Budd Inlet Ecosystem

Place
Places are locations in the landscape recognized by people

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Like most South Puget Sound Inlets, Budd Inlet contains multiple Beaches and Embayments, and is anchored by a large estuary complex at its head. Budd Inlet is the most populated inlet in South Sound. The head of Budd Inlet is dominated by the City of Olympia which surrounds both the Deschutes Estuary and East Bay which receives flow from the Indian-Moxlie Creek Watershed. The rest of the inlet shoreline is formed of five significant beach drift cells including clockwise from the NE, Gull Harbor North Drift Cell, Priest Point North Drift Cell, Mission Creek Drift Cell, East Cooper Point Drift Cell, and West Bay Drift Cell. Several smaller drift cells flow into three embayments, Ellis Cove, Gull Harbor and Butler Cove which receive a large portion of the remaining freshwater from the watershed. The Embayments and portions of the Gull Harbor and Priest Point drift cells are the least developed. Much of the remaining shoreline is either armored or extensively modified. Budd Inlet is the historical home of the Steh'chass band of the Squaxin Island Tribe.

Notes

South Puget Sound Salmon Enhancement Group has completed nearshore restoration assessments. They recently restored the mouth of Mission Creek.
Squaxin Island Tribe has been involved in ecosystem assessment and planning, and has rights to ceded lands.
City of Olympia has been involved in restoration of fish passage at Ellis Creek Watershed
Capital Land Trust has acquired extensive shoreline properties around Gull Harbor
Deschutes Estuary Restoration Team advocates for restoration of the Deschutes Delta
Puget Sound Restoration Fund has supported olympia oyster restoration in Budd Inlet (not sure if there are any results). The system used to be a Oyster production area.
Washington State Department of Natural Resources manages State Owned Aquatic Lands as well as shoreline property being considered for restoration in the Priest Point North Drift Cell
People for Puget Sound has supported feasibility work for enhancement of East Bay
Shoreline development is regulated by the City of Olympia and Thurston County Shoreline Master Plans.
- The 2014 Olympia Plan is submitted and under review by WDOE as of January 2014.
- The Thurston County plan was last updated in 1990, and is now under development.