Lake Whatcom reconveyance plan is costly to timber future

TOM WESTERGREEN - THE BELLINGHAM HERALD

E-Mail

Text Size:

tool goes here

The reconveyance of 8,400 acres of Department of Natural Resources managed trust land to Whatcom County for a "park" sounds like a great idea for the Lake Whatcom watershed, but there are very important reasons this should not be done.

The entire watershed has had active timber harvesting for over 130 years, while maintaining excellent water quality. During the last 30 years forest practice regulations have become very protective of water quality and the potential for landslides. In 2004, the Lake Whatcom Landscape Plan was implemented, giving us the most restrictive timber harvesting regulations in the United States. The Washington Health Department and the Department of Ecology have both gone on record stating that timber harvesting under present regulations is not a significant detriment to Lake Whatcom water quality.

Residential development is causing Lake Whatcom water quality problems, not the current Lake Whatcom watershed forest practices that seem to be the easy scapegoat. Under the right storm event landslides will still occur naturally because they always have. This is especially true with the proposed 8,400 acres, where an estimated 55 percent of the area is restricted from forest management activities, mostly because of potentially unstable slopes. Approximately half of the proposed area will already be left untouched to mature naturally without becoming a park.

The true cost to Whatcom County taxpayers for this proposal has not been adequately discussed.

The cost will be much more than the $300,000 for the state to prepare the transfer. It will be much more than $1 million to develop the "low-impact park," and its annual maintenance estimated at $150,000. Additionally, there will be a loss of $658,000 in anticipated annual revenue for Whatcom County's budget and other taxing districts including the Mount Baker and Bellingham school districts. Also lost will be millions of dollars to the economy in timber and related jobs and associated value.

If Whatcom County creates a park of these lands the taxpayers will be liable for the results of disasters like landslides and fires. When the county is facing an extreme budget shortfall, spending priority should not be another park.

Over half of Whatcom County is owned by the federal government and almost entirely off limits to timber harvesting. It is set aside for wilderness and recreation. Numerous other timber parcels have been preserved. Another 30 percent of private and state lands are restricted by forest practice regulations. This change of land use from forestry to a park sends a negative message to many private forested parcels which are vulnerable to conversion for development if the owners cannot see a future in sustainable forestry practices.

Most of us see the value in protecting our agricultural lands and their associated infrastructure. We should look at our forest lands similarly.

We need a sufficient harvestable forest land base to support the local mills, forestry crews and associated business. With an active "working forest" comes the sustainability of the "green" wood products we all need, watershed protection, diverse habitats for a variety of wildlife and recreational opportunities.

Maintaining this land as forestry is the responsible way to ensure our environmental and economic needs. If more recreation is what we need, cooperative agreements with the Department of Natural Resources could provide similar opportunities on the same land that is proposed for a park, but at reduced costs. The proposed reconveyance for a limited-use, "low-impact park" is unnecessary when money is tight and could be put to better use elsewhere.

The county executive and council may be poised to move this proposal forward with little debate or even a public hearing. Before the Whatcom County Council decides, let them know that reconveyance is not needed and that w deserve a public hearing before a decision is made.

Tom Westergreen is a lifelong resident of Sumas, a professional forester, tree farmer and Resource Manager for Great Western Lumber.

[an error occurred while processing this directive]