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-Alexandra Morton's Web Site (NEW)
The new web site for the work of Canada’s leading researcher in to farmed Atlantic Salmon and it’s effects.
-The Cove
One of the most important environmental documentaries ever created. If you value dolphins, then you must see this film.
North Olympic Peninsula Skills Center Natural Resources
To provide a program that provides hands-on, relevant natural resources research experience while meeting the needs of and building capacity within individual students and the North Olympic Peninsula region.
openchannels.org
OpenChannels is designed to become a comprehensive source for news, guidance, and community discussion on sustainable practices in ocean planning and management.
River of Kings – Video
Part 1 of 2 part series by Carl Safina on the Nisqually River Restoration.
Salish Magazine
Salish Magazine is a free online magazine that takes inquisitive readers outdoors with visually rich storytelling about features people can see firsthand in our public forests and beaches.
Victoria Sewage Project
The official city site on the project. The latest scoop on the Canadian poop!
WA State Family Forest Fish Passage Program
The Family Forest Fish Passage Program provides funding to small forest landowners to repair or remove fish passage barriers. Download the film.
Green Acre Radio on KBCS
Green Acre Radio on KBCS — Sustainability, local food production, restoration & environmental talk radio.
NW Indian Fisheries Commission
The Northwest Indian Fisheries Commission (NWIFC) is a support service organization for 20 treaty Indian tribes in western Washington.
Brinnon Group
Local group opposing Black Point resort
Clam Gardens
Network of researchers exploring First Nation gardening of clams in history, and it’s relationship to today.
Coastal Watershed Institute
“To promote long term, ecological, community based stewardship of marine and terrestrial ecosystems thru scientific research and local partnerships.”
League of Women Voters – Clallam County
a nonpartisan political organization, encourages the informed and active participation of citizens in government, and influences public policy through education and advocacy.
League of Women Voters – Jefferson County
The League of Women Voters, a nonpartisan political organization, encourages the informed and active participation of citizens in government, and influences public policy through education and advocacy.
Local Food Access Network
North Peninsula local food org with an emphasis on developing and supporting increased and sustainable capacity for production, distribution, and consumption locally.
North Olympic Salmon Coalition
The mission of the North Olympic Salmon Coalition is to restore, enhance, and protect habitat of North Olympic Peninsula wild salmon stocks and to promote community volunteerism, understanding, cooperation and stewardship of these resources.
Northwest Watershed Institute
NWI’s mission is to provide scientific and technical support to protect and restore fish and wildlife habitats and watershed ecosystems of the Pacific Northwest.
Olympic Environmental Council
The Olympic Environmental Council works on issues related to the environment and health that affect our North Olympic Peninsula communities.
Olympic Park Associates
If you share with us a passion for Olympic National Park, a concern for the Park’s future, and a vision that Olympic National Park should always be a wild and natural place, we invite you to join Olympic Park Associates.
Washington Environmental Council
WEC has been working for a couple of decades on environmental activism. A great group of people actually getting things done.
Whale Trail
Signs along the way to take you to great whale viewing locations
Wild Fish Conservancy
Wild Fish Conservancy seeks to improve conditions for all of the Northwest’s wild fish
The British Columbia environment and indigenous tribes got bad news yesterday as the tactics of the ruling NDP party backfired and a snap election brought a right wing autocrat to power for four years. This is the first time in nearly one hundred years the Conservative party has won. It couldn’t come at worse time. Make no mistake about it, this turns the politics of B.C. into a mirror image of Alberta, promising unrestricted logging and LNG production. The failures of the NDP to bring leadership worth voting for is also similar to the Democrats here in the U.S. Any opposition to the Canadian Federal Government promoting a vast increase in tanker shipments through the Strait of Juan de Fuca is likely gone for the foreseeable future.
An anti-environmental autocrat has won the snap election called by the ruling NDP party, who in one of the classic cases of stupid tactics, have found themselves getting the worse possible outcome.
Summary from the Narwhal:
Lorne Doerkson led the BC Conservatives to a historic majority, defeating David Eby’s NDP.
The Conservatives plan to cut taxes, expand LNG production and logging and “cut red tape like it’s never been cut before.”
The government also plans to repeal the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act (DRIPA)
On the campaign trail, Doerkson presented himself as a mild-mannered former rodeo rider and grandfather, promising to bolster B.C.’s economy while cutting taxes, reducing regulations and courting investment.
First thing they did today, was to announce their intention to repeal B.C.’s Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act, or DRIPA.
The Conservatives have promised to make B.C. an “energy superpower” by doubling liquefied natural gas (LNG) production by 2032 and tripling it by 2035. With LNG Canada the only LNG export facility currently operating in B.C., the province is already on track to more than triple the province’s LNG production by 2035 with five additional LNG projects currently in development.
On Thursday, October 22, the Let Our Salmon Come Home campaign will hold a rally and press conference, followed by a procession of voices for change ahead of the public comment period during the Pacific Salmon Commission’s 2026 Fall Meeting.
The Pacific Salmon Treaty, a harvest agreement between the United States and Canada, is currently being renegotiated, and decisions made now will determine the fate of our salmon, Southern Resident killer whales, and coastal communities for the next decade or more. The public has its most consequential opportunity in a generation to call on decision-makers to reform unsustainable ocean fisheries and Let Our Salmon Come Home to the rivers, ecosystems, and coastal communities that depend on them.
SCHEDULE 11:30 AM | Rally | Gardiner Community Center (view map) The day of action kicks off with a morning rally where salmon advocates from across the region will gather for music, food, and solidarity.
1:00 PM | Press Conference | Gardiner Community Center (view map) The press and members of the public are invited to hear speakers from across the coast share what’s at stake for our salmon, Southern Resident killer whales, and coastal communities. Speakers include Adrian Tuohy, Let Our Salmon Come Home campaign; Riley Starks, commercial fisher; Dylan Tomine, Washington recreational fisher; Paul Engelmeyer, Oregon conservationist; and others to be announced.
2:00 PM | Procession and Demonstration | 7 Cedars Casino (view map) Participants will walk from the parking lot to a site adjacent to the casino, where the Pacific Salmon Commission meeting is being held, to raise their voices and amplify the coastwide call to Let Our Salmon Come Home. Backbone Campaign is producing a large-scale visual display, providing strong photo and video opportunities.
3:30–5:00 PM | Public Comment Period | 7 Cedars Casino (view map) Per the Pacific Salmon Commission’s guidelines, media may attend open sessions under the same registration and conduct rules as the public, but recording, photography, and livestreaming of proceedings are not permitted. Learn more on the Pacific Salmon Commission’s website.
Let Our Salmon Come Home is an international grassroots movement and advocacy campaign led by individuals, organizations, and businesses from California to Alaska, united by a shared commitment to reform unsustainable ocean fisheries and bring our salmon home. Learn more at www.letoursalmoncomehome.org.
It’s time to get out the vote. As the midterm it’s a smaller slate, but the main action is in the Washington State Supreme Court, seeing a lot of judges needing to be re-elected or to fill a seat that has been vacated. Let’s start with the Initiatives.
IP26-645 Trying to overturn the Millionaires tax – VOTE NO
As it states in the voters pamphlet: This measure would decrease funding for public K-12 education, higher education and healthcare. Need we say more?
IL26-001 Would repeal laws establishing children’s rights. VOTE NO
If passed it would remove commonsense protections for child abuse victims. It requires schools to hand over sensitive information to parents who may be under criminal investigation for rape or other abuse of a child. Additionally, it would remove the legal requirement for a school to immediately notify parents when a crime is reported by a child. It would also put LGBTQ+ children at increased danger of violence and homelessness by outing them to potentially abusive families. The WA State Nurses association opposes this bill.
IL26-638 Would prohibit “biologically male” students from competing in certain school athletic activities, even if they are identifying as female. VOTE NO.
It would require verification of biological sex by the students’ healthcare providers. The requirement is only for boys, not girls. Washington state Nurses association, Planned Parenthood and many doctors oppose this. Many girls without a primary care physician would be subject to genital examinations by total strangers.
