Friends of the Salish Sea (FOSS): Why Their Work Matters
Anacortes is home to a local organization called Friends of the Salish Sea (FOSS). This nonprofit was founded here by a resident who recognized a critical problem:
We have laws to protect the Salish Sea, but government agencies are not monitoring the water. Without monitoring, those laws cannot function.
To fill that gap, FOSS has trained teams of citizen scientists from communities around the Salish Sea. These volunteers collect stormwater outflow samples and use scientific instruments to measure water quality — work that state and local agencies should be doing but aren’t.
Even within their limited scope (stormwater outfalls only), FOSS has repeatedly identified pollution events and stopped contaminants from entering the Salish Sea. Their work shows what real environmental monitoring looks like — and how much damage can be prevented when someone is actually watching.
A Local Example: The MJB Waterfront Outflow
A few years ago, FOSS volunteers documented a large volume of silt discharging from the stormwater outfall serving the MJB waterfront construction site, just blocks from City Hall. The discharge was visible, measurable, and clearly inconsistent with the project’s permit conditions.
FOSS submitted their findings to the City and to the Washington Department of Ecology.
Ecology investigated and halted construction until MJB installed the required stormwater retention facilities that were already part of their permit design.
This incident demonstrates two things:
FOSS is performing essential monitoring that government agencies are not doing.
When monitoring actually occurs, environmental damage can be stopped.
MJB may be a capable contractor, but the fact that required retention facilities were not installed raises a larger question:
Did they skip it because Anacortes rarely enforces environmental violations?
This is exactly why monitoring matters.
The City’s Reliance on FOSS — Without Supporting Them
The City of Anacortes has publicly expressed appreciation for FOSS and even cites a “volunteer shoreline‑monitoring organization” in its recent Comprehensive Plan as part of the City’s environmental strategy. That reference is widely understood to mean FOSS.
Yet when FOSS recently sought a state grant, the City declined to sponsor the application, saying it would require too much administrative time from a Public Works employee. Sponsorship would not have cost the City money — only a small amount of staff time for a win-win relationship.
If the City chooses not to support FOSS, it should not cite them as evidence that the City is providing environmental monitoring.
Why FOSS Matters for Anacortes
FOSS fills a critical gap:
Government agencies are not monitoring stormwater outfalls.
The City does not enforce many environmental permit conditions.
Without monitoring, environmental laws are functionally meaningless.
FOSS has already prevented pollution events that would have harmed the Salish Sea.
Their work protects the water, the wildlife, and the community.
How You Can Help
Please consider joining or supporting Friends of the Salish Sea in their efforts to protect the Salish Sea and the wildlife that depend on it.
