Community group tackles trash problem in wetlands

A group in Federal Way has taken matters into their own hands to clean up trash and debris in the city.

In their most recent cleanup project, the Stand Up Federal Way Community group partnered with the City of Federal Way to remove more than 60 cubic yards of debris from a sensitive area of the Hylebos wetlands.

The area was an abandoned encampment where people experiencing homelessness had been living at one point.

In a pair of work gatherings July 27 and Sept. 14, dozens of volunteers hauled away sodden mattresses, tarps, a bath tub and even a chandelier out of the area. Each time they brought another load out of the wetlands, they had to carry or drag it a half mile to get to the road.

This particular project logged 240 total hours of labor, which city parks director John Hutton called a “force multiplier.”

“If you just look at those 240 hours, that’s about a week of our entire crew working on just that,” Hutton said. “That would mean nothing else happened at any of our 33 parks around the city, no restrooms getting cleaned, no maintenance being done.”

Another option for the city would have been to bring in a contractor, but Hutton said that also would have been prohibitively expensive because of the level of difficulty of the project.

“We’re incredibly grateful for the efforts,” Hutton said, adding that it took “hard physical labor in rough terrain that was hard to get in and out of with all the debris that they pulled out.”

While Hutton emphasized that every volunteer with the parks department is important and valued, this project was unique because of the sheer difficulty and danger, Hutton said. The city was reluctant to even let them help because of the challenge.

“We typically don’t bring volunteers into situations where there might be things that aren’t pleasant,” said Hutton, adding that the group “had been very persistent about them being willing to work with us, willing to work on the legal and safety liability issues.”

The day of the cleanups, the city provided personal protective equipment and did a safety briefing. To minimize risk, volunteers were instructed to get a member of city staff if they saw needles, and were told to use gloves and ask for help to lift heavy objects.

Getting debris removed from this area was an especially big win for the city because of the type of ecosystem there.

“That particular site is a very pristine wetland,” Hutton said. He added that it is the site of the first clean water well in Federal Way.

Any debris in that area is damaging, but refuse like old propane tanks, bio waste and other hazardous materials are especially harmful to the plants and animals in the area, Hutton explained. He also said “that’s an area that recharges some of the most important aquifers in the area.”

Channeling frustration into action

Craig Patrick of the Stand Up Federal Way Community group said they got their start around 2016 or 2017. As community members began to see more people experiencing homelessness and an increase in crime, he at least was “feeling really defeated and powerless.”

The group focuses on cleaning up trash and encampments in Federal Way. They also do outreach, and if they come across homeless individuals during their work, they try to help.

When the group first began, Patrick said he was feeling really frustrated and wondered why some of the behaviors he was seeing were “being accepted and tolerated.” Seeing shopping carts, trash, people experiencing homelessness and crime made him feel vulnerable, Patrick said, and “the lens I was looking at it through is like ‘Oh, I’ve got to protect my family.’”

“When people are angry, a lot of times it’s because they’re hurt. Anger is like a byproduct of being hurt or being vulnerable,” Patrick said.

Eventually he and others in the community realized that taking action feels better than just being angry, even if it begins with something small like picking up some litter in the neighborhood.

He said that trash is often a magnet that attracts more of the same — if an area is full of garbage already, it can be too easy to just add more to it. Instead, Patrick encouraged people to cut off that pattern and change that direction.

“I’m angry, I’m upset, and I’m hurt that this is happening. But these are my options, right? I can’t save the world, but this is what I can do as an individual. I can do this. I can do that. Maybe my neighbor wants to do it with me. Maybe I’ll talk to some people at the church. Maybe I’ll talk to some people at the bar and say ‘Hey, let’s go pick up some trash, man, it’ll be fun,’” he said.

Patrick said working directly with people has helped him grow as a person and expand his perspective of the challenges people living in encampments are facing.

In addition to personal growth, Patrick said the group’s local participation has changed too.

“Now we’re more engaged in the community. Before that it was like we were outsiders, we were more spectators,” Patrick said. “Now we’re more participants. We’re part of an activity that is attempting to resolve it or make it a better place,” and that this “helps us feel more engaged in what’s going on.”