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Audubon Washington Audubon
Washington E-Newswire Audubon Washington
E-Newswire September 2007 Volume 3 Number 9
Peering Into the Pit: Your Input on “Pit-to-Pier” Needed Now
PORT TOWNSEND - After five years of political and PR maneuvering, Fred Hill Materials’ “PIT-TO-PIER” proposal on Hood Canal has entered the administrative permitting process. Jefferson County has selected a consultant approved by Fred Hill Materials (FHM) to complete an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS). The next step is critical. It determines what issues the EIS consultant will be required to address. This is the public’s opportunity to establish an expectation that the EIS and all other steps in the permitting process are comprehensive, thorough, open and independent of undo influence by FHM. These expectations need to be repeated often and loudly.
Adverse impacts are associated with an industrial development consisting of a massive mining operation, miles of conveyor belts, a 1000-foot-long pier, huge barges, and massive ships on the shores and waters of Hood Canal. Just a few of the obvious issues that need to be addressed by the EIS include:
- Noise, water, air, visual and light pollution
- Destruction of wildlife, aviary, and marine habitat
- Storm water runoff, aquifer destruction and/or contamination, industrial water consumption and its impacts on existing aquifers
- Impacts on the Hood Canal Bridge (potential damage from the huge ships & barges / additional bridge openings)
- Impacts on the local economy including tourism, recreation & property values
- Impacts on the Orca whale, fisheries and endangered marine populations
Jefferson County is now accepting public
comments regarding what should be considered in the EIS. The
deadline for suggestions is Friday, October 5, 2007. Email
comments , or write to: Michelle Farfan, FHM Lead Planner,
Department of Community Development, 621 Sheridan Street,
Port Townsend WA 98368. Visit the Hood Canal Coalition web
site, http://www.hoodcanalcoalition.org,
to read a copy of Jefferson County’s notice of the scoping
process, or for further information, contact Gene
Bullock. A public meeting will be held on Thursday, September
27, 2007 at the Fort Warden State Park Commons meeting hall.
Seattle and Kittitas Audubon Prevail
in Federal Court
SEATTLE - Federal Judge Marsha Pechman barred the Weyerhaeuser
Company from continuing logging in occupied Spotted Owl nest
sites in Southwest Washington. The Judge’s ruling came in
response to litigation filed by Seattle and Kittitas Audubon
Societies in federal court a year ago. The court found that
it is reasonably likely that spotted owls will be harmed or
killed as a result of Weyerhaeuser’s logging under state rules
in four owl circles. “This is a huge victory for the environment
and the people of Washington state,” asserted Shawn Cantrell,
Executive Director of Seattle Audubon. “For the past decade
the largest timber company in the world has been aggressively
logging some of the most sensitive areas of forest land in
the state; this decision means that Weyerhaeuser must now
follow the science which calls for much greater protection
of habitat for endangered species.” A recent Washington State
Department of Fish and Wildlife study confirmed that over
50,000 acres of important Spotted Owl habitat have been logged
since 1996 under the state’s permitting process. The ruling
affects less than 1% of the private logging lands in Washington
State, but will protect some of the most sensitive areas in
the state. Northern Spotted Owls are declining by nearly 7%
each year in Washington State due to a variety of factors,
including current and past habitat loss and increased competition
with other species. Seattle Audubon will now embark on analyzing
the other occupied owl circles across that state for the amount
of habitat remaining and the potential for harm to owls. More
information about the ruling is in a Seattle
P-I story.
I-960 Threatens Future Conservation Funding
OLYMPIA - Audubon Washington is joining a growing coalition
opposed to Initiative 960 (on the statewide ballot this November
) because it would put funding for conservation and the clean-up
of natural ecosystems and habitat at risk. I-960, Tim Eyman’s
latest initiative, would make it much more difficult to obtain
vital public funding for conservation. It is a proposal to
vastly expand the definition of “tax increase.” It would require
the approval of two-thirds of the State Legislature, along
with expensive public advisory votes in many cases, on every
change in revenue, even routine fund transfers. For example,
raising the parking fee at state recreational areas by 25
cents to invest in maintenance would require legislative action
as a “tax increase.” Innovative efforts to fund conservation
or clean-up efforts would have to be sold to a supermajority
of legislators, and in many cases to the public as well, as
a tax increase, even if they did not raise anyone’s taxes.
Actions that require a public advisory vote would be identified
as a “tax increase” and allotted just 13 words in the voters’
pamphlet to justify their cost. Hundreds of millions in state
dollars would be wasted on endless ballots and expensive court
battles over how to interpret I-960, leaving even less for
important environmental priorities. When you cast your ballot
in November, imagine how hard it would be to get funding for
any Audubon priority, even inflation adjustments to current
projects, if I-960 is approved. Audubon Washington is a member
of the statewide Washington Tax Fairness Coalition. To find
out more about I-960 visit their website: http://www.wataxfairness.org.
Birding Trail Maps Still a Bargain
at $4.95
SEATTLE - All four Birding Trails maps – the Cascade, Olympic,
and Southwest loops plus the Coulee Corridor – are now being
sold, with the proceeds going toward reprinting of the popular
publications and promoting the trail overall. The retail cost?
Just $4.95 plus tax and shipping. If you have (or know of)
a retail outlet that would like to order some maps to sell,
contact Partners/West Book Distributing Inc., Customer Service,
e-mail,
800-563-2385 or 425-227-8486.
Audubon Center’s Staff Moves a Step
Closer to Seward Park
SEATTLE - Staff for the Seward Park Environmental & Audubon
Center are now located at a public school near the park until
renovation of the Center is complete late in 2007. Orca @
Whitworth, an alternative school in Seattle Public Schools
with a strong emphasis on environmental education for all
grades and very active parental involvement, is one of the
closest schools to Seward Park. Seward Park staff will offer
in-school electives and an after school club working on restoration
activities at Seward Park starting in October. The phone (206-652-2444
x101) and mailing address (c/o Orca @ Whitworth, 5215 46th
Ave. S, Room 308, Seattle, WA 98118) for the Center remain
the same.
Tidbits for the
Flock: Discovery Coast birdwatchers in Pacific County
have been puzzled by sightings of crows with white feathers
- mostly black, but with white on the under-feathers of the
wings and intermittent white splashes elsewhere. Pictures
are at http://www.discoverycoastaudubon.com/birdsightings.htm.
If you have the solution to this puzzle, contact Patricia
Cruse.
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