Representative District 6 – Emily Randall – Vote for her or leave it blank. As disappointing as Emily Randall has been as a U.S. Representative in her first term, we do not want a Republican with no experience and a supporter of Donald Trump to become another House seat. Fox actually went to the Immigrant detention center and argued with protestors. She supports the ongoing kidnapping and deporting of innocent people who have given this country their tax dollars and worked hard to try and establish a home away from violence.
Randall was one of only 4 Representatives to not show up to stop the bill to end PBS and billions of dollars of foreign aid with no excuse for where she was that night. Randall is supporting giving away our wildlife refuges to Tribal interests, locking the public out of a voice in protecting our most crucial environmental lands. She does not deserve to be returned to office. Vote for her if you will, but leave it blank if you wish. She’s likely to win in a landslide so I doubt any vote is going to count much.
These two incompetents should have a real opponent. Unfortunately this is what the Democratic and Republican parties have chosen to shove at us. Pathetic.
Legislative District 24 – Take your pick: Kaylee Kuehn or Marcia Kelbon. I am endorsing both for different types of voters.
Kaylee Kuehn: Democrats will be voting for Kaylee. She is a very nice person, my interview with her is on this site, my concern is that she is very inexperienced in general, with very little background that would recommend her for the position. She is supported by the unions, so you should expect essentially the same votes as all the other Democrats. She did say she does not support giving Protection Island and Dungeness Spit to the Jamestown S’Klallam, favoring the status quo. She says she is in favor of tax overhaul and universal health coverage. So those are some of the positives. If you are a Democrat that expects the status quo in Olympia, continuing the work that Steve Tharinger was successful at, then Kaylee will probably provide you with that. Given the nightmare budget scenario the State is facing, whoever wins will be looking at significant budget cuts to bring back to the district.
Marcia Kelbon – Independent – Marcia has broken from the Republican party, as her views overlap with Democrats when it comes to a woman’s right to choose, and LGBTQ+ rights. (Her interview is also on this site). By her own admission she was a Democrat for part of her life and a Republican in the past more from a pro business perspective. She did not vote for Trump in primaries and she hoped he would be something better than he was. Her pro business stance is aligned with talking point from both parties in our district. She is what used to be called a Moderate Republican, one who went to the legislature to promote business issues and sometimes supported environmental ones as well. We all know what happened to that party and those voters, who are now called “independents”. But Marcia is a very smart, experienced woman, with a great resume of significant achievement. She is critical of the laws such as the Growth Management Act, and Climate Commitment Act, Democratic achievements that are worthy of being questioned or modified at this point (i.e. is the GMA, done in the early 1990s, really still valid for our counties in 2026? Is the CCA actually reducing CO2 or is it raising taxes on gas and spending it on minor issues, like being used to fund electric ferries? Should they be modified?). She opposes giving the wildlife refuges to the tribes.
My recommendation on Marcia is that if you are a moderate Republican or true Independent who doesn’t support either party, then Marcia is a solid vote for you. If she gets elected, she will likely find herself on the outs by both parties, might have a hard time finding committee assignments, but could be an effective independent vote at times. I doubt she will vote for tax increases. She is more likely to support the timber industry. But she is very likely to vote to support women’s issues, healthcare, alternative energy and other areas that are more traditionally thought of as ‘liberal’.
State Representative District 24 Position 1 – Adam Bernbaum (D) Adam has done a solid job as first term Representative. It’s worth giving him another term to expand on his insight into the way laws are crafted. He is supported by Planned Parenthood, Washington State Labor Council and others.
Judges for the Supreme Court:
Colleen Melody – Yes.
Jamie Michelle Hawk – Yes.
Birk or O’Donnell take your pick – Both highly endorsed by powerhouse supporters. Both rated “Exceptionally well qualified” which is a big deal, according to my wife, who was a lawyer who at one time headed that committee!
Theo Angelis – Yes
Deborah Stevens – Yes.
Clallam County PUD: Randy Brackett
Endorsed by the Olympic Climate Action. Sophisticated understanding of the intertwining of science, technology, economy, politics, and culture. Supports reasoned, incremental development of clean tech, local generation & storage. Wants to be an agent for positive change at the Bonneville Power Administration
Jefferson County PUD Dist 2
Keith Kisler
Keith is a fourth generation farmer and co-owner of Finnriver Farm. He’s been living here for 30 years. He’s endorsed by virtually everybody that counts.
Jefferson County Commissioner
Anji Scalf
Raised in Jefferson County, Anji is the right choice. Her opponent is a hard right conservative.
The Seattle Times reported on the 24th about the change in rules for older forests, due to the extreme budget problems Olympia is facing. The head of DNR is caught between the legal requirements of his job as currently legislated and the demands of environmental activists wanting to protect remaining older growth forests. The money from this logging helps cities like Port Angeles meet their budgets for critical local services. It will be up to the legislature to fix this problem starting in January. If you care about this, you should write your state Senator and Representatives now.
“Without the (legislative) tools Upthegrove is pursuing, the roughly 55,000 acres could be included in timber sales after 2030. Staff estimates based on similar forests suggest that with no change to state policies, managing these 55,000 acres in ways other than traditional harvest would result in tens of millions of dollars lost.“
Read the whole story in the Seattle Times. Support local journalism. Subscribe to the Times.
Citizens showed up to be treated to a Zoom rather than a real person in attendance. Photo courtesy of Darrell Smith.
On Wednesday, Sept 23rd, the opponents of the land transfer proposal that U.S. Representative Emily Randall is getting ready to introduce into Congress, finally got an opportunity to talk directly to her staff about their points of view. It did not go well.
Staff members had originally said they would have one person there, so people came expecting to hear them and instead were only allowed a “Zoom” call, and Representative Randall decided not to attend at all. (Congress is currently out so she was in the area). If the staff would have simply started by saying they would not be in attendance, perhaps a larger audience would have attended online.
Her staff gave a short overview of the “process” that the draft bill is going through at the moment, stating that:
It was a process started in 2025. (it was not made public until spring 2026).
It was already going through the backchannels of Congress to prepare for Randall to present it to Congress.
“There is a long way to go”. One staffer said.
Finally, “It’s only the start of the process and you still have an opportunity to put your feedback into it.”
The last sentence received a roomful of boos from the 30 or so people in attendance.
I think that the staff member did not fully understand that a bill that was being discussed behind closed doors for over a year by Ron Allen of the Jamestown S’Klallam Tribe and the Representative of hundreds of thousands of constituents who have not had a chance to comment on it , was not at a point anyone would call, “the start of the process”. The bill is very far along the “process” and Representative Randall still has not held a public meeting with her present to discuss it at all. Once proposed into Congress, the public will have little opportunity to realistically kill this proposal as the meetings are likely to be held in Washington D.C. and Randall is making no promises yet to hold meetings throughout her district.
There is also the small fact that Chairman Allen has donated over $1000 for the last two years, along with the Jamestown S’Klallam donating over $9000 to her campaign. This makes the whole sordid issue seem like a back room deal done for money and votes. No one other than the Tribe has asked for this transfer to happen. Other S’Klallam Tribes apparently were not consulted nor have weighed in as to why they are getting nothing out of this, odd because it is part of the “usual and accustomed” land from the 1855 Treaty that all of them share.
Ron Allen himself has said that other tribes like the Makah and Lummi have been looking at this to decide whether to ask for other National Wildlife Refuges. When asked whether Representative Randall was in talks with them as well, since the Makah, Quinault, Hoh and Quileute are in her district, her staff did not reply.
The meeting was hosted by Lorna and Darrell Smith. Lorna was one of the original people who worked with Eleanor Stopps to create the wildlife refuge in the 1980s. Without their work, the Tribe would have no opportunity to ask for it back, as it would have become a white man’s subdivision.
Many people got up to ask questions of Randall’s staff. Very few questions were answered. No one asking them was in support of the transfer. One surprise guest was Marcia Kelbon, who is the independent running for the State House position given up by Steve Tharinger. Mrs. Kelbon stated she was opposed to the land transfer. It was gratifying to see a person running for state Congress come out and state a position on the issue.
