NEAH BAY — The Makah Tribal Council and the U.S. Coast Guard will sign a memorandum of agreement that reaffirms their partnership, cooperation and coordination in pollution prevention and response at a ceremony Friday, the Coast Guard has announced.
The signing ceremony will take place at 11 a.m. in the fourth-floor south auditorium of the Jackson Federal Building in Seattle.
Gov. Jay Inslee, Makah Tribal Council Chairman Timothy J. Greene and Rear Adm. Keith A. Taylor, commander of the 13th Coast Guard District, will be on hand.
The signing will be followed by the Makah bestowing a name and dedicating artwork for the primary conference room of the 13th Coast Guard District.
The name will not be announced until Friday, the Coast Guard said.
Potlach
The event will be celebrated with a traditional Makah potlatch with dancers and singers.
Greene was not available for comment this week.
Coast Guard officials said the branch and the tribe are committed to the safety and security of the waterway, including sensitive ecosystems in and near the water.
An oil spill response tug has been stationed in Neah Bay since 1999.
The Coast Guard operates a station in the Makah community.
State Department of Ecology officials have said oil spill response capabilities are particularly important for the Neah Bay area because of the volume of vessels that transit into and out of the Strait of Juan de Fuca.
It is also near environmentally sensitive areas such as the Olympic Coast National Marine Sanctuary and Olympic National Park.