Volunteers gather each summer to restore the fish ladder at Chambers Bay. County staff have funding and will remove the dam at the same time that the upstream bridged is replaced. ____________________________________________________________________ Each fall Al Schmauder gathers volunteers and Puyallup Tribe employees to repair “his” fish ladder at the Chamber Bay Dam. The ladder was […]
From the Port of Tacoma to the crop growing farms of Puyallup Valley, this is the diverse County Council 5th District that Bryan Yambe represents. As the previous Deputy Mayor of Fife, he has brought residents, farmers and industry together. Meet Yambe and express your concerns at a fundraising party coming up on Wednesday June […]
Complete the Streets By Kirk Kirkland Streetscapes can make all the difference in a community. Just look at what University Place has done, creating a tree-lined boulevard and walkable community on Bridgeport Way. A three year effort by Futurewise activists finally passed legislation in Olympia, implementing “Transit Oriented Developmen.” in cities and unincorporated areas. At […]
By Kirk Kirkland In the beginning there were four environmental groups working together to stop Taylor Shellfish from getting a permit for the largest Industrial aquaculture proposal in Pierce County. At their first hearing before the County’s Hearing Examiner, these groups presented a long list of issues to stop the permit for a 30 acre […]
Looking for a peaceful, educational Sunday stroll? by Tom Galdabini Spring was vibrant at Morse Wildlife Preserve as we kicked off another Forterra Nature Discovery™ event — “Spring Birding.” There were signs of beaver, deer and, in the middle of our exploring and not very far away, a chorus of coyotes howling to each […]
Review of Thurston County Court permit for the Tiny Home Village? On March 28, the Thurston County Superior Court convened on Zoom with over 60 people attending. Others in the courtroom were not visible on camera. Prior to the meeting, the judge had read the legal briefs about the appeal of the Conditional Use Permit […]
By Kirk Kirkland and Al Schmauder Will Pierce County be able to meet future demand for clean drinking water required by increasing population and development in the Chambers-Clover watershed? Water managers conclude there will be adequate water to supply homes and other uses until about 2040. Lakewood Water District (LWD) committed to sell up to […]
by Claudia Finseth It’s March 25, 2025. Those of us fighting against the destruction of the Spanaway Marsh have been at it for over two years now and spent over $140,000 dollars. Let’s take stock. In December of 2024, the Tacoma Rescue Mission brought in massive equipment, and on the high point in the midst […]
by Kirk Kirkland, John Garner and Claudia Finseth Ghost shrimp are native to the Pacific Coast of North America. They lay their eggs in estuaries, and the newly hatched offspring then leave the estuaries to live and grow in the ocean. When the sfuly shrimp return to the estuaries to lay their eggs in […]
Friends of Burley Lagoon (FOBL) and Coalition to Protect Puget Sound Habitat (Coalition) have appealed a Conditional Use Permit that would allow the largest geoduck aquaculture installation in the county. A federal judge in Seattle in 2019 revoked 900 permits and asked that all new permits have a Cumulative Impact Analysis. The appeal asks the […]
Committees, deadlines, votes, oh my! Well folks, we’ve made it past the first major milestone of the legislative session– what’s called ‘policy cutoff’ –where all bills must first pass out of a policy committee before getting a chance to be heard by the full House or Senate. Legislators have been pruning bills left and right, […]
by Kirk Kirkland It’s complicated: Backhoes dredging in creeks without permits; 900 trees were clearcut; Understory vegetation bulldozed; Exposed soil left to run off into Spanaway Lake; Violation Notice from WDFW ignored; Fill and Grade Permit handed out after-the-fact without a fine. Then a few weeks later, fish in Spanaway Lake started to die. These […]
by Kirk Kirkland The most interesting testimony at the recent appeal of the Pierce County Fill and Grade Permit for the Spanaway Marsh was about the bald eagles’ nest there. Eagles have a lifespan of up to 70 years and mate for life. These two have nested in the Spanaway Marsh for at least 23 […]
Just a glance at the front page of many newspapers and it is depressing to read more than a headline. It is clear that Trump does not have a plan for reform. Like his last term he is only capable of destroying agencies like the National Park by reducing their funding. Congressman Adam Smith is […]
by Kirk Kirkland After a successful election in November 2024, the environmental community in Pierce County has a rare chance to work with newly elected leaders to pass our environmental agenda. Considerable ground was lost in the last 8 years, as the previous County Executive used his “Executive Priority” to ignore environmental laws of the […]
by Claudia Riiff Finseth Pierce County will have a new government this month. What will the next four years be like? Will they be more of the same as the last eight years? I have great hope that they will be different. Different, first and foremost, is restoring a healthy county democracy. This can be done […]
by Kirk Kirkland and Claudia Finseth Rural Bonus Density designation is removed from the PC Comprehensive Plan by Kirk Kirkland and Claudia Finseth The original Pierce County Comprehensive Plan carefully zoned rural areas so they would stay low density. This was both to keep rural character intact and to help consolidate county resources. But Because […]
By Kirk Kirkland Burley Lagoon, WA — The Pierce County Hearing Examiner finally delivered their 150-page decision granting a permit to Taylor Shellfish for the largest industrial geoduck farm in Pierce County. The Friends of Burley Lagoon was one of three organizations that appealed the Environmental Impact Statement. They requested the permits be denied. The […]
In November, several major shoreline issues moved forward in dramatic ways: Washington Department of Natural Resources will prohibit most net fish pens in the state. A federal judge set a schedule to review the latest request to revoke another group of Army Corps of Engineers permits issued without a NWP 48 permit or without environmental […]
On November 4, the Pierce County Council’s committee on Community Development & Environment reviewed 14 amendments that would have created a fundamental shift in the protection of rural areas by allowing a Bonus Density for new housing construction. Twenty-eight people attended on Zoom or in the room. The speakers debated the bonus density on whether […]
