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William Ripple is a professor of ecology at Oregon State University. In a paper published in BioScience this month, Ripple and 19 other authors suggest using portions of federal lands in 11 western states to establish new habitat for the beaver and gray wolf. They argue wolves and beavers improve biological diversity. Wolves by preying on grazing animals, which will allow more plants to grow. And beavers by creating ponds and wetlands. “The reason we want to do this is because wolves and beaver are considered keystone species. And that means t...
August opened with the news that a federal judge ruled for Whidbey Island resident Paula Spina and the group Citizens of the Ebey’s Reserve for a Healthy, Safe and Peaceful Environment in their lawsuit against the U.S. Navy. The Navy's 2019 plans to expand the number of Growler jets at Naval Air Station Whidbey Island needs to be redone. Why did the Navy lose to these people and the state of Washington, also a plaintiff? The Navy failed to follow the law in its development of an environmental impact statement. The judge did not say the Navy c...
A federal judge ruled Aug. 2 that the U.S. Navy’s environmental review process for expanding Growler jet use on Whidbey Island illegally failed to analyze the noise impacts of low-flying jets on classroom learning and birds, did not properly consider the greenhouse gas impacts of Growler fuel use and did not adequately consider moving operations to El Centro, California, all violating the National Environmental Policy Act. Judge Richard A. Jones supported without changes the NEPA challenge brought by the plaintiffs – the state of W...
Terry Brazas will be recognized by the Rotary Club of La Conner with its 2022 Paul Harris Recipient at their annual auction fundraiser Aug. 27 for his years of supporting the chapter. Brazas, a Skagit Valley native, started his long career in hospitality after graduating from Washington State University in 1972. Work took him to Los Angeles, but in 2003 he returned to the valley, beoming the sole proprietor of the Farmhouse Restaurant. Brazas has always focused on food quality and employee...
On July 18, the Skagit County commissioners approved a six-month moratorium on offsite compensatory mitigation of salmon habitat. “Offsite compensatory mitigation” means habitat restoration projects that mitigate for environmental impacts that are a considerable distance away. The moratorium expresses the commissioners’ concern that Seattle City Light (SCL) may go on a spending spree purchasing land in the lower estuary of the Skagit River. SCL is halfway through the five-year process of renewing its license for its three hydroelectric dams...
The Town of La Conner opened a cooling station at its fire station on Chilberg Road Tuesday afternoon, offering area residents a relief from the week's weather. It is open 12-5 p.m. through Friday or as long as the high temperature persist, said Town Administrator Scott Thomas. Skagit County and state of Washington health department issued news releases Monday and Tuesday, the state’s headline reading “Extreme heat expected through the week” with predicted daytime temperatures in the 90s or over 100 degrees in some places. A Heat Advisory is in...
Here the Magic Skagit mingles into the Bay, sheltered yet centrally located; Swinomish is a place of great healing. People here enjoy a diverse, continuous and bountiful ecosystem. The soil is rich. Water is always accessible. Food is found easily in plentiful amounts. The climate is mild. People are drawn here. Some may realize a portion of why they are drawn here, yet few are fortunate enough to have experienced the full spectrum of its gift. In a field of rich and intoxicatingly beautiful diversity it is easy to loose perspective and take...
In submitting a $30,000 CBDG (Community Development Block Grant) proposal June 1, the Town of La Conner has taken a baby step toward restoration of the South First Street waterfront and old Moore Clark property. If funded, a master plan will be prepared to determine future residential and economic development. An ambitious, nine component strategy is outlined, starting with creating a “plan that is achievable within a few years” with features that emphasize an optimal mix of commercial, dining, entertainment and residential use. The Town pro...
We are facing a crisis with inflation, as happened in the 1980s. Gas prices are at record levels, a different crisis from their spikes in the 1970s, when there were two Arab oil embargoes, both a result of Israeli wars. Russia’s invasion of and war with Ukraine is the precipitating factor now. There are forest fires in New Mexico and the southwest, crises that came earlier in the season than past years. There will be soon be west coast forest fires, from California north into Canada. Thankfully the fire season has not yet begun. Both r...
La Conner is all about history – all the time, it often seems – perhaps because the trend here is for it to constantly repeat itself. A case in point is the controversial promotional sign, or “marketing icon” in modern parlance, proposed for Gilkey Square and which has already undergone a major facelift to quell a groundswell of protests. The current flap is reminiscent of one that occurred 33 years ago. That’s when in response to tulip traffic congestion a directional sign to town at the base of Pleasant Ridge was doctored to re...
Thank you for continuing to talk about our existential crisis in your last editorial, “The world after Earth Day.” I am sorry that you have not had anyone else saying that you were not radical enough but let me say it now: you were not radical enough. I have always been a nature-lover and concerned about the environment, but only began really learning about oncoming climate chaos when I retired seven years ago. I cannot believe we have only taken baby steps, and many people are still kicking and screaming about any policy that might appear to...
I would like to commend Ken Stern for his April 20 editorial calling for creating Car Free Sundays downtown. As he points out it would reduce our carbon footprint and help clean the air for not only our citizens and our children but also those coming to visit our town. But I would like to take this one step further and suggest we have Car Free Weekends throughout the tourist season, Tulips to Christmas. And replace the cars with a shuttle service that would move folks between our two municipal parking lots as well as the parking lot near Maple...
