Independent, fact-based news for Whatcom, San Juan and Skagit counties

News from the Salish Current September 1, 2023

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Dear Reader—
We hope your summer was a good one with many memories and stories to take into the fall to share as the days get shorter and the weather moves us inside.

Over this holiday weekend, we bring you Kathryn Wheeler’s story about how islands are especially vulnerable to fires, a thoughtful essay by League of Women Voters writers Mary Coltrane and Dee Anne Finken about the importance of local news, and, if you missed it earlier, Richard Walker’s report on last weekend’s celebration of the life of Tokitae.

We’re also happy to welcome to our board of directors Ken Brusic, long-time editor of The Orange County Register, which was awarded a Pulitzer Prize during his tenure. Ken has been a professor of journalism at the University of Montana, a National Endowment of the Humanities Fellow, reporter and editor at papers in Massachusetts, Colorado and Kansas — and a Coast Guard credentialed merchant mariner.

Locally, he is a volunteer writer and intern coordinator for Whatcom Watch, and works with Western students on brainstorming story topics and preparing stories for publication.

Salish Current is pleased to have Ken aboard, to help steer us into the future!

We sincerely appreciate your reading this newsletter and sharing our commitment to real news, solid journalism and independent reporting that is free to read as a public good. Help us grow this valuable community of readers by sharing this newsletter and asking others to subscribe and join our newsroom community. Thank you for your support.

—Amy Nelson, Publisher

Salish Current affirms its commitment to work for truth, justice,
equity and healing for all people.
#SayTheirNames #BlackLivesMatter #NoJusticeNoPeace

Want more environmental news? Salish Sea News and Weather is a weekday curated compilation of news from Salish Sea news sources. Free via email or on the web.

Salish Sea News Week in Review, Sept. 1, 2023: Food bank Friday, Tokitae, BC giant trees, pink salmon, BC fire costs, Clayoquot Sound logging, flame retardants, tribes climate change, wetland protections, Site C dam error, old-growth logging, polar bear decline.

Support Us

San Juans assess fire risk, in the aftermath of Lahaina

Scarred Douglas firs on San Juan Island’s Young Hill evidence past fires. Islanders are looking more closely at wildfire risks, in a region that has enjoyed the protection of morning fog, mild temperatures and humidity, and a long rainy season. (Kathryn Wheeler / Salish Current photo © 2023)

By Kathryn Wheeler
Excess forest vegetation once controlled by managed burns by Coast Salish peoples now accumulates in dry, unhealthy forest conditions.

A roomful of reporters were on hand when then-Gov. Booth Gardner, in office from 1985 to 1993, called a press conference. Thirty years on, only a handful of reporters cover news from the state capitol, reflecting the shrinking numbers of both reporters and news sources —one reason behind actions locally and statewide by the League of Women Voters as well as development of new local news sources such as the Salish Current. (Legislative Support Services)

By Mary Coltrane and Dee Anne Finken
Commentary: Bringing home the lesson of local news and the police raid on the Marion County Record

Tributes at a remembrance ceremony on San Juan Island for Sk’aliCh’elh-tenaut, the Southern Resident orca who died this month after 53 years in captivity at the Miami Seaquarium, included a song from Doug James of the House of Tears Carvers. (Richard Arlin Walker / Salish Current photo © 2023)

By Richard Arlin Walker
A celebration of life for Southern Resident orca Sk’aliCh’elh-tenaut was a call to action as well as a remembrance.

See also: Lummi Nation prepares for Sk'aliCh'elh'tenaut's return home

• Vote ‘yes’ on Greenways V

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Salish Current affirms its commitment to work for truth, justice, equality and healing for all people.
#SayTheirNames #BlackLivesMatter #NoJusticeNoPeace

News from around the region...

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Health and Safety

Palliative care. Peace Health announced it will restore palliative care services in early 2024 and apologized for the "angst" the closure caused. (CDN/paywall)

Get shot. Get ready for a fall vaccination campaign beginning in September that not only includes updated COVID-19 boosters, but the annual flu shot and the newly approved RSV vaccine. (Washington State Standard)

COVID varient. Health officials in British Columbia say they have detected the first known Canadian case of the BA.2.86 COVID-19 virus variant. (CBC)

Asbestos. The ExxonMobil Oil Corporation, former owners of the Ferndale refinery now owned by Phillips 66, will pay $4 million to the family of Warren Wright, who was exposed to asbestos as a contract worker as a result of negligence by the oil company. (KGMI)

Toxic drugs. Another 198 British Columbians died from toxic drugs in July, bringing the death toll in the first seven months of the year to 1,455. (CBC)

