Statement from Commissioners Fred Felleman and Dick Marzano Northwest Seaport Alliance Co-Chairs

In Response to Release of US Coast Guard’s Notice of Intent to Initiate a Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement Regarding the Proposed Expansion and Modernization of Coast Guard Base Seattle

On behalf of The Northwest Seaport Alliance (NWSA), we welcome the opportunity to review the United States Coast Guard’s (USCG) Notice of Intent to initiate a Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (PEIS) Regarding the Proposed Expansion and Modernization of Coast Guard Base Seattle.

As a public agency, we are committed to helping the USCG address the broad interests of the working waterfront in response to the proposed activities in proximity to Terminals 30 and 46 throughout the course of this review. These considerations should include possible impacts on existing maritime operations, the environment, tribal treaty rights, the public, and adjacent communities.

We recognize the interest of the USCG and our federal congressional delegation towards securing the polar security cutter mission for our region, especially given the growing strategic importance of the US presence in the Arctic. 

We also understand the value to the USCG of being in Seattle due to our city’s wealth of commercial maritime support facilities, a trained workforce, and proximity to Alaska. In addition, we prioritize the preservation of marine-dependent uses of our maritime assets and the potential for creating additional living-wage jobs in the maritime sector near downtown.  

We value the USCG’s long-term presence in the Seattle harbor and the critical role it plays to advance national security, maritime safety, environmental protection, and scientific research.  We look forward to engaging in the detailed process that lies ahead in advance of any decisions around the modernization of Base Seattle.

We look forward to working with the USCG, local, state, federal elected leaders, our port partners, and other interested stakeholders so that the public and all maritime interests have adequate opportunity to understand and comment on the project. 

Read the US Coast Guard’s Notice of Intent to Initiate a Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement Here.