What is Randall thinking? Neither Clallam nor Jefferson County commissioners have come out in support of this, mainly due to the extremely negative public feedback on this proposal. And Senator Murray and Cantwell have yet to weigh in.
This entire exercise is a P.R. disaster for the young, naive Representative Randall. While she has been anointed the Representative of the 24th district, she is a shadow of the former representative, Derek Kilmer. Kilmer had better political instinct than to take on an issue like this without getting significant public input first. Unfortunately, no one was willing to run against Randall, so the Democrats gave us no choice but to not vote or support her.
As we see across the nation, the Trump administration is dumping National Wildlife Refuges to private entities like SpaceX. This Trump nominated judge is going along with it. The plaintiffs will be appealing up the court system. It raises the question of why is U.S. Representative Emily Randall running the playbook of Project 2025 and attempting to dump our local national wildlife refuges to the privately held Jamestown Tribe? Especially since we are so close to an election that we are hoping will turn the tide in Congress?
SpaceX’s operations have caused significant damage to the fragile bird habitat surrounding the launch site, according to a New York Times investigation. A rocket launch in 2024 sent debris flying into the refuge, crushing birds’ nests and igniting a small fire, the investigation found.
I sat down over coffee in Port Townsend with the Democratic candidate for the 24th District Position 2, Kaylee Kuehn. We had a candid talk on a wide range of issues. The following interview was edited for brevity.
Kaylee Kuehn (pronounced Keen) is running for the open seat vacated by long time Olympia powerhouse Steve Tharinger. Kuehn was raised in Sequim, attended Evergreen college, and has a Masters in Education from Grand Canyon University. She is a mother and her husband is a former prosecuting attorney and now serves as an Assistant Attorney General for Clallam and Jefferson counties. She beat out two other Democrats and one Democratic Socialist of America for her place in the fall elections.
The defining factor in her running is her youth. At 28, she does not bring huge range of experience to the position, but does bring a youthful energy and has worked in education as a high school teacher and as a volunteer for a regional union, the Association of Western Pulp & Paper Workers in partnership with Pacific Northwest Regional Strategies. She is the first to admit that she does not have a lot of background on the issues facing the Peninsula.
KK: When I decided to run for this seat I wasn’t spending years of my life planning and prepping for doing this. I’m not trying to sell myself as more knowledgeable or experienced than I am. I can ask questions gather all the information and hopefully make the right decisions. That’s what I’m hoping to bring to this seat. I understand that a lot of people want a politician to come in and make all these sweeping changes and solve everything, and I just don’t view politics that way. I think that is very rare. I think there is a lot of value in pragmatism and balance to decision making about really important things that affect all of us.
Q: Steve Tharinger has been there for a long, long time. Where do you see your differences from Steve? Do you feel like you just take over where he left off, or do you see some, you see some differences between what you bring versus what Steve brings?
K.K: I’ve had the pleasure of meeting Steve several times, talking with him, and getting to know him a little bit more, and now that I’ve made it through the primary, he’s now gotten involved in the race. I see that we’ll be similar in a lot of ways, how we treat people.
I think where we differ is just our perspectives. I think the biggest difference will be that I am a young working mom. I’ve been riffed from a union job before. I know what that feels like. I know what it’s like to move every single year because of the rising costs of rent. But I would also like to bring my voice to this because I think that in the 24th, we’ve had nobody liked me before. With so many more working families living throughout the district, I think it’s good to have someone who actually has experience with the challenges that we face.
Q: What committees are you wanting to be assigned to if you win?
KK: I don’t have specific committees I am targeting. I think what’s important as a legislator is understanding how the process works. I would like to be on a fiscal committee, maybe on a policy committee. I was thinking about education, coming from that world. Adam (Bernbaum, the other Representative in the 24th) is going to be on healthcare and transportation, they don’t put freshmen on appropriations, so the capital budget makes sense for me. And perhaps housing. I think that would be a really impactful way that I could make a difference for our district, because it does come up so much.
Q: What do you think that you can actually address in housing?
KK: I do think we get very focused on process over outcome. So with housing in particular, I talked to so many people who said, I want to be able to make my property livable for somebody. I want to be able to rent it out. But the financial and timeline barriers are too much for virtually every person I talked to. And I think at the state level, we can ease those requirements. There’s probably something in between that just gets people housed and gets people into a situation where they can work towards.
Q: That sort of circles to the Growth Management Act (GMA).What do you think that needs to be fixed or changed in it?
KK: It’s pretty important. I’m not a planner. I don’t have those answers right now. I would like to understand it. There are definitely areas where I am not there yet about knowing the specifics of what I would like to propose or change, but I will learn it, and do what’s right for folks.
OPEN: What are your priorities?
KK: Number one, I would like to talk to the cost of living, affordability. I know that it’s a very big area. I am supporting the millionaire’s tax. I do think that it’s horrific that we have the second most regressive tax system in the United States. I don’t want to push business out. I feel like I want to be a friend to business and to understand the issues and want to keep them here. I also think that there have to be decisions that ultimately level the playing field. We need to be a lot more open to embracing just everyone having an equitable share so the burden isn’t more on working folks.
Q: The Climate Commitment Act (CCA) has been very controversial. We’re using the money (from the CCA) to build new electric ferries. That great. But I thought that the goal was to reduce carbon? And it’s causing the state to add more taxes to gas for blue collar people. So what do you say to those people?
KK: I was one of the only ones in the primary other than Marcia to be critical of the CCA. With the CCA, this is something that people have very strong feelings about. I just think that we have to look at, like, practical outcomes. It would benefit us politically, to not keep raising regressive taxes. We say there are benefits, but actually, a lot of people, especially out here, don’t see them. They feel they get hurt by them.
Q: So where do you cut the budget?
KK: I’ll bring up a kind of controversial thing, you know? One of the best things that we’ve done in Washington, I think, is implement paid family medical. It’s also a massive part of our budget. People say, why did the budget get so, so much higher? It’s because of things like this that are really good. I got a benefit from that (law), to stay home with my daughter for a long time and my husband did also.
But that’s a giant part of our budget. I think we shouldn’t be cutting from anything that has to do with children. Cutting the budget, it’s not just numbers to me, it’s real outcomes.
Q: So where do you cut? I mean, you have a pie that’s just so big. Right? We just don’t have the revenue stream to be able to do everything that we used to do or want to do, and so where do you see yourself supporting cuts? Former Governors Gregoire and Locke along with Ferguson say you have to cut. Would you support an across the board 5% of everything? Or only a specific cuts?
KK: I think I think it would come down to what makes the least direct impact? So unfortunately, if there’s some type of subsidy or something, or a decision like taking away spots that kids would have had to transition into kindergarten. I would not want to cut there. I am obviously not against kids getting school lunches. In an ideal world, we just would have all kids get free lunches all the time. But we probably need means testing. I work and I can afford to give my child lunch and pack their lunch for school. I think most people, that are lower middle class can do that. And I’m gonna piss some people off, saying that, but why not?
Q: On the environment, there is this whole issue of forest cutting. Out in Port Angeles right now there’s many environmentalists I know fighting for saving these small older growth parcels. $40,000, I think, is what Port Angeles would have gotten or will get, whatever, from that cut. So that’s something that they needed to budget for, and now that’s $40,000 out of their budgets for schools and police and all the rest. That’s mainly handled by the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) but I would assume that the legislature has some impact in being able to talk to DNR about budgeting issues.
KK: I think that one thing that’s kind of misunderstood is that a lot of this land, when it’s being sold, was already designated as needing to be sold. I’m kind of unsympathetic, because I understand that people want to protect these old growth trees. I would also like to, but to what extent, to what end? And what are we missing by doing that?
Q: Have you talked to those folks that are opposing the cut out there?
