Grant for development of a stormwater treatment facility for golf course endorsed by Tumwater committee

Tumwater’s Public Works Committee endorsed a grant agreement with the Department of Ecology to the city council for the design and construction of a bioretention facility in the parking lot of Tumwater Valley Golf Course during a meeting held on Thursday, January 5.

Ecology would award the city a grant of $92,788 to develop the project, which the city will match with $30,929.33.

The committee also endorsed to the city council an $89,409 service provider agreement with Skillings Inc., which will work on the design and permitting of the project.

The facility would be built to capture and treat stormwater before it is discharged to the Deschutes River. According to environmental consultant Meredith Greer, the process would help remove dirt and particles like copper, phosphorus, and zinc from the stormwater.

Greer also mentioned that this would reduce the impact of a chemical called 6PPD-Q on the life of salmon. The chemical forms when tire particles mix with stormwater.

The golf course currently does not provide stormwater treatment in the two sub-basins in its area. The bigger subbasin is 2.23 acres and surrounds the clubhouse building, while a smaller 0.20-acre subbasin can be found where the parking lot merges with the parking lot of the Valley Athletic Club.