The city of Federal Way’s Surface Water Management Division continues to improve the Storming the Sound with Salmon program and expand opportunities for student learning in partnership with Federal Way Public Schools.

Thanks to the support of King County Council member Pete von Reichbauer and a generous water quality grant from King County Council, the city and school district have been working to make Storming the Sound with Salmon more equitable and uniform across the district.

With water quality funding from King County Council, the city and school district developed:

• Two video shorts: one which highlights the accomplishments of the program for funders and partner agencies, and another that can be used in the classroom as an introduction to the program.

• One program evaluation that will be used to continue to inform and improve Storming the Sound with Salmon moving forward.

• A new fourth grade “Salmon Structured for Survival” curriculum unit and fifth grade “Water Works” curriculum unit, that connect Storming the Sound to the Next Generation Science Standards are scheduled to launch next year.

• A fifth grade Field Trip Guide for Town Square Park that utilizes the Low Impact Development features at the park to provide students with real-world examples of efforts at the local level to improve water quality and protect salmon health.

The purpose of the council-allocated grant awards is to fund projects that help improve water quality within the King County Wastewater Treatment Division service region. Storming the Sound with Salmon teaches the next generation about the importance of preventing stormwater pollution by demonstrating the connections between the salmon students raise in their classrooms and the actions that they take every day in Federal Way, and empowers them to make decisions that protect water resources.

The release event (which is not open to the public) for students this year is scheduled for April 29 to May 2. The Town Square Park Field Trip Guide will be made available as an optional component to the “Water Works” curriculum unit next school year.