Washington (state) Washington (state) Washington (), officially the State of Washington, is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. Named for George Washington, the first president of the United States, the state was made out of the western part of the Washington Territory, which was ceded by Britain in 1846 in accordance with the Oregon Treaty in the settlement of the Oregon boundary dispute. It was admitted to the Union as the 42nd state in 1889. Olympia is the state capital; the state's largest city is Seattle. Washington is sometimes referred to as Washington State, to distinguish it
Washington State Department of Ecology Washington State Department of Ecology The Washington State Department of Ecology, or simply, Ecology, is an environmental regulatory agency for the State of Washington. The department administers laws and regulations pertaining to the areas of water quality, water rights and water resources, shoreline management, toxics clean-up, nuclear waste, hazardous waste and air quality. It also conducts monitoring and scientific assessments. The agency has an operating budget of approximately $459 million, a capital budget of approximately $325 million and close to 1600 employees The department's authorizing statute is RCW 43.21A. It is responsible for administering the Shoreline Management Act (RCW 90.58),