Education

Student needs. To address the fact that 58% of students in the Ferndale School District came from low-income households last year, the Ferndale Public Schools Foundation will offer scholarships, remove fees and cover necessary materials for students in need of support. (KGMI)

Skagit schools. Six of the seven public school districts in Skagit County are facing budget deficits due to declining enrollment, the ending of the Elementary and Secondary School Relief funds, and declining regionalization funds. The Conway School District is not facing a shortfall. (Skagit Valley Herald/paywall)

The Border and Beyond

Fire costs. The B.C. government has spent more than half a billion dollars so far this year fighting a historically bad wildfire season, and that number is expected to continue to rise in the coming weeks as hundreds of blazes continue to burn. (Castanet)

Nature

Beach eggs, Part 4. Photographer Wendy Feltham's final installment of a series on aquatic critter eggs, including some quite unusual ones. (Rainshadow Journal)

Pinks. The 2023 pink salmon run is forecasted to be about four million returning to Puget Sound, around the 10-year average. (KUOW)

Orca grants. The National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, the Navy, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, BNSF Railway and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration announced there is $1.5 million available through the Killer Whale Conservation Program. (Skagit Valley Herald/paywall)

Bay Day. The 19th Fidalgo Bay Day last Saturday at the Fidalgo Bay Resort sponsored by the Skagit Marine Resources Committee gave those in attendance the chance learn about marine life through an aquatic touch tank and educational booths. (Skagit Valley Herald/paywall)

Flood grants. $63 million in state funding will help design 12 state floodplains to reduce flooding, protect communities and farms, and restore habitat, including Whatcom County Public Works Department ($10 million) for the Nooksack; Skagit Conservation District ($237,000) for Colony Creek; and Forterra NW ($3.5 million) for the town of Hamilton. (Dept. of Ecology)

Business

Water park. The Birch Bay Waterslides park closed for the rest of the season last Friday after a person was severely injured on one of the main slides in the park. (The Northern Light)

Building official. Christopher Jones has been hired as San Juan County’s new Building Official. He has lived in the San Juan Islands for 20+ years and has been working for the County since March 2021. (San Juan County)

Public works. Andrew Rheaume from Bothell has been hired as the new City of Anacortes public works director. (Anacortes American/paywall)

Community

Lummi housing. $21 million in federal funding will build tribal affordable housing for the Port Gamble S’Klallam Tribe, the Shoalwater Bay Indian Tribe, and the Lummi Nation, which will get $7.5 million to build 32 housing units. (KGMI)

Kathy Berg. “Mayor” Kathy Berg was honored during the Birch Bay Derby Day parade last weekend, where the North Whatcom Fire and Rescue team escorted her as fire marshal and made her honorary fire chief of Birch Bay Fire Station 63. (The Northern Light)

Tom Robbins. The town of La Conner will celebrate its annual Tom Robbins Day Sept. 2 with a 1 p.m. parade where participants are encouraged to dress like the author's book characters and restaurants will serve food and drink from the novels. (Skagit Valley Herald/paywall)

Arts & Leisure

Alan Magee. Friday Harbor Film Festival’s FREE Best of the Fest series will show "Alan Magee: art is not a solace" at the San Juan Island Library, Sept. 8, 7 p.m., and online. The artist, Alan Magee, and the director, David Berez, will appear by livestream following the film.

Dream film. "A Dream Takes Flight" is a film about Lopez Island-born John Norman who built the most authentically accurate replica of the "Spirit of St. Louis." A free, special screening of the film will be held Sept. 10, 5:30 p.m., Lopez Community Center. Info.

To the rescue. Watch an exclusive, free, one-time showing of “Wild Pacific Rescue,” a film about Dr. Marty Haulena, head veterinarian of the Vancouver, B.C., Aquarium, and his dedicated team rescue animals in the wild that have been harmed by human actions, especially plastic pollution. Sept. 23, Bellingham Unitarian Church. Register here. "Protection Life in the Salish Sea" is an ALL IN for Climate Action Week event hosted by League of Women Voters Bellingham/Whatcom County Climate Team, in partnership with media partner Salish Current.

Jump in!

Club de Mujeres Latinas. Únete a nosotras para compartir historias, tradiciones culturales, comida, libros, juegos, música y noticias. Participa en conversaciones, manualidades y actividades. Estas son sólo algunas ideas para este nuevo club. Las sesiones futuras serán diseñadas por las participantes. El objetivo es conocernos y crear un espacio de confianza y apoyo, de aprendizaje y diversión saludable. Primer miércoles de cada mes, de 6:00 a 8:00 p.m., Sept. 6, en la Sala de Reuniones de la Biblioteca Lynden. Este programa es en Español. Whatcom County Library System.

