The Port of Seattle is committed to responsibly stewarding public resources and the environment. The Port’s Century Agenda outlines strategic objectives to become the greenest and most energy-efficient port in North America. One of the key goals, established in 2011, is to restore, create, and enhance 40 additional acres of habitat in the Green/Duwamish watershed and Elliot Bay. As part of this commitment, Commission adopted Port-wide Environmental Land Stewardship Principles in 2023 to guide decision-making for capital projects and operations with the potential to affect habitat. The Port’s Maritime restoration program is primarily guided by the Century Agenda goals. Pursuant to the Land Stewardship Principles, the Port adopted the SEA Land Stewardship Plan and the SEA Tree Replacement Policy Directive in 2024, which provide a framework to ensure Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SEA)can sustainably manage its aquatic and forestland habitat.
The Port’s habitat restoration work supports a range of fish and wildlife species while contributing to regional species recovery and conservation objectives. Many restored areas also include public shoreline access that provides social, recreational and aesthetic benefits for the public.
Since 2005, the Port has successfully implemented a suite of projects to improve ecological processes and functions critical to fish and wildlife:
- Created, restored or enhanced 196 acres of wetlands and forestland near SEA, including planting approximately 440,000 native trees and shrubs.
- Enhanced two miles of salmon habitat in Miller and Des Moines Creeks and created 69 acre-feet of floodplain storage on the Green River.
- Replaced 3 fish passage barriers and restored 450 feet of piping on Miller Creek to natural stream habitat.
- Supported beehives since 2013 on SEA property just south of the runway as part of the Flight Path program, with approximately 12 colonies of bees producing 100 pounds of honey a year.
- The Port Maritime division held 22 stewardship events and 23 outreach events in 2024. Additionally, regular SEA community programs engage community members to restore at least an acre of shoreline and forest habitat annually.
- Restored more than 35 acres of estuarine and marine habitat and has planted more than 45,000 native trees and shrubs along the Duwamish Waterway and Puget Sound.
The Port remains committed to actively pursuing future opportunities to responsibly steward public resources and the environment.
We are progressing toward the Century Agenda goal of restoration of 40 acres in the Green Duwamish Watershed. In 2022, the 14-acre Duwamish River People's Park & Shoreline Habitat was completed. We are currently in early design for an additional 10-acre off-channel habitat site
