Preserve Our Islands
organization
Preserve Our Islands (previously known as Protect Our Islands) is a grassroots organization, created by Senator Sharon Nelson and residents of Maury Island, Washington, United States, that is opposed to Glacier Northwest and their efforts to mine aggregate on Maury Island.
The Founding
The Northwest Aggregates Company, also known as Glacier Northwest or Glaciers, had announced that they wanted to expand their surface gravel mine in Maury Island. Specifically, in May 1998, the mining company intended to fill Seattle–Tacoma International Airport's third runway; therefore, they sought for a shoreline exemption in order to fix their broken pier and loading facility located on a land owned by the State of Washington. Moreover, they requested a permit that would allow them to mine 7.5 million tons (6.804 billion kg) of gravel per year. Upon learning the extent of Glacier's expansion and driven by the need to protect the island's habitats and wildlife, Sharon Nelson and other homeowners and islanders formed Protect Our Islands (POI) (later named Preserve Our Islands) in opposition of the mine expansion.
Preserve Our Islands vs. Glacier Northwest
POI had convinced the Washington State Department of Ecology to send biologists to study Glacier's proposed mining area, which was located above Maury Island's main water supply. They found high levels of arsenic and lead in the soil, elements that could contaminate the island's aquifer, a permeable, underground layer of water-bed rock that acts as a reservoir for groundwater. This contamination can lead to development disabilities in humans who drink the water. Despite Glacier's proposal of building a 30-feet (9.14 m) high, 150-feet (45.7 m) wide, and 2,100-feet (640 m) long sealed berm that would isolate the soil and prevent any contamination, POI and other opponents were still not reassured of the safety of the island's water supply.
The public source identifies “Preserve Our Islands” as organization. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Preserve, Islands and organization.
Why this record matters
A short description can identify a subject without explaining its stakes. For “Preserve Our Islands”, the useful work is to connect “organization” to the records capable of establishing context and consequence.
The record creator and administrative purpose are central evidence, because official documentation reflects both action and institutional priorities. The source revision retrieved here is dated Apr 26, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q7241056. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1998.
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How to read it
Compare institutional narratives with records created by participants and affected communities. Dates and formal titles are useful anchors, but not substitutes for context.
- Event chronology
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Contemporary correspondence, government or organizational records, oral histories and cited historical scholarship.
Three-step research path
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Questions for further research
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This entry incorporates text from “Preserve Our Islands” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.