King Conservation District reports increased grants, tree plantings and farm support in 2024 annual briefing

Chair Sarah Perry called the Local Services and Land Use Committee to order and introduced a required annual briefing from the King Conservation District.

Rosa Mendez Perez, executive director of the King Conservation District, told the committee the district operates as “a non regulatory, special purpose District” that works “by offering education, technical expertise, and natural resource project opportunities, and also grant funding” to support voluntary stewardship on private lands.

Mendez Perez summarized 2024 outcomes recorded in the district’s annual report. She said the district supported nearly 98 acres of farmland improvements and worked with farmers to produce 50 written farm plans. “We helped residents put over 13,000 native trees and shrubs into communities to sequester carbon and provide habitat for wildlife,” she said. She also reported “we invested in local conservation with almost $700,000 in cost share projects and close to $2,000,000 in grant dollars distributed.” She added the district “secured close to $1,300,000 in external funding” that supports competitive, project-specific programs.

Mendez Perez gave examples showing the district’s work across urban and rural settings. She described forestry assistance tied to a Queen Anne neighborhood forest plan and partnerships with cities for tree giveaways in Shoreline and Tukwila. She highlighted riparian restoration on Big Sue’s Creek in Kent — a salmon habitat project that involved volunteers and Conservation Corps crews to plant hundreds of native shrubs and trees — and community garden contaminant testing offered to high‑risk neighborhoods.

On agricultural support, Mendez Perez said district funding helped Business Impact Northwest deliver training and technical assistance to farm and food businesses, and that in 2024 the district funded 553 acres of cover crops — its largest year for that practice — with almost $100,000 invested.

When Councilmember Perry asked how the district’s recently approved five‑year rate plan affected services, Mendez Perez said the increased rate enabled the district to hire a new climate‑focused staff position and to use county funds as matching dollars that leverage additional external grants. “That plan … gives us more funding to help us use as match when we apply to external funds,” she said, and it also helped shorten wait lists for popular services.

Perry thanked Mendez Perez and committee members for the briefing; no committee action was taken on the report beyond receiving the briefing.

Looking ahead, Mendez Perez said the district is finalizing a multi‑partner Department of Ecology contract to advance community‑centered riparian programming and is adding staff to focus on climate and regenerative agriculture work.

The committee did not vote on the briefing. The item was presented as the district’s annual report transmitted under the county’s interlocal agreement with King Conservation District.