Burley Lagoon could become largest geoduck farm in Pierce County

Pierce County’s largest geoduck farm could be coming to Burley Lagoon.

The public will get its first chance Tuesday to comment on the proposal by Taylor Shellfish to operate a 25.5-acre farm in Purdy just north of Gig Harbor.

The hearing comes as Pierce County prepares to do an environmental review of the proposal that will examine the farm’s effect on aquatic vegetation, water quality, fish and wildlife, recreation and aesthetics, among other potential impacts.

Neighbors of the 348-acre lagoon have been watching Taylor Shellfish closely since 2012. That’s when the company took over a 300-acre lease from Western Oyster Company to harvest oysters and Manila clams from the tidelands.

Shellfish harvesting is not new in the lagoon, but neighbors believe increased activity on the inland waterway since Taylor Shellfish acquired the lease has resulted in fewer seasonal birds and a loss of starfish and sand dollars, largely as a the result of an increase in nets blanketing the waterfront.

Lagoon residents worry adding geoducks — a very large, edible saltwater clam — to the list of species harvested from the lagoon will result in more loss of habitat.

Also, homeowners worry about declining property values, an increase in debris in the water from plastic pipes used to protect young geoducks from predators, and their ability to enjoy their homes because harvesting operations rely on tides and happen at all hours.

“We have a serious problem with not just the recreation and the aesthetic side, but the suspension of sediments during a geoduck harvest,” said Burley Lagoon resident Heather McFarlane.

Tuesday’s public meeting is 6-9 p.m. at Peninsula High School, 14105 Purdy Drive NW.

Its purpose is to inform people about the details of the proposal and get public feedback about the issues that will be studied in the pending environmental review, said county planner Ty Booth.

The impact statement will review three alternatives: replace 25.5 acres of existing oyster, Manila clam and scatter-planted geoduck beds with geoducks planted in PVC pipes or mesh plastic; restrict harvesting to 17 acres of the 25.5 acres and rotate where the geoducks are planted after each six-year harvest cycle; or not allow a farm.

The decision to conduct the environmental review was mutual and one Taylor Shellfish proposed for a number of reasons, said Diane Cooper, regulatory director for Taylor.

“We know the community has concerns, and this allows a more structured process and a deeper process,” Cooper said. “We felt, along with the county, that this was just the best approach for this.”

Other factors that influenced the decision include the potential change in harvesting methods and the fact the geoduck farm would be in an enclosed waterway.

Taylor Shellfish operates other geoduck farms on the Key Peninsula, but those are on exposed reaches of shoreline with different aquatic habitat. They also cover a smaller area.

A draft of the environmental impact statement might be ready next year, but the earliest the county hearing examiner could review the application likely would be 2018, Booth said. From there, the state Department of Ecology would review the proposal and make a determination on the shoreline conditional use permit.

Cooper anticipates tensions will run high Tuesday, but her hope is the result will be “a better understanding of the events and a better document.”

“That’s what we’re all after,” she said.

This story was originally published October 23, 2016 at 7:55 AM with the headline "Burley Lagoon could become largest geoduck farm in Pierce County."