fresh lemon juice, ~ 1 large lemon or 2 small

1 teaspoon salt (substitute garlic salt if you love garlic)

¼ cup ground cumin

15.5 ounce or ~1¾ cup chickpeas, rinsed and drained

Add garlic cloves to food processor and pulse until minced. Add ¼ cup water, tahini, lemon juice, salt, and cumin.  Puree for about one minute until texture becomes light and smooth (pourable, not thick and pasty). Add chickpeas and puree three minutes until very smooth. You can add more water by the tablespoon to thin the consistency as you like.  Store in refrigerator in sealed container for one week.

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The Skagit Plastic Reduction and Recycling Coalition is a partnership between Friends of Skagit Beaches, Skagit County Solid Waste, and the Washington Department of Ecology. We are working to educate Skagit County residents on the issues of plastic waste in the environment and involve them in taking action to avoid single-use plastics and recycle plastic right.

The Friends of Skagit Beaches Plastics Project is funded by a grant from the Washington Department of Ecology with additional support from Skagit County Solid Waste Division.