Salmon sightings. Watch pink salmon return at the Thompson Creek Bridge, until Sept. 17, 10 a.m.–1 p.m. with Nooksack Salmon Enhancement Association staff. (From Bellingham: take Hwy. 542 east through the town of Glacier and turn right on Glacier Creek Rd.) NSEA.

Metal shredder. Public meeting about ABC Recycling's plans to build an industrial metal shredder northwest of Birchwood in the county at the city limits of Bellingham. Sept. 6, 6–8 p.m., Alderwood Elementary School. Save the Bellingham Waterfront.

Watmough addition. The San Juan County Conservation Land Bank Commission will meet to hear public comments regarding future plans for the Watmough Bay Preserve Addition (formerly the Higgins property), Sept. 8, 10:15 a.m.–Noon at the Lopez Island Family Resource Center and via Zoom. Information.

Kidney donation. Learn about living kidney donation and transplantation from a panel of kidney donors, recipients and medical experts. Sept. 10, Noon–2 p.m., Squalicum Boathouse. Sponsored by the Mount Baker Foundation. Free lunch with registration.

Repair and tools. Join the community talk Zoom forum on "Repair Economy for the San Juans" on Sept. 12, 11 a.m., to learn about models for Repair Cafés and Tool Libraries around Washington and share ideas for increasing repair tool and skill access. Event details and registration.

Walk'n'Read. Lopez Library Walking Book Club, Sept. 14, 3–5 p.m. Upright Channel Day Park, Military Rd. (Discover Pass required.) Info.

Samish Miles. Help control invasive holly, laurel, and blackberry on the private Samish Miles Conservation Area. Sept. 15,10 a.m.–2 p.m. Registration required. Skagit Land Trust.

Farm tour. Twelve Whatcom County farms will open their (barn) doors for visitors to get a free, self-guided, behind-the-scenes look at how food gets from the farm to their plates. Sept. 16, 10 a.m.–4 p.m. Sustainable Connections.

Parent leaders. Learn leadership, communication and public-speaking skills at the Parent Leadership Training Institute (PLTI)'s free, 12-week, online course that teaches parents to identify community challenges and work toward solutions by understanding local and state governments and the public education system. Begins Sept. 16. Information and registration.

Marine stewardship. Join the Northwest Straits Foundation for a one-hour volunteer project followed by a picnic lunch and short presentation about ongoing care for Bowman Bay, Cornet Bay and Hoypus Point. Sept. 22, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., at Bowman Bay, Deception Pass State Park. Register.

Sing Me a Song. A free ukulele concert in memory of Joan Airoldi, ukulele enthusiast and champion of Whatcom County libraries. Deming Library, Sept. 24, 3–4:15 p.m. Info.

Hummers. Environmental sciences instructor and noted ecologist Gregory A. Green speaks on "Our Wintering Hummingbird" at the monthly meeting of the North Cascades Audubon Society, Sept. 26, 7 p.m., Old City Hall Museum, Bellingham. Read more.

Government

For the people

San Juan County
The council will meet on Sept. 8.
SJI League of Women Voters Observer Corps report:
• SJI Public Health District August.
• SJI School Board August.

City of Bellingham
The council will meet on Sept. 11.

Whatcom County
The council will meet on Sept. 12.

Port of Bellingham
The commission will meet on Sept. 19.

Elections
The City Club of Bellingham Candidate Forums:
Sept. 27 12 p.m.
Bellingham Mayor and three council races, in person Bellingham Yacht Club. Reservations required.

Oct. 4.
Jail and three City initiatives. By Zoom.

The Bellingham/Whatcom County League of Women Voters Candidate Forums:
Sept. 27, 7 p.m.
Whatcom County Executive, in-person in Whatcom Council Chambers

Sept. 28, 6 p.m.
Ferndale mayor and council, in-person in Ferndale Council Chambers

Oct. 3 7, p.m.
Whatcom Council, in-person in Whatcom Council Chambers

Oct. 4, 6 p.m.
Jail levy debate and Whatcom Sheriff forum, in-person in Whatcom Council Chambers, Bellingham

Oct. 6, 6 p.m.
Ferndale and Mt. Baker School Boards by Zoom

Oct. 10, 6 p.m.
Bellingham and Meridian School Boards by Zoom

Oct. 12, 6 p.m. Blaine Council and School Board by Zoom

Oct. 17, 6 p.m.
Bellingham Mayor and Council, in-person in Bellingham City Council Chambers

Oct. 18, 6 p.m. Lynden School Board by Zoom