KK: You mean has every side has been talking to me? Yes. I had lunch this past weekend with Dave UptheGrove (the director of DNR). It was a great chance to sit down, ’cause I’m getting pressured on both sides. I agreed not to take timber money, and now I’m getting timber folks saying, can we send you campaign money? You know, for me, the funding thing. I’ll take all the campaign contributions I can get because now I’m not bought and I don’t care what anybody thinks. My vote is not bought by anybody. Someone wants to help me pay for my childcare (by donating to my campaign). They can. They get a meeting just as much as any other constituent would get a meeting and small business owner. Nothing comes above my constituency, if I’m elected.
Q: So have you made a decision yet on this issue?
KK: I just haven’t made up my mind yet. This is probably the biggest area out of any other policy area where I feel like I cannot, in good conscience, make a firm decision right now about what type of policy I’m gonna make, because I want to look it. I with talked with our mills and the industry and union were very aligned. because they’re concerned we’ve had so many mill closures.
Q: What are your thoughts about the Protection Island / Dungeness Spit Land transfer. Have you come down, one way or another, on what’s going on with this possible land transfer, that U.S. Representative Emily Randall is promoting?
KK: I know. I heard her talk about it at the little recent meeting. Yeah very contentious right now. I understand that.
I haven’t got the tribal perspective from it. I was hoping to sit down with Ron Allen but we haven’t managed to get together yet. The biggest concern is that it’s their sovereign status. Once they get the land they get to make their own decision and we don’t have any way to have input. Emily Randall said that there’s going to be a lot of conversations before this happens. It is not going to pass for several years if it even does, and we’re really going to work on it and get a lot of public comment. And at the end of the day, it is just the fact that it’s transferring it over and we’ll have no say. The US government would have no say in it.
I’m interested to hear different perspectives. I’m not saying I don’t have an opinion on it. One issue that I really do understand, and I take it very highly right now. is that I don’t I don’t trust the Trump administration.
Q: No, I don’t either.
KK: I don’t trust them (the Trump Administration) to manage it properly. What is great is that, like you said, it’s a co-management right now.
OPEN: What are your thoughts about your opponent, Marcia Kelbon?
KK: I really respect her independence. But to do this job, to be effective, to be able to secure funding for, is it a department or a district, to be able get in the majority caucus room and have be a voice for our district. You have to play the system. You have to. You have to understand it.
Last night (at the Marrowstone debate) she was very optimistic. That whole thing (about having a voice in Olympia) came up, and she said, “Well, I think that I can build a relationship with people.” I don’t doubt that. But Olympia is a machine. It’s serious. I mean no disrespect to my opponent. But no one cares about one person’s agenda. They really don’t. They have stuff to get done. Everyone’s got their own little game. And it’s sad, I think, but that that’s how it works.”
Trump’s insane tariff battle hurts the very businesses who love his deregulation.
Today’s Seattle Times has an article detailing the crushing blow to Washington State businesses due to King Trump’s personal vendetta with our Canadian neighbors.
Washington State does a huge business with Canada, from exports of a wide variety of products to tourism. Canada is our number two trading partner (China of course is first but much a lot of that trade is made up of Boeing planes). Many of these tariffs hurt industries that have loved having Trump’s deregulation to do away with environmental concerns. It appears that Trump has bit the hand that has fed him.
Times columnist Danny Westneat stated in his article on the tariff war:
Last year, Canadian visitors to Seattle plunged by 600,000, from 1.7 million in 2024 to 1.1 million, Visit Seattle announced last month. Canadian tourist revenue dropped by $215 million just in Seattle, the group estimated.
We just were recovering from that previous fiasco in the last months, but now it may be even worse than that.
A separate article behind the Times paywall points out that the hardest hit agricultural industry is shellfish, and the largest shellfish grower is Taylor Shellfish. This blog has documented over the last twenty years the lobbying against regulations on their industry, including undermining Marine Resources Committees in the north Sound while buying their support by offering to help with the restoration of Olympia Oysters. Their employees showed up to jeer anti-net pen lecturers and a manager of their Jefferson County operations attacked anti-net pen leaders like Alexandra Morton. The company has fought lawsuits by local landowners in the Hood Canal and Puget Sound that have attempted to slow their relentless conversion of virgin bays and shorelines into industrial monoculture aquaculture farms. The industry has spent a minimum of tens of thousands of dollars lobbying in Olympia and Washington D.C. with success. As significant employers in these small rural counties they have supported both Democrat and Republican politicians who hew to their demands in Olympia. I have no doubt that they supported and were thrilled at Trump getting elected a second time. They likely saw his new regime as one that would finally eliminate environmental regulations entirely. And that has been happening.
Now, they unfortunately have found out the cost of that support.
Trump’s insane decisions have not only affected the shellfish industry but might also sink our local paper mill. While I am not clear how much of their output gets shipped to Canada, they are owned by a Wall Street firm (Atlas Holdings) that has also owned a Canadian paper mill that is a sister company to Port Townsend Paper. Crown Packaging is a large corrugated packaging facility in British Columbia. Additionally, there may be sawdust supply that comes from mills in Canada by barge, given the strength of the U.S. dollar to purchase Canadian raw materials at a discount to U.S. ones. The mill in Port Townsend runs on a slim profit margin, and a huge tariff could conceivably see the closure of the mill.
According to the Times article, Washington State sells $460 million in paper and paper board goods to Canada.
The closure of the Port Townsend mill would be an economic disaster to the town and the Peninsula. Many of the mill employees live out of town, due to high costs of living in Port Townsend. Their incomes help prop up not only P.T. but also the towns they live in, like Sequim and Port Angeles.
So we wait to see whether Trump wakes up tomorrow and is given a sound tongue lashing behind closed doors in the White House and changes his mind. He seems to take great relish in attacking “Blue” states like Washington, giving us far less FEMA support for our wildfire victims, the majority of whom likely voted for him, since they live in districts that went heavily Republican in all three of the last elections. While he thinks he is simply hurting Canada, the real victims are his supporters in industries across this state.
Over coffee in Port Townsend, I met with Marcia Kelbon, the independent candidate for State House of Representatives in Washington’s 24th Legislative District. The district spans the liberal stronghold of Port Townsend, the retirement community of Sequim, blue-collar Port Angeles, multiple Tribal reservations, and the economically struggling region of Grays Harbor County. She arrived on her Harley, from her home in the small town of Quilcene along Hood Canal. The Harley is not the only unusual thing about Mrs. Kelbon. She is a former Republican who has left the party to challenge for a State House seat that has been solidly in Democratic control for a couple of decades.
Mrs. Kelbon has an extensive professional background which includes work as a civil engineer, senior executive for a biopharmaceutical company and as a patent attorney. Her law degree is from the University of Washington. She currently serves as Fire Commissioner in Quilcene. She describes her family home as a “tree farm” located next to Rayonier forests whose clear cutting has raised concerns from her about the herbicides used after harvest.
Kelbon left the Republican party over platform disagreements in order to launch an independent bid for the open seat vacated by retiring Representative Steve Tharinger. She won a spot on the November ballot primarily because the Democrats split their vote between three candidates and a Democratic Socialist of America.
Q: What caused your split from the Republican party”
MK: “Well, I always disagreed with a number of issues, including hard-right stances by some in the party on abortion and marriage, and the party’s enthusiasm for Donald Trump. Contrary to what some claim, I did not vote for Donald Trump as a candidate in the primaries of 2016, preferring instead John Kasich of Ohio. I am dissatisfied with party extremes on both sides. As an independent I aim to bring a moderate point of view to the race and the legislature.”
Q. I understand that you support abortion access and LGBTQ+ rights. Those are positions usually thought of as Democratic positions. Are there other issues related to this that are not aligned with the Democrats?”
MK: “I don’t support minors undergoing gender-affirmation surgeries. I believe children are too easily swayed into irreversible decisions before knowing who they truly are.”
Q. What is your position on immigration?
MK: “I support closing the borders to stop illegal drug and human trafficking. But I don’t support the deportation of immigrants who aren’t criminals – we should instead create paths to green cards. We need immigrants in many sectors.” She named high tech and medicine as areas needing more immigrants to fill roles.
Her position on healthcare comes from personal experience. MK: “I raised three children, all of whom were adopted including one through the foster care system. Two of our adult children have used the Affordable Care Act.”
