Opinion - Whatcom View

POSTED: Sunday, Oct. 11, 2009

Bellingham is still the best location for NOAA

Recently the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) decided to move its Marine Operations Center from Lake Union in Seattle to Newport, Oregon. A number of Washington locations were in the running but none was better suited than Bellingham. A few weeks ago a bipartisan group of state and local officials worked together to throw our support behind the Port of Bellingham and urged them to appeal NOAA's decision.

With the port now undertaking the appeal, I wanted to lay out some of the facts about the NOAA relocation - underscoring why keeping NOAA in Washington, but more importantly bringing them to Bellingham, is the right thing to do for both our community and for NOAA.

The Northern Puget Sound offers a number of world class marine research facilities, from the University of Washington Friday Harbor Labs to Western Washington University's Shannon Point Marine Center to the University of California Davis' SeaDoc Society. This is to say nothing of the innovative science and research coming out of Western's main campus in Bellingham. NOAA researchers already collaborate with many of our local scientists. They will benefit greatly from the increased opportunities and intellectual stimulation that will be made possible from this move.

We are also at the center of world class marine industry, research and development. From Fairhaven and Dakota Creek Ship Yards, to Northwest Marine Technologies to the cutting edge research and development at Bellingham Technical College and the new Bellingham Innovation Zone Technology Center and Anacortes Marine Technology Center. Industry leaders call Northern Puget Sound home. With this move, the maintenance and technology requirements of NOAA can be satisfied close to their homeport, saving significant money and time.

The addition of NOAA to our existing marine industry cluster will add to the strength of our recovering local economy and continue to bolster the region's role as a marine science and industry leader.

Further, Bellingham is positioned at the eastern entrance to the Strait of Juan de Fuca. A majority of NOAA's research is off of Washington's open ocean coast and north. A NOAA homeport in Bellingham will save considerable time and money for the federal agency - dramatically shortening the travel necessary to reach their destination.

Unlike other ports whose narrow entrances are exposed to the fury of Pacific Ocean winter storms and are isolated hours from any transportation hub, Bellingham provides a reliably safe harbor for vessels and close proximity to the transportation of hub of Seattle. The scientists that are currently based in Seattle will continue to work out of Seattle, whether the ships are in Newport, Port Angeles or Bellingham. With our port just a quick 25-minute flight or a 90-minute drive away, NOAA scientists would be spared a commute of more than 5.5 hours each way just to get to their vessels. It makes sense for all concerned to keep the scientists near the ships they use to do their research.

The Port of Bellingham's appeal of the initial NOAA decision was a wise and necessary move. Great benefits will be gained from NOAA relocating to Bellingham - both economically and scientifically. While there are obvious benefits to our community, there are also very real benefits for the federal agency and the critical research they provide our nation. More than any other, our community is uniquely and properly suited to serve the needs of NOAA researchers and their crews for decades to come.

State Sen. Kevin Ranker represents Washington's 40th district, which contains San Juan County and portions of Whatcom and Skagit Counties.