Computers are useless. They only give you answers. — Pablo Picasso Mysticism seems to focus on the questions, on wonderment and awe. In world religions, mysticism stands in contrast to fundamentalism. Not its opposite, for I don’t believe mysticism opposes anything. It would be inclusive in its wonder, but there is a contrast between asserting dogma and a receptive state of attentiveness. (I am composing this on a computer, Pablo.) Mysticism takes a lot of a person’s time. All of it, actually! And dang, it can look like you’re doing...
Cascadia Daily News The Skagit Valley Farm, a system of farm LLCs owned and operated by several farmers in the region, plans to fight a $267,000 penalty for violating water rights during last summer’s drought. The company, which operates on over 3,000 acres in Skagit County, irrigated around 348 acres of vegetable crops in the lower Skagit and Samish watersheds without water rights, according to documents obtained from the state Department of Ecology. Eight farms in the Skagit Valley Farm group will face penalties ranging from $6,000 to $...
Some 30 town and area residents gathered last Thursday evening, March 31, in the La Conner school district auditorium seeking answers to “How does our town grow? and to ask their own questions at a workshop sponsored by the Town of La Conner’s communication committee. A five member panel were brought together to provide insight to factors shaping housing growth from local, county and state perspectives. Hal Hart, Skagit County director of planning, began with a question, too: “Where does growt...
In my work representing our community, I’ve had the opportunity to meet so many of you and your neighbors, listen to your concerns and learn about what issues affect your daily lives. It’s clear that people want bold action to support a healthy economy – one that benefits all in our community. This session, I looked for ways to support our rural economy, fund important local projects, support veterans and military families and improve public safety. I’m pleased to report that we made...
Seasonal workers for the Washington Bulb Company are back at work after a three-day strike that made headlines throughout the state. The strike was sparked by an error the company made when calculating worker bonuses for daffodil bunches picked on Saturday, March 19. While pay for the harvest crew averages $17.50 an hour, it can fluctuate on any given day, explained Brent Roozen of Washington Bulb on March 24, when he talked to reporters in front of company headquarters. “Last Saturday, we b...
Three months after stepping into leadership of the Museum of Northwest Art (MoNA), Executive Director Stefano Catalani has his eye on how the museum can best reflect the complexity of artists’ voices, cultures and artistic mediums in the Northwest. As someone who has transited continents and careers, he is focused on the expansiveness of the art world today. That focus centers on the Northwest in the present, and historically. With that said, he’s quick to point out that the first phase for a di...
I found it concerning when I read the recent letters by Mr. O’Donnell on March 9 and by Mr. Elliott on March 16 about taxes paid by Shelter Bay. Anyone buying a home here on leased land is clearly informed that we live here because the Swinomish Nation has granted us the privilege. In any lease situation, we do not presume to tell our landlord how to use their income. But even more than that, a non-native living here should not be taking the same position (or taking the same for granted) as we would living on land that is solely part of the U...
Robert (Bob) Lee Olson took his first breath on earth September 18, 1938 in Sayre, PA, and his last on March 11, 2022 in Anacortes, WA. Bob found great pleasure enjoying his love of sky, sea, and land at an early age. He grew up in beautiful Elmira, New York where his playground included the lovely Finger Lakes, the Thousand Islands, Watkins Glen Racing, and Harris Hill, home to many glider plane enthusiasts. Lots of time spent hanging around the “fly boys” often got him free rides in exc...
Paul Farmer, Harvard physician and anthropologist, co-founder of Partners in Health, died on February 21 at the age 62 in Rwanda after a lifetime of caring for the poor in Haiti, Peru, Rwanda, Siberia and the Navajo Nation. He was quoted (AP) as saying,”I am not cynical, cynicism is a dead end.” I try to hold that admirable thought as we witness the unvaccinated clogging, almost breaking, hospital staffs across the United States claiming vaccination mandates designed to protect the population as a whole are “forced” vaccinations that infring...
La Conner artists Meg Holgate and Steve Klein have joined together to present “A Precarious Edge,” their exhibit opening at the Museum of Northwest Art Saturday. As successful artists do, they have created beauty and are confronting viewers with truth and a challenge: with the future of the Earth hanging in the balance how can each of us “preserve and be part of the restoration of our ecosystems?” as curator Jodie Nelson wrote in introducing the exhibit. Nelson believes that Holgate’s large-scal...
Based on recent opinion pages in the La Conner Weekly News there appears to be a lack of clear or accurate information regarding protections for riparian zones adjacent to salmon streams in general and the Lorraine Loomis Act in particular. Intact riparian zones (the land along stream banks) provide immense benefits to salmon. They provide shade to keep streams cool, they provide large pieces of wood where juvenile fish take refuge from floods and predators, they provide bank stability, they filter and absorb nutrients coming off of farms and...
In my work as your representative over the last three years, I’ve had the opportunity to meet so many of you and your neighbors, listen to your concerns and learn about what issues affect your daily lives. From those conversations, it is clear the Legislature should support?a sustainable economy that?allows?all members of our community?to thrive.? Our?state must?improve access to higher education and family-wage jobs, foster?economic development and recovery in rural communities and prioritize healthcare and our quality of life. This s...
It was billed as a special meeting but played out much like similar Town of La Conner audit exit sessions of the past. And that was good news for town leaders. The one difference is the 35-minute Zoom discussion between La Conner representatives and the state auditor’s office Monday afternoon, which was conducted remotely, same as the two-year audit itself. Audit Lead Christy Fazio, and Supervisor Karyna Orcutt announced clean Accountability and Financial Statement Reports, which they and Mayor Ramon Hayes confirmed included reviews of m...
