Local Hero Wins Statewide Award
Tom Geiger, Outreach Director, Washington Environmental Council
Brady Engvall, lifelong resident and oyster grower of Grays Harbor County was recently named a winner of the Environmental Heroes Award of the Washington Environmental Council.
The Washington Environmental Council (WEC) held its annual awards dinner on November 20th to highlight and honor a few citizens whose efforts have significantly contributed to the protection of Washington's environment.
Brady became aware of the importance of clean water as a youngster, helping his father build and run the Westport Aquarium. As an adult, he worked long and hard to promote the oyster growing industry and work for clean water. In the last few years he has become a very active member of Friends of Grays Harbor (FOGH), a local group which educates the public on the benefits of clean water and works to protect the waters of Grays Harbor.
Founded in 1967, WEC works at the state level to influence environmental decisions that affect all our lives. WEC is a statewide coalition of 85 member groups and thousands of individual members working to protect our forests and wildlife, water and fish, open spaces, and quality of life.
Our state is recognized as one of the most ecologically diverse places on the planet. But that is changing. Today we struggle to save the very forests, clean water and wild salmon that define who we are and where we live. WEC strongly believes that our state's unique environment and natural heritage are worth protecting for the future. We honor Brady because he acts on this belief and does more than his part to help protect, preserve, and restore the state's quality environment for future generations.
Reaching Out To His Community While many people who retire become sedentary, or go on cruises, Brady has maintained a high level of activity in his community. In 1996, Brady retired from the Oyster business and became a full-time advocate for clean water and the health of the Estuary. Over the years, he has increased his involvement in clean water to include the entire Chehalis River Watershed because he knew that what happens upstream runs downhill. He has always been able to see the long view, knowing that if action wasn't taken now to protect clean water, future generations would suffer the consequences.
One of Brady's major accomplishments was his recognition of the problems that would result in the location of a 2,000 bed prison along the shore of the Grays Harbor estuary. Aberdeen's wastewater treatment plant was already at capacity and had a history of by-passing raw sewage into the bay. The prison, as proposed, would have impacted 5-1/2 miles of sensitive estuarine wetlands on the north side of State Route 105 and dug under six salmon-bearing creeks, and increased the flow of sewage and waste water to the already problematic Aberdeen system.
In response to this threat, Brady and other concerned citizens joined together in a group that became known as "FOGH" (Friends of Grays Harbor). Through his inspiration and tireless devotion to the issues of the environment, the group worked for over two years to bring the Department of Corrections, Department of Ecology, Army Corps of Engineers, Grays Harbor County and other regulatory agencies to recognize the seriousness of the impacts that would result from this project. He raised the awareness of the importance of clean water to members of his immediate community and carried his message to individuals and organizations throughout the State.
Through a mediation process, the Department of Corrections altered their plans resulting in a significant reduction of wetland impacts. In addition, the City of Aberdeen admitted the lack of sewer capacity and agreed that the wastewater treatment plant would be repaired.
A Trusted Person in a Cynical Time We live in a time when it seems that most people have hidden agendas. Brady, however, is the real thing. What you see is what you get. His opinion is valued by many because of his hard-working attitude and his long-term vision.
Most impressive about Brady is after all the work, success, and recognition, he would be the first to say, "I couldn't have done it without the involvement and hard work of everyone else." It sure is nice in this day and age to know that there are people like Brady to inspire and encourage honesty, integrity and humility. He is a true hero.
His activities include:
Board Membership:
Organizational Membership
South Beach Citizens For Responsible Development
Major supporter (organizer) for: