Tribe and agencies join to remove abandoned sailboat

Less is more yet again.

In this case, addition by subtraction involves the long-awaited removal of a 65-foot abandoned and partially submerged sailboat from nearby Similk Bay on Swinomish Reservation.

The Swinomish Indian Tribal Community, Washington State Department of Natural Resources and Northwest Straits Commission partnered July 20 to remove the Windjammer and another smaller derelict vessel from within tribal boundaries.

The Windjammer was pulled from intertidal waters north of Kukutali Preserve had for more than a decade slowly deteriorated and impacted access to Swinomish tidelands.

The vessel sat in tribal tidelands on top of eelgrass, blocked forage fish spawning habitat and salmon and would have prevented cultivation of the Swinomish clam garden, believed to be the first of its kind in modern times anywhere in the country.

Its presence had likewise heightened significant environmental protection concerns, according to DNR officials.

"Due to the Windjammer's vintage and size," a DNR spokesperson said in a press release, "it is presumed that asbestos-containing material, lead paint and PCBs may be present and pose a risk to marine life and public safety."

Swinomish Tribal Senate Chairman Steve Edwards is glad to have seen the last of the Windjammer.

"Ensuring a clean, healthy marine environment is critical to preserving traditional practices and protecting the treaty-reserved rights of the Swinomish people," Edwards said.

Edwards noted that the tidelands north of Kukutali Preserve represent some of the last remaining undeveloped shorelines on Swinomish Reservation. He said the tribe is thankful for having had the opportunity to work with DNR and NWSC to remove the abandoned vessel and restore the tidelands to their prior condition.

Swinomish senior shellfish biologist Julie Barber stressed that the area in which the Windjammer had rested since 2009 is rich in species diversity.

"Swinomish Fisheries has long known that this stretch of beach could serve as an important area for future bio-cultural restoration projects," she said, "but our ability to move forward on those ideas has been thwarted by the presence of the derelict sailboat. The removal of the sailboat opens up opportunities for future work toward improving fisheries resources for the tribe."

Efforts to remove the Windjammer were made possible when NWSC received federal dollars this past January as a funding priority tabbed by U.S. Sen. Patty Murray (D-WA).

Some of those funds are being directed toward derelict vessel removals by a collaborative working group made up of the seven county-based Marine Resources Committees and tribal partners – including Swinomish – within the Northwest Straits region.

An industrial claw was employed to break apart the Windjammer in order to remove it from Similk Bay.

The sailboat had become adrift off Port Townsend before resurfacing north of Kukutali, a 93 acre preserve across Fidalgo and Kiket islands and Flagstaff Point that is co-owned and managed by Swinomish and Washington State Parks.

The Windjammer was near the top of the list for derelict vessel removal, according to Northwest Straits Commission Marine Program Manager Dana Oster.

State Commissioner of Public Lands Hilary Franz praised the team approach applied to at long last rid local waters of the Windjammer.

"We all share Washington's waterways," Franz noted, "so we also need to share experience and expertise in keeping these vital habitats safe and clean. I'm proud to lend my agency's expertise in removing derelict vessels to this great project and thankful to the Northwest Straits Commission for this innovative solution."