State Parks Clean Vessel Act Grant Program funds $690,000 in grants and a facilities assessment

OLYMPIA — Recreational boaters in Washington waters will have an easier time disposing of vessel sewage thanks to nearly $690,000 in new federal pass-through grants for recreational boat pumpout and floating restroom projects.

Awarded by the Washington State Parks Clean Vessel Act Grant Program (CVA), the grants focus on constructing or maintaining sewage disposal systems for recreational vessels, and supporting outreach programs that inform boaters about the location of these facilities.

Projects funded in the 2024 grant competition include:

• Washington State Parks – $9,666 for Beacon Rock State Park stationary pumpout replacement
• Recreation Boating Association of Washington – $132,522 for purchase of new pumpout vessel
• Port of Bremerton – $251,327 for new Port Orchard Marina breakwater pumpout station
• Harbor Place Marina – $54,000 for a new pumpout facility
• City of Des Moines – $20,165 for replacement of the Fuel Dock Pump Out Unit
• Port of Wahkiakum County – $26,850 for dock pumpout station replacement and purchase of new mobile pumpout cart
• Port of Seattle – $164,589 to replace seven stationary pumpouts and purchase a new mobile pumpout cart
• Port of Bellingham – $21,960 to purchase two new mobile pumpout carts
• Bayside Drystack LLC – $18,202 for stationary pumpout replacement

Grant recipients must provide a 25% match and are contributing more than $297,126 in state and local funding. But a lack of matching funds isn’t a barrier for these important development projects. Washington State Appropriation Money was awarded to Parks to assist facilities that might otherwise experience hardship paying the federal matching requirements. This will cover the cost 100 percent of the costs for new development grants.

In addition to funding new or replacement pumpout projects, the CVA Grant Program also funds the annual operation and maintenance of more than 100 pumpout and dump station facilitlies across the state. Last year, over $990,000 in grant funds went towards annual operating and maintenance expenses of these facilites.

Adequate and functional pumpout facilities are critical infrastructure for recreational boaters to comply with the Puget Sound No Discharge Zone Law, which has been in effect since 2018.

Boaters can locate pumpout and dump stations across the state using maps available on PumpoutWashington.org, or by downloading the free Pumpout Nav app on the Apple Store or Google Play.

Planning for Future Growth

While the CVA grant fund awards help develop and maintain the statewide infrastructure to support boater stewardship, long-term planning is essential to future efforts. That’s why Senate Bill (SB) 5200 recently allocated funds for an updated Washington Recreational Pumpout Facilities Assessment.

The facilities assessment a critical step to informing our state’s investments in recreational boating infrastructure, maintain state eligibility for Clean Vessel Act (CVA) and other grant funds, and improve critical habitat conditions for salmon, shellfish, and other species.

A diverse coalition supported the passing of SB 5200, including the Recreational Boating Association of Washington (RBAW).

“RBAW is proud to have spearhead this public and private sector partnership that has secured new funding to expand pumpout capacity in West Puget Sound," Andrea Pierantozzi, the organization's vice president of government, said. "Mobile pumpout services that enable expansion into more areas are a great enhancement to fixed facilities, which have limitations.”

Through partnership with the diverse coalition responsible for making this effort happen, the facilities assessment allows Washington boaters to keep our waterways clean and vibrant. The work is expected to take approximately 14 months. A survey will be available in the coming months for the public to guide this effort, with more information to follow.