NEAH BAY — A federal grant will help the Makah Indian Tribe remove abandoned and derelict vessels from the Port of Neah Bay.
The tribe recently received an $823,000 grant from the BoatUS Foundation to remove vessels.
“The Makah Tribe’s project, through the tribe’s Port of Neah Bay enterprise, will remove 10 abandoned and derelict vessels from the Makah Marina, preventing pollution in tribal waters, strengthening the community’s cultural and economic pillars and reflecting the Makah’s commitment to stewardship and intergenerational sustainability,” stated a news release from the foundation.
The tribe submitted a letter of intention to apply for grant funding, one of 97 letters the foundation received, said Michael Moore, program administrator of the BoatUS Foundation’s Abandoned and Derelict Vessel Removal Program.
From those 97 letters, the foundation chose 47 to submit full applications and then narrowed the field of applicants to 23, Moore said.
“Those 23 applications were then reviewed by a non-partisan panel of salvage experts, boating advocates, nonprofit research organizations and government planning agency staff,” Moore said.
The funding for the program came from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Marine Debris Program, according to the news release. Along with the Makah Tribe, nine other organizations from five states, one reservation and two territories were chosen for funding.
“The Makah Tribe greatly appreciates the funding and support provided by the BoatUS Foundation’s ADV Grant Program and the NOAA Marine Debris Program,” Makah Tribal Council Chairman Timothy J. Greene Sr. said in the news release.
The tribe submitted a well-written application which provided a significant amount of information, including details which gave a clear understanding of the work, how the tribe plans to remove the vessels and the outreach efforts the tribe plans to use, Moore said.
“That was one of the reasons that they scored so highly,” he said.
Abandoned and derelict vessels are a nationwide problem and have been for a few years, Port of Neah Bay Director Carol Reamer said.
“It might cost somebody $10,000 to buy a vessel, but then it leaves whatever port or marina three times that amount to remove it,” she said.
The vessels release pollution into the environment and often are older so they are painted or built with materials containing asbestos and/or lead paint, Reamer said.
“Currently, all 10 projects are under environmental compliance review right now with the federal government to make sure they’re within the federal guidelines, and if there’s any specifics to the operation of the projects that needs to be met, such as preservation of the environment and how they approach a certain area,” Moore said. “Once that’s approved, the government will provide a best-practices document to each grantee, and they will give us a timeline to when they plan to do the removals.”
The hope is for vessel removals to begin late this spring, Moore said.
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Reporter Emily Hanson can be reached by email at emily.hanson@peninsuladailynews.com.
