OLYMPIA, Wash. — Pyke Johnson loves his beachfront home near the end of Johnson Point in Olympia.
“It’s the best neighborhood I’ve ever lived in in my life,” said Johnson from the Henderson Inlet beach behind his home.
But Johnson, and many of his neighbors, are afraid of what could be coming.
"We hate to see our wonderful neighborhood turned into a semi-commercial establishment," said Johnson.
Taylor Shellfish Farms has filed permits with local, state and federal agencies to raise geoduck on a 3.6-acre section of tidelands on Henderson Inlet.
The filings prompted a neighborhood group to establish a nonprofit to raise awareness about the project, as well as environmental concerns.
“In my opinion as a scientist, it has not been adequately studied,” said organization President Ron Smith, who majored in biology before becoming a medical doctor.
Smith, who is now retired, said he and his neighbors are worried about the impact of plastics used in geoduck farming, what the farming is doing to wild geoduck, and the impact of the use of water in geoduck farming on area beaches.
”We’re not seeing any changes in the beach, any environmental harm, from the farming activities we’ve done to date,” said Taylor Shellfish Farms spokesperson Bill Dewey.
He said the company started growing and harvesting geoduck in the early 2000s.
Dewey said Taylor uses a plastic mesh to help grow the young geoduck, instead of PVC tubes and netting commonly used in the industry.
“We’re finding it's giving us better survival and growth rate for the geoduck,” said Dewey. “We rely on a healthy, clean environment for the business that we do. We wouldn’t have been here since 1890 doing it if we made a practice of harming the environment we’re working in.”
Dewey said if Taylor gets permission, the company would start raising geoduck on Henderson Inlet in 2024.