Videos & Take-Action Sites

Stormwater Webinar & Article from the NY Times (posted May 24, 2021)

Compost Erosion Control and Amended Soils for Construction Sites (video, 14 min.)

Solving Stormwater (video, 5min.) and longer Stormwater Pollution and Solutions that Protect Salmon (28 min.) both feature NOAA/WSU scientist Jenifer McIntyre explaining how compost-amended soil filters and breaks down the pollutants in urban runoff to protect salmon, and the orcas and other wildlife that depend on them.

The Soil Story and The Compost Story short videos on Kiss the Ground site show how using compost cleans water and removes carbon from the air, protecting our climate.

Bringing Our Soils Back to Life – (56 min.) UW’s Dr. David R. Montgomery shows how we can restore soils around the world.

Stormwater Challenges and Green Stormwater Infrastructure Solutions (28 min.) a summary of GSI methods, like soil amendment, trees, and rain gardens.

Healthy Soils part 1: Soil Science and Healthy Soils Part 2: Soil Restoration (45 min. each) provide science and practice for design and landscape professionals.

From WSU, Dr. Craig Cogger:  Determining soil texture by hand   Collecting a soil sample   Water and Soil: the Sponge Analogy for Soil Moisture   Understanding Climate Change video series: https://puyallup.wsu.edu/soils/climate-change/

NRCS Science of Soil Health video series scientists show how conservation agriculture practices work to create a sustainable farming future for our world

Background Science

The Relationship Between Soil and Water:  How Soil Amendments and Compost Can Aid in Salmon Recovery, a 1999 report by King and Snohomish Counties, City of Seattle, Washington Dept. of Ecology, and Washington State University

1998 Salmon in the City Conference – studies by University of WA and other scientists, showing that soil and vegetation control stormwater runoff and pollution

Guidelines for Landscaping with Compost-Amended Soils, a 1998 report prepared for the City of Redmond which documents trials, stormwater benefits, and 3-7 year paybacks for compost soil amendment, based on landscape water savings

Hydrologic Response of Residential-scale Lawns on Till Containing Various Amounts of Compost Amendment this study showed that compost amendment reduces runoff up to 50%.

Soil Biology and Soil Functions:  Why Soil Life Matters, and How it Works

US Dept. of Agriculture, NRCS Soil Quality Institute    
Download the excellent Soil Biology Primer and other soil quality and erosion prevention resources.

Washington State University’s Soil Management Research Site  Of particular interest are the sections on Compost, Urban Soils, and Soils and Soil Testing

Soil Restoration, Compost Quality and Compost Use

Washington Organic Recycling Council and this Soils for Salmon/Building Soil  Background and up to date information on Soils for Salmon initiative, the Building Soil guide, including calculations spreadsheet, and useful links on compost use and soil restoration, along with factsheets on construction sequencing, erosion control, and customer information.

Washington State Department of Ecology’s Solid Waste/Compost Program includes links to Washington State’s Compost Facility Standards – WAC 173-350 section 220 – referred to in the Building Soil Guide, as well as a current list of Permitted Composting Facilities, and other useful compost resources

U.S. Composting Council The most authoritative source for information on compost specifications.  Particularly useful to landscape professionals is the recently updated Field Guide to Compost Use.

USCC’s “Seal of Testing Assurance” (STA) program is the state-of-the-art for verifying compost quality and specifications for a variety of uses, using the TMECC testing methods.

Penn State Turfgrass Extension, Dr. Peter Landschoot’s practical guide, Using Composts to Improve Turfgrass Performance

Seattle Public Utilities Landscape Professionals See “Lawn” section on soil preparation for turf, and compost use in turf topdressing

Stormwater Management with Soil and Low Impact Development Best Practices

Washington State Department of Ecology Stormwater Management Manual for Western Washington, used by local jurisdictions for stormwater design, contains soil improvement as a Best Management Practice (Volume V, Chapter 5, BMP T5.13) and see this Soils for Salmon website for the online version of this Building Soil Manual to implementing that BMP.

Washington Stormwater Center has an array of Low Impact Development stormwater and site planning resources, incorporating soil BMPs, especially the Low Impact Development Technical Guidance Manual for Puget Sound and the Rain Garden Handbook

Master Builders Association’s “Built Green” sustainable building program, developed with King and Snohomish Counties, includes soil strategies for home building.

Homeowner LID and “rain garden” resources www.700milliongallons.org

Soil and Compost Use Specifications and Design Guidelines

WA Dept. of Transportation soil bio-engineering page and Roadside Manual, and WsDOT’s compost specifications in their Standard Specifications

City of Seattle Standard Specifications for Municipal Construction divisions 8-01 and 9-14 have the most current peer-reviewed compost and soil mix specifications

Seattle Public Utilities, Green Stormwater Infrastructure codes, specs & projects and best landscape practices (including soil) information for homeowners at and for landscape design, construction, and maintenance professionals

Low Impact Development Technical Guidance Manual for Puget Sound (see WA Stormwater Center above)

Texas DOT Specs (search under “compost”)

A national version of the Washington soil BMP is now included in the Sustainable Sites Initiative: Guidelines and Performance Benchmarks, a LEED-like green building standard for sites and landscapes

Compost Berms and Blankets for Erosion Control

Compost Erosion Control and Amended Soils for Construction Sites (video, 14 min.)

Compost Berm, Blanket and Sock specifications, approved BMPs for erosion control, on US EPA – search “compost erosion” and “compost blanket” on that site.
For an introduction, see the Erosion Control with Compost factsheet on this site. Get more details in the EPA-erosion-control-specs (PDF)

Search the internet for “compost berms” “compost socks” and “compost blankets” for current information. Good online articles include:

BioCycle Journal  Search the archive index for various articles on “Soils for Salmon” and “Erosion Control”, especially “Compost Filter Berms and Blankets Take on the Silt Fence” by Rod Tyler, Biocycle: Vol. 42; No. 1, January 2001.

Restoring Soil Health To Urbanized Lands by Oregon DEQ, esp. pp14-19 on compost berm and blanket trials, and p. 26 for specifications.

 

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