She advocates the idea of a base support of government provided healthcare without insurers making profit in the mix, allowing everyone to get some coverage. She believes that would save a huge amount of money while obtaining better outcomes by getting insurance companies out of the job of providing basic healthcare insurance. While a great goal, that has proven to be almost impossible for either party to get close to doing.
Q. “What new ideas would you bring to the issue of criminal justice and the linked issue of addiction?”
MK: “Some people on the streets, not all – truly have had a stroke of bad luck or bad experience. But for many, there are issues of addiction and mental illness. Our current approaches… don’t appear to be effective in stabilizing people and preventing them from getting worse. Sheriffs and police chiefs tell me that the current gross misdemeanor penalty is not enough. I would like to restore a felony penalty for knowing possession of hard drugs – not so we can lock people up and throw away the key, but so that we can convince people to get into drug court and treatment rather than jail. I would also like to fund adequate facilities for addiction and mental health treatment.”
Q. “We have a lot of people wanting solutions to entry level homes for lower income people. What concrete ideas do you have for helping get more homes built here on the Peninsula?”
MK: “My father-in-law was a union electrician, and we have completed several builds, including with solar, so I do understand the issues facing the building trades. I would support revising the latest energy code applying to residential construction based more on a cost/benefit analysis. We have to lower the cost of buying homes for young buyers. I would also like to modify the Growth Management Act to make it easier to build in village centers.”
Q. “Taxes are something that Republicans always are complaining about, wanting to drive down taxes. What’s your position on taxation. What makes you different?”
MK: “Our current tax structure is inequitable, but layering an income tax on top of the current regressive sales tax system is not the answer. While voters have time and again rejected an income tax, I suspect they might support a comprehensive restructuring of state taxes that does not increase the overall tax burden. I am willing to collaborate with either party on meaningful tax changes.”
Kelbon remains opposed to the proposed land transfer of Protection Island and Dungeness Spit to the Jamestown S’Klallam Tribe.
Mk: “I am not in favor of that transfer at this time,” she explained. “I am concerned about commercial oyster farming and potential herbicide applications on Protection Island.” She also wondered about whether the Elwha and Port Gamble S’Klallam are supporting this land transfer.
Her path to victory is uncertain. She is banking on the fact that while Jefferson County remains solidly Democratic, Clallam and Grays Harbor counties are more conservative.
Even if she does win, it is unclear what she can accomplish in Olympia. Committee assignments are assigned by the two main parties. With the Democrats holding a large majority, it could be very hard to find an assignment. But that’s a long ways off. Until November, she needs to convince independents, disillusioned Republicans, as well as the people who never vote to turn out for her in this huge geographic district. She is trying to do that with a minimal campaign staff. That is not a small challenge. But if she can win and bring an ability to force the Democrats to modify positions to accommodate her vote, it could see some new policies that bring change to the Peninsula.
The Jefferson County Commissioners today published a draft of a new version of the letter about their level of support for the proposal to transfer the two National Wildlife Refuges into the sovereign nation of the Jamestown S’Kallam tribe. The final letter would have been sent to U.S. Representative Emily Randall, the politician who has bought into this proposal on behalf of the Tribe, and who has done zero public engagement on this issue. The Commissioners debated the issue and ultimately, after debate, the Commissioners decided not to send the letter and simply pass along the written comments to Representative Randall. This is a positive step, allowing Randall to go get the public input she should have done all along. Randall’s junior status as a Representative has been on display during this entire process, and we are hoping she has learned something from this.
The draft letter significantly tempered their support, clarifying a few key points. For sake of the public understanding the debate, here’s points from the draft letter:
Public Input:
“One central piece of input we’ ve gotten from residents of Jefferson County is a desire for more public engagement about this proposal.” – That is perhaps an understatement.
Importance of the lands in question:
“These sites are not only central to the Tribe’ s heritage but are also integral to the ecological health and quality of life for our entire region.”
Is title transfer necessary?
“…there is concern about losing protections provided with oversight by the USFWS.” Finally the Commissioners are recognizing the very real concerns that moving these lands into sovereign nation status would possibly create.
Hope instead of concrete assurances from the Tribe:
“It is our sense (emphasis mine) that if the island were transferred into trust, the Tribe would continue to manage it to a standard that would meet or exceed federal requirements.” There is absolutely no guarantee that is being given nor could one be enforced if promised once the lands are transferred. It is all based on faith that nothing would ever change. The very fact that this transfer is being considered now is proof enough that some future tribal council would decide on a very different use of Protection Island and Dungeness Spit.
Admission of commercial concerns:
“However, we’ve also heard concerns from several constituents that the Tribe may take a more business- forward approach in managing Protection Island and, in neighboring Clallam County, Dungeness Spit Refuge lands.” Never heard the use of “Business-forward” to describe actual conversion of tide lands into an aquaculture farm before. Also they heard from constituents as if this is a secret project of the Tribe. The Tribe has been very open about this and it has been known publicly for many years. Are the Commissioners that out of touch? Or are they wanting to blame the opposition to the transfer for somehow bringing the Commissioners new information? The answer is “yes” they are trying to blame opponents of the transfer. They did so in the next paragraph:
The Opposition:
“…we have observed a recurring argument among some opponents who use the phrase “public land in public hands” to justify federal retention. Within the context of our region’ s history, there is a certain irony and arrogance in this framing. It overlooks the historical reality of colonization and the systemic dispossession of Indigenous peoples from their ancestral lands. To claim these areas are only ” public” when under federal control ignores the thousands of years of stewardship practiced by Tribes prior to European arrival.”
The opposition doesn’t claim that the lands are “public lands”, they are public by definition. The legal national definition of “public lands” which the Commissioners themselves should be aware of is this Statutory definition: Under 43 U.S.C. § 1702, “any land and interest in land owned by the United States within the several States and administered by the Secretary of the Interior through the Bureau of Land Management… except... Outer Continental Shelf; and lands held for the benefit of Indians, Aleuts, and Eskimos.”, as stated in the U.S. Code. General federal usage: Commonly refers to all real property owned collectively by the American people and managed by various federal stewardship branches.
The opposition doesn’t appear to be ignoring the historical reality, and anyway, what does that have to do with the proposed transfer of these lands to the Tribe? Does the historical reality dictate that we give back the Wildlife Refuges we fought so hard to create by keeping them from “business forward” real estate development? If there is any irony to be found at all in this it is that the Tribe, who claims to have the protection of these wildlife refuges as their reason for doing it, are already engaged in putting a commercial oyster farm of up to 80000 bags of oysters against the very shores of the Dungeness Spit, burying the bottom where many of the birds we are protecting feed.
Who are these two refuges supposed to be for? They were established to recognize that before the Europeans arrived, and actually before the tribes arrived, this island and Spit were “owned” by the wildlife on them. The birds. The American public are currently protecting the habitat of these animals for all of humanity, not just for a “business-forward” entity, no matter who they are or however many generations they have been here.
Given the definition of the Commissioners in this ill worded paragraph, then *all* lands in the U.S. are not public or somehow deserve to be given back to all tribes because we took them all.
The Commissioners should strike that paragraph. It serves no purpose other than add fuel to the idea that somehow anyone opposing this is anti-tribe or racist. The opposition simply wants this co-management to continue.
Finally
“For these reasons, Jefferson County urges the delegation to carefully consider these complexities before advancing the Act.” As usual, when confronted with public opposition, the politicians decided to simply ask for more information and public input by Representative Randall.
To the public and Commissioners, let me simply state that I know the opposition people quite well. Virtually all of them have worked for and possibly even donated to your campaigns. Most of them own homes and businesses in Jefferson County. They pay taxes to this county. They appreciate that you listen to them as well as you listen to the Tribe, a sovereign nation demanding something that no one but them has asked to be given away.
“A new lawsuit challenging a logging project in Oregon threatens to unravel the management plans governing hundreds of millions of acres of federal public land….“They’ve opened Pandora’s Box here,” said Susan Jane Brown, the attorney who filed the lawsuit and serves as principal at Silvix Resources, a nonprofit environmental law firm.”
