Evergreen Reporter

Seattle, WA – On May 25, U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), Chair of the U.S. Senate Appropriations Committee, held a roundtable discussion on federal investments in climate readiness and resilience at the South Park Community Center in Seattle’s South Park neighborhood, which experienced severe flooding last winter. Senator Murray’s visit comes on the heels of $74 million in new federal funding for Washington state through NOAA’s Climate Ready Coasts program, supported by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. During the roundtable, Senator Murray also discussed the $3 million in Congressionally Directed Spending she is working to secure to support drainage improvements and storm water management improvements to help the South Park neighborhood become more resilient in the face of future flooding.

“Everyone, in South Park and across Seattle, knows that rising sea levels and extreme storms are becoming the new normal and so is flooding,” said Senator Murray. “This is causing serious damage to families’ homes, to businesses, to community spaces and our environment. As Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, I’m better able to make sure Washington state’s priorities are the federal government’s priorities. That includes fighting for Congressionally Directed Spending for projects that will make a real difference in our communities — like the $3 million in climate resilience money for flooding I’m working hard to secure for South Park in our next spending bill. And I am also looking at how I can write our spending bills to ensure we are moving towards a stronger clean energy economy and climate resilience across government.”

“The good news is that we have already made major progress when it comes to investments in flood mitigation, climate resiliency, and strengthening our coasts,” continued Senator Murray. “Last year, we passed the Inflation Reduction Act—the biggest piece of legislation to tackle the climate crisis in our nation’s history. The IRA includes historic investments into coastal resiliency, which means less flooding risks for communities like South Park. I also helped pass the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, a once-in-a-generation investment in our nation’s infrastructure, which included $3 billion for coastal infrastructure and climate change resiliency. So I’ll be watching closely to make sure funding from the IRA and Infrastructure Law is being fully implemented, as we intended.”

During the roundtable, Senator Murray was joined by Paulina López, Executive Director of the Duwamish River Community Coalition; Seattle City Councilmember Lisa Herbold; Andrew Lee, General Manager and CEO at Seattle Public Utilities; Jen Hennessey, Special Assistant to the Director on Climate Resiliency at the Washington Department of Ecology; and Robin Schwartz, a South Park community member and the Development and Advocacy Manager at the Duwamish River Community Coalition.

“Collaboration between federal, state, and local governments is essential as we work to build truly resilient communities and mitigate the impacts of climate change,” said Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell. “Seattle’s South Park neighborhood experienced unprecedented flooding that damaged property and displaced residents, and intense weather events are only expected to become more common. We are grateful for Senator Murray’s advocacy for these communities and the infrastructure needed to support a more sustainable future.”

“The flooding that occurred in our community last December was devastating for so many of our families, homes, and businesses—climate threats are here now and it is really important that we make long-awaited investments in climate resilience to ensure environmental justice communities like South Park are better able to recover in the future,” said Paulina López, Executive Director of the Duwamish River Community Coalition. “I’m so thankful to Senator Murray for her support and presence in South Park today, as well as the support from multiple layers of government and community working together for better health outcomes and investments.”

“Before even taking office as the City Councilmember representing South Park, I’d heard about residents and businesses experiencing flooding at their properties as well as on neighborhood streets,” said Seattle City Councilmember Lisa Herbold. “With King County, we have made progress funding the several South Park projects addressing flooding, but we can make even more progress with this federal assistance.  I thank Senator Murray for championing federal funding for drainage infrastructure to help us.”

“This community has suffered for decades from under-investment in basic infrastructure,” said Andrew Lee, General Manager and CEO of Seattle Public Utilities. “When your street has pipes and drains to take water away when it rains or floods, it is so easy to take that for granted.  The residents and businesses in South Park deserve these urgently needed improvements and we are so lucky to have Senator Murray as an advocate.”

“We need to make sure we’re seizing every opportunity to prepare for and respond to the effects of climate change on Washington,” said Jennifer Hennessey, special assistant on climate resilience at the WA Department of Ecology. “And we need to work together — state government, local governments, and our federal partners. Each of us has a vital role to play to protect our environment, our economy, and our communities.”

“As a directly-impacted South Park community member, I am grateful to Senator Murray’s work to acquire funding for drainage projects in the Duwamish Valley and looking forward to collaborating with policy-makers to find next steps in flood mitigation,” said Robin Schwartz, Development and Advocacy Manager at the Duwamish River Community Coalition.

Senator Murray submitted Congressionally Directed Spending requests, including the request to strengthen climate readiness in South Park, earlier this year and these requests are currently under review. Securing funding will be contingent upon advancing fiscal year 2024 appropriations bills through the Senate Appropriations Committee and enactment into law. Senator Murray’s office solicits input for appropriations requests from communities in every part of Washington year-round. In submitting Congressionally Directed Spending requests, Senator Murray has long been focused on projects that benefit communities in every part of Washington state, with a strong emphasis on projects that will benefit historically underserved populations and communities. As Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, Senator Murray is working hard to deliver investments across government that help us tackle the climate crisis while building a stronger economy.  

Senator Murray was also a leader in passing both the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, which invests nearly $3 billion in funding to strengthen coastal infrastructure and climate resilience across the country, and the Inflation Reduction Act—which provided $3.3 billion for NOAA to support the agencies climate, habitat restoration, and fisheries missions.

Original source can be found here.