GIG HARBOR, Wash. — A program in South Puget Sound is helping boaters safely dispose of sewage while out on the water.
The free mobile pump-out program is run by Pierce County and just started its third season. Pierce County, Washington State Parks, the City of Gig Harbor, the Alliance for a Healthy South Sound, the Recreational Boating Association of Washington and Minterbrook Oyster Farm all worked together in this effort.
This year there are two pump-out boats, one stationed at the end of the Key Peninsula and one in Gig Harbor. The free pump-outs are available on weekends and holidays throughout the summer boating season, and although the program is operated by Pierce County, the program covers all of South Puget Sound, including Mason and Thurston counties.
Back in 2018, Puget Sound became a no-discharge zone so this program is helping to make sure boaters have opportunities to pump out their sewage. The mobile pump-out vessels serve docking facilities, anchorages and yacht club outstations, with the goal of giving recreational boaters a convenient way to dispose of sewage from their sanitary waste tanks right where they are.
This program helps to keep more than 10,000 gallons of sewage a year out of Puget Sound. Last year they pumped more than 12,000 gallons of sewage, and this year they expect to hit 6,000 gallons pumped by the 4th of July.
“I mean, this is why people live in the Pacific Northwest, they just love the water,” said Paul Weyn, one of the boat operators for the mobile pump-out program.
The goal of the program is to give people options so they do not end up dumping waste into Puget Sound. By preventing sewage from getting into the water, it improves water quality, protects wildlife and helps the shellfish industry.
“Keeping all elements of poop out of the water is good for everybody, including the shellfish,” said Jeff Barney, with Pierce County Watershed Services.
Barney said the grant-funded program, supported by multiple organizations, serves an important purpose.
“We have about 190 miles of shoreline within Pierce County, about 450 in all of South Sound, and a lot of remote locations that are not next to a town or a city that has a wastewater treatment plant,” said Barney.
Summer 2023 is already proving to be a busy season, with lots of sewage and customers.
“The most I've done, like on a Saturday, has been about 46, which is quite a lot,” said Weyn. “But generally, I'd say anywhere between 12 and 20 a day.”
It’s a service Weyn hopes will help keep Puget Sound clean.
"Well, it’s really the purpose for why I am doing this, is to keep the water clean,” said Weyn. “This is really the only way I can do that and I am very proud to be a part of that."
The vessels will serve areas of the Key Peninsula-Gig Harbor-Islands watershed, which spans from south of the Tacoma Narrows to the Nisqually River Delta. The South Puget Sound service area includes, but is not limited to, the following locations:
- Bremerton Yacht Club and Tacoma Yacht Club outstations in Oro Bay, Anderson Island
- Tacoma Yacht Club outstation in Wollochet Bay, Gig Harbor Peninsula
- Cutts Island and Kopachuck state parks, Gig Harbor Peninsula
- Penrose Point and Delano Bay near Penrose State Park, Key Peninsula
- Lakebay, Mayo Cove and Longbranch marinas, Filucy Bay, Key Peninsula
Boaters can call (253) 225-7660 to request service or schedule an appointment here.