If there ever was an environmental reason to make sure Democrats take back Congress this fall, this is it. You likely have never heard of this issue before now, but it’s been used to undue numerous environmental protections across the country.
Up to $9,900 in turned-back grant dollars are being made available to new projects by the North Pacific Coast Marine Resources Committee (NPC MRC). Sponsors of past and current NPC MRC projects are invited to apply as well. Projects must promote marine stewardship, restoration and citizen engagement focused on the resources and communities of the North Olympic Peninsula’s Pacific Coast. Please see the attached application or contact me for more information. The deadline is July 17, 2026 by email to tpokorny@co.jefferson.wa.us. Proposals will be ranked by the NPC MRC at its regular meeting on July 21, 2026, 4-6pm.
Exclusive to the Olympic Peninsula Environmental News
Protection Island National Wildlife Refuge
In a surprising statement Monday in a meeting of the Jefferson County Board of County Commissioners, Jamestown S’Klallam Chairman and CEO Ron Allen stated that a number of tribes in the Salish Sea and coastal waters seek to transfer ownership of National Wildlife Refuges (NWR) and incorporate them into their tribal reservations.
This proposed transfer of numerous public lands to private entities like the tribes, is unusual and raises questions about the process of transfer of public lands out of public hands.
Chairman Allen came to the meeting to discuss the proposed “Land Transfer of Dungeness Spit and Protection Island”, and was commenting on this transfer to the three County Commissioners (and public in attendance) when he mentioned that this land transfer is only part of a larger effort by all the tribes to take back public lands that are National Wildlife Refuges. He said that the Makah tribe was seeking land transfers of three properties off the coast, the Nisqually were looking to transfer one adjacent to theirs, and the Lummi Nation or Swinomish (he wasn’t sure which) were looking to transfer the San Juan Islands Wildlife Refuge.
“…Because we know (the) Makah’s going to go after the three (refuges) on the coast. And we’re pretty certain that (the) Lummi or “Swin” (Swinomish) will go after the San Juan (reserve)… We know that that once we get this done they’re gonna go after the other three or four.” Allen said.
He went on about the Nisqually Tribe: “…There’s other tribes doing exactly the same thing just like this…. They’re (The Nisqually Tribe) are always pursuing the refuge in their area in Nisqually Valley area.” It is likely that what Chairman Allen was referring to was the current Nisqually Clear Creek Land Transfer Act of 2026 which is sponsored by Representative Marilyn Strickland and Senators Cantwell and Murray. The tribe is in the process of having U.S. Fish and Wildlife transfer buildings at the hatchery which sits on tribal land to the tribe. It is not seeking to transfer the Billie Frank National Wildlife Refuge to them at this point, but Allen’s comments raise questions about the future of the refuge.
There are six maritime National Wildlife Refuges in Washington State managed by the US Fish and Wildlife Service. They are considered the Washington Maritime National Wildlife Refuge Complex:
The Jamestown S’Klallam currently have been in a co-management agreement with Fish and Wildlife, being paid approximately $800,000 for their work on Protection Island and Dungeness Spit. It is unclear if the Trump administration would be in favor of granting these annual funds if the properties were no longer owned by the Federal Government. It is agreed by all parties that they have been doing exemplary work for the government, and their ability is not being questioned. There have been no calls from the Trump Administration, the Federal government nor the State government to transfer these two particular lands. The request has come only from the Tribe and not from the public. Many public comments ask that nothing change in the relationship.
Washington U.S. Representative Emily Randall (D) has been in talks with the tribe for months if not years, and has openly acknowledged her support of the goal of a land transfer of Dungeness Spit and Protection Island to the Tribe. At a recent public meeting Representative Randall seemed taken aback at the level of public concern over the transfer. The public has only been aware of this land transfer since April. The Jefferson County Board of County Commissioners, City of Sequim and Clallam County Commissioners meetings have been the only local way for the public to comment in person despite this being a federal issue. The Clallam County County Commissioners meetings have been very contentious. The lack of federal sponsored meetings from Randall on the subject is unusual, given the outpouring of negative comments at both counties meetings.
The Trump Administration has been giving up public lands like these refuges as part of their announced Project 2025, which calls for government to get out of the vaguely worded business of “conservation”. In Texas, the administration is in the process of giving away part of the Lower Rio Grande Valley National Wildlife Refuge in south Texas to SpaceX in exchange for other properties by SpaceX. A lawsuit has been filed on June 10th to stop this transfer.
Chairman Allen said that they took a big ad in the Peninsula Daily News and Port Townsend Leader because they wanted to be as transparent as they possibly could be …but he added, “Congresswoman Randall asked us to kind of back off on it and we said, okay, that’s fine.” (emphasis mine) This raises the question of whether Congresswoman Randall asked the Tribe to not advertise their intentions to the public.
Washington Senator Maria Cantwell has also been in discussion with the Tribe but has not yet fully committed to the transfer and would like to see more public input, according to a person who discussed it with her staff. However she has not held any public meetings on this. There has been no mention of the Governor being involved in the discussions at this time, but it could be deduced that this kind of large scale planning would have been mentioned at some point to him.
This reporter has seen the draft bill that has been written by tribal lawyers that is assumed to be entered into the U.S. Congress at some near future date. The draft bill does not contain any legally binding language that would protect the island, spit, nor the nearshore waters that are owned by DNR from the tribe using it for commercial aquaculture. The concern by the environmental community is that the rare protected species on the island feed off the marine flora and fauna of the waters and beaches around the island. Creating a monoculture “farm” could impact the amount of food available for the birds. The current tribal council and Chairman Allen claim they have no plans. But it is easy to petition the Washington State Department of Natural Resources to open privately held shoreline to commercial use. DNR have a long history of supporting aquaculture and the State of Washington legally views aquaculture as a desired commercial priority. Once it becomes part of tribal lands, it would also be exempt from state or federal oversight as negotiations would be nation to nation based on treaty law.
The Protection Island National Wildlife Reserve was created in 1982 after almost 20 years of work by bird lovers Zella Schultz, Eleanor Stopps and the coordination with Seattle Audubon. It is the breeding ground of most of Puget Sound’s glaucous wing gulls as well as rare Tufted Puffins and Rhinoceros auklets. It’s creation was supported by virtually all the Washington State federal and state senators and representatives, including Senators Warren Magnuson, Henry Jackson and Slade Gorton along with Republican governor John Spellman.
The tribe has admitted that they look forward to writing their own rules for use of the island. In an interview in the local Port Townsend Leader Tribal Vice Chair Loni Greninger stated, “If we’re able to have that fuller ownership instead of co-management, then I don’t have to rely on any other government and their rules and regulations. I can take my deeper regulations from an ancestral standpoint and be able to infuse that and implement it.”
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A large crowd of people gathered at Cape George on Sunday to hear Lorna and Darrell Smith discuss both the history of Protection Island and why they are concerned about the proposed Jamestown S’Klallam Land Transfer that the tribe recently has made public.
In the 1970s and early 1980s Lorna Smith was a key person in the work done to make Protection Island a national wildlife refuge. She acted as the liaison between the Seattle Audubon Society and the two women from Jefferson County that led the battle to get the island designated as a refuge, Zella Schultz and Eleanor Stopps, The thousands of letters of support from both native and non native Americans convinced even normally reticent politicians such as Senator Slade Gorton to help push the legislation through Congress and convince President Ronald Reagan to sign it. It was supported by all members of the Washington delegation and the Republican governor, John Spellman.
Also in attendance on Sunday were two granddaughters of Eleanor Stopps who share Lorna’s concerns. This reporter, who also worked with Audubon photographing the spit in the late 70s, also was in attendance.
The Smiths spent the first hour discussing the rich bird heritage of the island and the Spit, before pivoting to the proposed land transfer and the many questions that need to be answered about this proposal.
The Tribe currently is paid approximately $800,000 a year by the federal government to co-manage the Spit and the island. A month ago the Federal Government authorized over $76 million to support the refuges of the country. Money is there. There is no imminent threat of the government cutting off funds. That would have to be authorized by Congress.
