Volunteerism

Parks Division

Volunteer hours

About this measure: Parks and recreation is an area of government that generates significant volunteerism. People volunteer on King County Parks and natural lands projects as a way to invest in their community, educate park visitors and provide basic enhancements to the park system and the environment. In addition to the added resources volunteers bring to park projects, people leave with a greater knowledge and appreciation for the park system. The degree of community involvement with the King County parks and natural lands systems is an important measure of how engaged the community is with these important public assets.

2006 status: 53,115 volunteer hours
2006 target: 70,000
2007 target: 70,000

Influencing factors: Volunteer hours increased in 2006 over 2005 numbers due to having a dedicated volunteer coordinator in place all year. Although down from 2004 due to updated methods in calculation, the increase in volunteer hours form 2006 to 2005 is important as it indicates the result of establishing longer-term partnerships with corporate and non-profit partners.

Strategy going forward: The program is expected to build upon increasing volunteer recruitment by focusing on key volunteer program elements such as:

• Improving and increasing volunteer recognition
• Strengthening existing partnerships with communities and organizations while building new partnerships; and
• Developing more consistent messaging and advertising.

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Solid Waste Division (SWD)

Number of volunteers trained annually by the Master Recycler Composter (MRC) program

2006 results: 31 volunteers

Influencing factors: It is unclear why attendance rose from 16 in 2005 to 31 in 2006, as program marketing did not change. Increased participation may be due in part from the division's increased efforts to promote recycling, including its residential recycling media campaign.

Strategy going forward: MRC Program marketing in 2007 will continue at the 2006 level.

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Water and Land Resources Division (WLRD)

Salmon watcher program

About this measure: Salmon Watcher is a multi-jurisdictional effort focused at protecting a Pacific Northwest treasure and educating the community in the process. The eleven-year-old program involves volunteers watching streams for spawning salmon in King and Snohomish Counties. This effort mainly focuses on waters within the Lake Washington Watershed and on Vashon Island.

Influencing factors: The Salmon Watcher program is voluntary and new watchers enter the program upon their interest and request. Budget allocations and proactive recruitment of watchers can influence how many and the location of monitoring locations.

Status: As of 2006, 137 sites on 57 streams were watched in the program. The number of sites and their locations vary from year to year.

Strategy Going Forward: Continuing to educate property owners with salmon streams on their property by participating in the program about things they can do to improve aquatic habitats.

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