Honoring Native American Heritage Month

This November, Duwamish River Community Coalition (DRCC) proudly recognizes Native American Heritage Month, a time to honor, celebrate, and uplift the enduring contributions, histories, and leadership of Indigenous peoples across this land.

We begin by acknowledging that the work of DRCC takes place on the traditional and unceded lands and waters of the Coast Salish peoples, including Duwamish Tribe—dxʷdəwʔabš, the First People of Seattle. We honor their deep and ongoing relationship with the Duwamish River and the surrounding lands that sustain all of us.

As we continue our mission to restore and protect the Duwamish River, we recognize that this work is inseparable from Indigenous stewardship and sovereignty. The Duwamish River has been a life source for generations providing food, culture, and connection and yet the impacts of colonization, displacement, and environmental harm continue to threaten these sacred relationships.

This month and every month, we reaffirm our commitment to environmental and social justice that centers Indigenous rights, voices, and knowledge. We encourage our community to take time to learn from and support local tribes, including the Duwamish Tribe, through education, advocacy, and direct solidarity.

One meaningful way to take action is by visiting the Duwamish Longhouse and Cultural Center, and contributing to Real Rent Duwamish a community-led initiative that invites residents and allies to pay voluntary “rent” in recognition of the Duwamish people’s ongoing stewardship of this land and their fight for federal recognition. Together, we can work toward a healthier river, a just future, and a lasting respect for the original stewards of this land. 

In solidarity and gratitude,    

DRCC Team 

Community Values and Priorities Survey!!  We need your voice

Please take a moment to answer this short survey about what is most important to you in your community. Your feedback will help us make sure our policy efforts at the state and local levels are aligned with what you want to see in our community. Thank you so much!

What Is the Rotten Egg Smell in the Duwamish Valley?

For months, residents of the Duwamish Valley have reported foul, hydrogen sulfide-like odors throughout the community. Since September 19, neighbors have submitted reports to the Puget Sound Clean Air Agency (PSCAA) describing smells like “burning rubber,” “toxic burning,” “sulfuric smell,” “rotten eggs,” and “feces.” Hydrogen sulfide is well known for its characteristic rotten egg odor. Our concern only grew when our own local school Concord International Elementary evacuated their building with all students due to the smell. 

In response to the persistent odor, the Duwamish River Community Coalition (DRCC) has:

• Filed a public records request with PSCAA and encouraged the community to do the same. 

• Consulted air quality experts at the University of Washington; 

• Contacted Seattle Public Utilities who had been responding by sending inspectors. 

• Contacted the Lower Duwamish Waterway Group (LDWG), which leads the Superfund cleanup of the Duwamish River;

• Reported concerns to KUOW; and

• Reached out to other relevant government agencies.

Despite these efforts, the responsibility to act has largely fallen to PSCAA. We continue to urge all community members to submit odor and air quality complaints via PSCAA’s File a Complaint tool.

From the records obtained from PSCAA, inspectors visiting South Park identified the smell as hydrogen sulfide. The records indicate that the Gypsum to Gypsum recycling facility, which processes drywall waste, is a likely source. We know that gypsum can produce hydrogen sulfide under certain conditions. Through our findings from reports, we know Gypsum employees have noted odors coming from the pile, and managers reported an intention to remove the pile by mid-November. Beyond this, no further action has been communicated to the community.

Some have speculated that the Superfund cleanup may be responsible. However, in responding to our ask to EPA and LDWG has monitored hydrogen sulfide levels during odor complaints in mid-October and found no detectable increase during dredging activities. On November 5, crews observed odors before dredging began, but none during the work. There is currently no evidence linking the odors to the river cleanup and they have submitted a statement. 

Our Demand for Justice:
We think it is unacceptable that a community already overburdened by pollution is left without timely responses or protective action. DRCC demands:

1. Immediate accountability from PSCAA for monitoring and reporting on the source and mitigation of these odors.

2. Transparent communication to the community on the steps being taken to resolve the hydrogen sulfide emissions.

3. Preventative action to ensure facilities like Gypsum to Gypsum do not expose our community to toxic air.

4. Ongoing monitoring and reporting for the Duwamish Valley to protect public health from avoidable industrial emissions in an overburdening community. 

Our community’s health and well-being cannot continue to be compromised while responsible agencies fail to act. We call on PSCAA, City of Seattle, and King County to respond immediately and take meaningful action to resolve this ongoing hazard.