The tribe has already begun requesting the ability to lay 80,000 bags of oysters on the bottom of Dungeness Spit’s inner bay, much to the dismay of bird supporters, who worry that this may cause continued loss of fish and other animals the birds feed upon. Currently, there is a lawsuit moving through the courts to stop this from happening.
In March, tribal Vice Chair Loni Greninger testified in Congress that the co-management has been very successful from both the point of view of the Tribe and the government. So if the working arrangement for co-management is successful, why should the Tribe give up $800k and why should Americans give up one of their 570 national wildlife refuges to the Tribe to become owned by them? How much is the Spit and the island worth to the Tribe and why? The answer might be found in the tribe’s lucrative aquaculture industry, wholly owned by them. While the tribe in their proposal denies having any plans for anything other than the vague term, “conservation” the actual answer to this question might have come from Vice Chair Greninger’s comment to the Port Townsend Leader on April 22nd edition. In it she stated:
“If we’re able to have that fuller ownership instead of co-management, then I don’t have to rely on any other government and their rules and regulations,” she said.
This is exactly what is feared by those who fought so hard to protect this island and Spit. With the tribe in full ownership, we will have no say as to what happens to it, nor if future tribal leaders decide to utilize these environmental treasures for economic gain. While it is understandable that the Tribe once used to forage for seafood there, the differences between subsistence shellfish harvest and modern mechanized aquaculture, with the ability to liquify the bottom with air compressors to get to geoduck, or spread thousands of bags of oysters across hundreds of acres at a time is a far cry from how it once was done.
There is every reason to continue to have the tribe manage the refuges. There is little incentive for Americans to simply hand them over to satisfy a demand. Why is Representative Emily Randall and Senator Maria Cantwell so hellbent on getting this done?
The birds are currently protected, as is the unique ecosystem they rely upon. Why should Americans relinquish this to a tribe that is engaged in the business of oyster, geoduck, crabbing, fish farming and fishing when they themselves are admitting that they want to set their own rules for the use of Protection Island? If the Tribe does get it, will we be on the outside looking in and have no input into protecting birds that live there? Many of us are waiting for more answers.
An argument that has been used recently to support the notion of the Jamestown S’Klallam Tribe taking ownership of our two wildlife refuges is that the current administration is not funding support for refuges. This press release seems to show that’s not quite true.
This week I wrote an Op-Ed piece that was published in the Port Townsend Leader. In case you don’t have access to the Leader I have included what I wrote below with minor updates. Unfortunately, the Leader only allowed a 700 word limit on the editorial. Obviously, there are many more words to be said about this proposed transfer. A few of them would be: if you agree that more needs to be clarified, and that the process ought to be slowed down, please contact our city, county, state and federal representatives and make your point of view known.
Your comments might be to oppose or simply slow the process to make sure that the island is never to be used for any commercial activity. That is currently not a part of this discussion between the Tribe and the State and Federal Government.
I want to clarify that I do not support efforts I’m hearing about in Clallam County from a group who oppose this and appear to be anti-Tribal in nature. I am not anti-Tribe.
You might ask: Why should I have any credibility to discuss this issue at all?
I have worked for the Tribe, creating two films over 5 years. I worked closely with the late Tribal Elder, Marlin Holden, a close friend, for “Treaty Resources: Legacy of Our Ancestors” that is viewable at the Tribe’s library. I have interviewed the late Kurt Grinnell and Ron Allen. I have presented in front of the Tribal Council a number of times. I was trusted by the Tribe to video tape tribal meetings, something I was told had never been allowed by anyone outside the Tribe. As a member and chair of the Jefferson County Marine Resources Committee I supported efforts led by the Tribe and other aquaculture companies to reestablish Olympia Oysters in Discovery Bay. The Tribe has done an outstanding job under Ron Allen and Kurt Grinnell’s leadership to forge new economic engines for the Tribe and Clallam County’s benefit, including an active aquaculture industry that sells geoduck to China along with oysters and clams regionally.
Promotional poster for Legacy of Our Ancestors
I produced a second film, paid for by the Tribe about the Dungeness River Management team on the restoration of the Dungeness River, called “Working for the River”.
Promotional poster for “Working for the River”
But I also was there at the efforts to create a wildlife refuge at Protection Island. In late 1970s, I was a professional photographer who volunteered for Seattle Audubon, the organization leading national efforts organized by Jefferson County locals Zella Schultz and Eleanor Stopps over a 20 year period. I traveled to John Wayne Marina where Fish and Wildlife staff took me to the island to photograph. The island had been under threat of having 800 lots developed, with no protection for the rare bird habitat that did and does exist there. Through all the efforts by Zella, Eleanor, Lorna Smith, Hazel Wolf and thousands of others, Congress finally established the Refuge, especially with the help of Republican Slade Gordon and Governor John Spellman, Democratic Senators Scoop Jackson and Warren Magnuson & Governor Dixie Lee Ray, along with the entire Washington State delegation who convinced the Reagan administration to sign the bill, the only such refuge established during his eight year presidency.
I have read a lot of what the Tribe wants to do with Protection Island. On the surface, with little detail, it seems benign. I have read a draft of a possible Congressional Bill that would establish the handover. But I am very troubled by the possible use of this island refuge for commercial aquaculture. Destroying the nearshore for commercial purposes would impact the habitat that these birds need to feed and survive. My concern is that we are rushing into an irreversible action with very little forethought and this legal business decision is not clearly defined at the moment. Now is the time to do the right thing and ensure that Protection Island is protected for *all time and all people* of the United States. That is what currently exists.
To hear more on this issue, I will be on KPTZ (91.9 locally on the Olympic Peninsula and kptz.org online) at 9PM Sunday May 17th on Phil Andrus’ “Cats in our Laps” show for one hour to discuss this in even more detail and answer questions from Phil. The show will be podcast later.
With that background, here is the 700 words that were published today in the Port Townsend Leader. I have expanded on this original letter today slightly to include a few issues that I was forced to edit out due to space constraints.
If I told you that a prized National Wildlife Refuge was going to be handed over to an aquaculture company, what would be your reaction? If I told you it was going to be handed over to The Jamestown S’Kallam Tribe, would your reaction be different? Would it be different if you knew that the Tribe runs an expanding aquaculture company?
What if I told you that in a few years, you will not have any say in what the aquaculture company does with the Refuge? That is exactly what is happening.
Protection Island National Wildlife Refuge is being considered for transfer to the Jamestown S’Klallam Tribe to add to their reservation. Protection Island is currently owned by all of the citizens of the United States. Why does the Tribe want it for their exclusive use? And what is the importance of Protection Island?
The U.S. Department of the Fish and Wildlife has this to say about Protection Island:
Protection Island National Wildlife Refuge provides some of the last remaining undeveloped habitat for many burrow-nesting seabirds in the Salish Sea, but is of particular importance to the rhinoceros auklet. Scarred by over a hundred years of farming and grazing, and carved up for a summer home subdivision in the late 1960’s, it was finally recognized in 1982 with a National Wildlife Refuge designation before irreversible damage occurred.
It supports thriving wildlife populations, including what is thought to be the third largest rhinoceros auklet colony in North America, one of the last two breeding sites for tufted puffins in the Salish Sea, and the largest glaucous-winged gull colony in Washington state.
Over the last year, the Jamestown S’Klallam Tribe have been working in conjunction with the U.S. Department of Fish and Wildlife and U.S. Representative Emily Randall to transfer the title of the island, with its nesting habitat, to the Tribe. At this time, the proposal does not specify the aquatic lands, which remain with the State, but mentions a path to the state relinquishing them to the Tribe in the future.
There is a draft bill that will soon be introduced to make the transfer happen. This work has been done by the Tribal attorneys without any public input. It oddly goes along with the Trump administrations goals of getting the United States of out management of Federal Lands. Project 2025, specifically the “Mandate for Leadership” document, proposes restructuring federal land management by prioritizing energy production, expanding logging, and increasing state or private control over public lands. (highlight is mine). Key proposals include Chapter 13 (Interior Department) for dismantling conservation agendas…
We have already transferred the Dungeness Spit Wildlife Refuge to the Tribe with an understanding that the Tribes aquaculture business was going to drop 80,000 bags of oyster spat on the bottom of the bay. This transfer was opposed by the wildlife biologist that worked at the Spit at the time that the transfer was proposed. There is currently a lawsuit in progress to challenge the process that was used to do this transfer.
