This month [December 7th] will mark the 75th anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor. It’s what drew the United States into World War II. During that war, President Roosevelt called on America to be the “Arsenal of Democracy.” 

In Seattle, people did their part by building B-17 bombers.

Thousands of these ‘Flying Fortresses’ blackened the skies over Europe. And thousands of young men risked their lives in these planes..
 
The B17 changed history - but it also changed Seattle. EarthFix reporter Ashley Ahearn has the story -- It’s the first in our series on the military’s environmental legacy in the Pacific Northwest.

Battle Ready Part 5: Growlers Jets Test Rainforest Peace

Stories from the EarthFix team at OPB, KUOW, KCTS 9, Northwest Public Radio and Idaho Public Television.

EarthFix is an innovative partnership of the largest public media institutions in the Pacific Northwest established to expand environmental news coverage in the region. With journalists based in Oregon, Washington and Idaho, EarthFix creates media across multiple platforms, helping citizens examine environmental issues unfolding in their own backyards and to explore how local actions intersect with national issues. All content copyright EarthFix and its stations.