Getting local jobs to local people! 

Our outreach and advocacy team just wrapped up our 4th job fair. Following community concerns and requests, this iteration included an immigration resource component.

We have been hosting regular Duwamish Valley job fairs for the past 24 months, in alignment with our strategic work plan to address displacement in the Duwamish Valley. By building relationships with local business and industry, as well as maritime, City and County, we hope to promote economic resilience and support our neighbors to thrive in place. We continue to dial in our process, and this event was the best one yet! We welcomed about 65 job seekers and were grateful to partner with 13 employers and 7 resource organizations. We also engaged a public notary from the community to help with emergency family planning, the Office of Immigrants and Refugees offered advice and support, and Villa Comunitaria conducted several worker’s rights workshops.

If you are or know an employer who wants to participate in the spring, please email robin@drcc.org.

Climate Resilience

The King Tide season is beginning and DRCC’s Flood Community Advisory Group is beginning regular meetings. We just made it safely through the first King Tide of the season, which was preceded by an unusually high tide 48 hours prior. This outlier was caused by low air pressure and high winds; SPU was able to anticipate the event due to their more sophisticated forecasting rubric and announce a warning to impacted community and others who have signed up for their messaging system. The Emergency Response Plan was NOT activated. Community members are navigating a more responsive and interactive relationship with SPU with regards to flood warnings; this may result in mixed feelings including heightened anxiety as well as an increased sense of preparedness and trust in the system. To learn more about the City’s response, as well as to sign up for email and/or text alerts, click through to SPU's SP Flooding page

Georgetown Neighborhood Center

Our Advocacy and Community Resilience team continues to support the Georgetown Community Council (GCC) and Georgetown Neighborhood Center Visioning Group (GNCVG) as they work through community visioning and closer towards a capital campaign and eventual purchase/development of property for their long-awaited Neighborhood Center. This month we provided public comment to the City Council’s budget meeting in support of three line items to build capacity in the community. We are also planning to attend and table at their second Climate Resilience and Preparedness event on November 15 from noon-2 at the Mini Mart City Park. Please join us to learn more! Information on both the Neighborhood Center and the event can be found here.

Month of Giving

Hello/Hola.

We can't believe it's November already.  The salmon are still jumping in the Duwamish and the leaves are swirling around in the air.  Time flies when you are fighting the good fight, handing out leaf bags to all of our Duwamish Valley neighbors, hosting our local job and resource fair, preparing for seasonal king tides known to flood our neighborhood homes...or the non-stop advocating for deserved clean air for our community members. Whatever the cause, we stay busy, but always grateful.  THANK YOU ALL for your tremendous support to us, our community partners, and to the beloved people of the DV. 

We hope you keep us in mind if you plan on doing end of year contributions.  Maybe that looks like a donation on December 2nd for Giving Tuesday, a grant through a Donor Advised Fund, or signing up on our website for a recurring monthly donation-no amount is too small or less important.  https://www.drcc.org/donate

If you have other ideas for support or would just like to connect, please reach out to me at mickiala@drcc.org.  

Princess & Bear Wines Hosts Community Donation Drive

Princess & Bear Wines, located at 309 S Cloverdale St, Suite A1, Seattle, WA 98108, is opening their doors this weekend to host a community food donation drive! All collected items will be delivered to the South Park Sharing Shed at 8th and Donovan. 

As a special thank-you, Princess & Bear Wines is offering a discount on a glass of wine or purchase to all who donate. 

We're deeply grateful to Princess & Bear for their generosity and for supporting our community in such a meaningful way.

Stand with Us!

Come join us at our Climate Justice Youth Forum!

On Saturday November 22nd our youth will be graduating from the fall program, and we will be celebrating with our annual Climate Justice Youth Forum! This event is a collaboration between our wonderful partners who have helped our youth understand the many sides of the environmental justice movement - from tree canopy and the value of free tree giveaways, to the intersection of art, function and green stormwater infrastructure - our youth have learned so much this past season and we can’t wait to share it with our community! We are beyond proud of the wonderful students we have had the privilege to work with and are so excited to celebrate their accomplishments! See you there! 

A huge thank you to our partners this fall: Mini Mart City Park, the South Park Public Library, Dirt Corps, Seattle Public Utilities, and the Seattle Office of Sustainability and the Environment.