Question: “Is the proposed transfer of Protection Island really the best thing for us to do?”
Protection Island refuge was established after a national campaign led by two local women, Eleanor Stopps & Zella Schultz, and the work of the Seattle Audubon Society led byHelen Engle and Hazel Wolf one of the legendary environmental leaders in our state. It was a work that took tens of thousands of volunteer hours with help from National Audubon Society and The Nature Conservancy. (You can listen to an interview I conducted with Eleanor Stopps in 2010 for my film “Voices of the Strait” at the following link.)
Transferring the Island to the Tribe means that it becomes part of it’s reservation and sovereign territory of the Tribe, no longer forced to follow the rules and regulations of the US Wildlife Refuge Acts of 1966 and 1997 There is no provision made for any public input into future tribal decisions on the use of the island, or it’s shores. There are vague references to the tribe continuing “conservation efforts” without specifying what they are. It will be up to the Tribe in concert with the State Department of Natural Resources to decide if they want to use the island’s shoreline for commercial aquaculture. DNR has been promiscuous in its granting of aquaculture permits. Can we trust that this commercially driven Tribe will make the right decisions on behalf of our Refuge when we will have no voice in decisions moving forward?
Also, the great work that the Tribe has done in restoring environmental places like Jimmy Come Lately Creek, the Dungeness River and other locations was done with Federal and State grants or funds. If the Federal Government is attempting to rid itself of Federal lands like this, who is going to pay for the ongoing management the Tribe claims they will do?
There are many who trust Ron Allen. What about future Tribal leaders after him?
What protection do we have if the Tribe’s plans dramatically shift towards commerce than protection? Can we effectively veto or alter the Tribes’ activities on the island? How? The act of moving this crown jewell of wildlife will place it beyond the jurisdiction of local or state officials forever. In fact, it makes enforcement by the Federal government a nation to nation affair that leaves our voices out of the regulation process.
I suggest we start by stopping. There is no need for speed in this process. If Republicans want to get rid of Wildlfe Sanctuaries and Democrats want to support whatever the Tribes want, none of that will change with another year or two of public input. Pause this transfer while we figure out how all of us and not just one Tribe, will have a voice in the future of Protection Island if we relinquish control over it to the Tribe.
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The never ending drama of the State Wildlife Commission continued with an open session allowing comments from both sides in the controversy. We urge the Governor to take steps to remove Director Kelly Susewind. The Governor never had any need to follow the lead of the hunters associations as they hated him from the beginning and never would have voted for him in the past or the future. These attacks on Commissioners nominated for their environmental protection stance and the ability to follow science rather than the hunting communities perceived needs to kill bears. This continues attacks across the country on environmental protection under this radical regime in Washington D.C. that fuels this behavior.
Commissioner Smith is a local environmental activist from Jefferson County. I’ve known her and worked with her and her husband Darrell for decades. She was part of the team that lobbied congress to get Protection Island turned into a National Wildlife Refuge in 1982. She has fought for wolf and cougar protection along with protecting bears from slaughter. This hunting often leaves orphaned cubs in its wake. There is no one more qualified to fight to protect the issues of the environment than her. If the Governor abandons her, it will be a stain on his supposed environmental credentials for the rest of his term.
From the Washington Standard:
Surly public comments are a staple of Washington Fish and Wildlife Commission meetings, revealing the deeply personal stakes of those fighting over how far the state should go in protecting various species or allowing for hunting or fishing.
But last week’s session carried a slightly harsher tone, fueled by an investigation into whether commissioners violated open meetings and public records statutes ahead of a decision in 2022 to ban spring bear hunts, and a federal civil rights lawsuit filed against the agency’s director by a commissioner targeted by the probe.
The meeting took place Thursday to Saturday in Olympia. Speakers vented grievances with decisions of the citizen panel, actions of individual members and leaders of the Department of Fish and Wildlife, which the commission oversees. Some called for commissioners to resign, others for agency Director Kelly Susewind to be fired.
In a lawsuit, the commissioner and a wildlife group leader say department leaders manufactured allegations against them because they questioned their decisions.
The ongoing passion play attacking the environmental “wing” of the Washington State Fish and Wildlife Commission continues. This battle between the environmental wing and the hunters wing has gone from bad behavior to truly ugly.
To understand this issue, other than reading the good article on the Standard, found here: Washington State Standard Article you have to understand that this stems from a debate over whether hunters should continue to be allowed to kill bears in our state.
The commission, which is nominated by the Governor, has been a lightning rod for hunting groups nationwide. The current Commissioner, Lorna Smith, who lives in Jefferson County and has been employed by an NGO that is anti-bear and cougar hunting, is under attack by these hunting forces and oddly enough, the head of WFW department, Kelly Susewind and Deputy Director Amy Windrope. The Commission is in charge of overseeing Susewind’s department!
To add to all this, Governor Ferguson, who ran on an environmental ticket, in an early move to apparently throw an olive branch to the hunting community, fired former commissioner Tim Ragen. That act enraged environmentalists who said that Ferguson was reneging on pledges to help the very people who got him elected.
There is so much more to this soap opera. It wouldn’t be so pathetic if the killing of bears weren’t at stake. Do we really need to hunt this animals for money anymore?
Please read the Standard’s piece for a more detailed overview.
Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) are relaunching WE-bike on March 30. This e-bike rebate program makes e-bikes and certain cycling accessories more affordable for people in Washington state.
People living in Washington ages 16 and up can apply for rebates between March 30, 2026, and March 29, 2027. The program will randomly select applicants monthly starting April 13. Applicants only need to submit one application to be considered for the monthly selections.
Rebates alone will likely not fully cover e-bike purchases. Recipients can reduce the overall cost of e-bike purchases at participating bike shops by $300 or $1,200, depending on income eligibility. They can put rebates toward qualifying models of all three classes of e-bike.
To apply for a $300 rebate, you need to live in Washington state, be at least 16 years old, and have a working email address.
To apply for a $1,200 rebate, you also need to have an income at or below 80 percent of the median for your county. In Jefferson County the Median income is $74,048. 80% of that is $59,238. So many younger people likely could apply for this rebate here in the county.
Qualifying e-bike types
The rebate can be used for qualifying e-bikes, e-cargo bikes, and adaptive e-bikes.
E-bikes have batteries, working pedals and a motor. E-cargo bikes are for carrying cargo or multiple people. Adaptive e-bikes provide extra support or stability.
WE-Bike helped nearly 3,000 Washingtonians purchase e-bikes and related safety accessories in our 2025 pilot program.
University of Washington researchers learned rebates motivated people to buy e-bikes they couldn’t or wouldn’t have otherwise, especially people in lower-income households. Nearly half of rebate recipients surveyed said they used e-bikes to travel to new destinations. In all, we offered rebates to 6,861 out of 37,751 applicants from all 39 Washington counties.
Program funding
This grant program is entirely funded through Climate Commitment Act revenues. The CCA supports Washington’s climate action efforts by putting cap-and-invest dollars to work reducing climate pollution, creating jobs and improving public health.
Other ways to try e-bikes
E-bike lending library pilot program
While many people are interested in e-bikes, not everyone will be able to receive a rebate through the WE-Bike program. People also may not be ready or able to purchase e-bikes for various reasons.
Programs like e-bike lending libraries can help more people try out e-bikes.
The focal point for environmental news & perspective on the news. Our goal is to help educate and connect the public on the Peninsula. We are not a non-profit so donations are not tax deductible. Maybe someday with your help!
This site is based on news and my opinion on that news. I come with over 50 years of experience in various environmental and tribal involvement. You may not agree with my POV. At my age, I am willing to listen to your POV and put it in comments. But I might not agree with you and that's the way it works.
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