Earth Share of Washington

Earth Day becomes Earth Month

-By Deanna Matzen of Earth Share organization Earth Ministry

It began in the early 1960s. Rachel Carson's book, Silent Spring, was published in September of 1962, awakening America to the environmental crisis before us. Shortly thereafter, Wisconsin Senator Gaylor Nelson felt increasingly troubled by the lack of political concern for the natural world and began to speak on environmental issues around the country. After six years on the stump, Senator Nelson was inspired by Vietnam-era "teach-ins" to create a day of grassroots protest over what was happening to the environment. This became "the germ that ultimately flowered into Earth Day".

In April 1970, Earth Day became the largest nationwide grassroots demonstration on behalf of the environment in the history of the United States. Over 20 million demonstrators and thousands of schools and local communities participated. Senator Nelson did not have the time or resources to organize them all, so he hired Stanford graduate Denis Hayes, now president of the Seattle-based Bullitt Foundation, to coordinate them.

Thirty-eight years later, we are still celebrating Earth Day. Once a day to protest, now a day to celebrate, Earth Day has become too small. Somewhere along the way, within the last decade, the idea of expanding Earth Day into Earth Week and then to Earth Month was born. This was an idea whose time had come, and the concept of Earth Month spread though the US, as local municipalities, schools and colleges, public utility districts and clubs began inviting local communities to participate.

But Earth Month is not just for civic institutions. Earth Month is for churches too. At Earth Ministry, we hear more and more about congregations like St. John United Lutheran, who use every Sunday in April to celebrate a different aspect of creation such as water, earth, air, transportation and food. This excitement for people of faith to participate in Earth Month is truly evident in Seattle where multiple events will be happening simultaneously this year.

Seattle's April events calendar epitomizes the growth of Earth Day into Earth Month. The first weekend will provide an opportunity to get your hands dirty at Earth Ministry's restoration event in partnership with EarthCorps on April 5th (www.earthministry.org).

The next weekend, April 10-12, is packed with great speakers and events. The Episcopal National Conference on faith and environment, Healing our Planet Earth, will feature Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori, Bishop Steven Charleston, Bishop Greg Rickel, Dr. Sallie McFague, and speakers from Earth Ministry. See www.healingourplanetearth.org to register.

At the same time, Brian McLaren, emerging church leader and author of Everything Must Change, will be speaking on how to apply the core message of Jesus to today's global problems (www.deepshift.org). The Seattle Green Festival will also be in town, bringing together socially responsible businesses, environmental, social justice, and community organizations to focus on sustainability. Earth Ministry Executive Director LeeAnne Beres is a featured speaker at the festival (www.greenfestivals.org).

From April 11-15, the Dalai Lama and Bishop Desmond Tutu will be in Seattle for the Seeds of Compassion gathering. Anchored by the deep wisdom of His Holiness the Dalai Lama, this community-focused event will celebrate and explore the relationships, programs and tools that nurture and empower children, families and communities to be compassionate members of society (www.seedsofcompassion.net).

Wherever you live, Earth Ministry is recommending a four-part, well-rounded curriculum for celebrating Earth Month:

• Be active - Engage in a physical activity that gets you up close and personal with nature. Go for a hike, join a field trip, volunteer at a community garden, or participate in a habitat restoration project in your area.

• Get inspired - Read a book on faith and the environment. A few suggestions are Sallie McFague's Super, Natural Christians; Matthew Sleeth's Serve God, Save the Planet; Roger S. Gottlieb's A Greener Faith: Religious Environmentalism and Our Planet's Future; or Robert Hamma's devotional, Earth's Echo: Sacred Encounters with Nature. Of course, Earth Ministry's books and publications are also a fine choice!

• Worship - Incorporate creation-honoring liturgy into your church service. Earth Ministry is encouraging churches to celebrate Earth Month in worship on Sunday, April 20th. There is a wealth of liturgical information on Earth Ministry's website to help you plan.

• Be in community - Consider rounding out Earth Month with a locally-grown or vegetarian meal with family and friends on Sunday, April 27th.

Posted in the April 2008 Earth Page

Short Session, Big Wins: 2008 in Olympia

Numerous Earth Share of Washington organizations were active in the short 2008 legislative session, addressing a broad range of environmental issues from local solutions to global warming to promoting sustainable transportation to protecting children from toxics in toys and other products. Here is a summary of just a few success stories this session:

Washington Toxics Coalition - Children's Safe Product Act
After the Senate's 40 to 9 approval of the Children's Safe Product Act on March 7th, the House concurred a few days later with a vote of 92 to 2. At press time, the bill was on the Governor's desk awaiting signature.

"This is a significant victory that will protect children from dangerous chemicals in toys and other products," said Ivy Sager-Rosenthal, Environmental Health Advocate for Washington Toxics Coalition. "This bill is the strongest in the nation and will serve as a model for others to follow."

The bill received critical support from doctors, nurses, and other health professionals, especially in the final days leading up to its passage. The final bill includes the following:

• The strongest lead, cadmium, and phthalates standards for children's products in the nation.
• Requirements for state agencies to identify other chemicals potentially present in toys and other children's products that could harm children's health.
• Critical right-to-know provisions that will provide consumers information on toxic chemical content of toys and other products.

Transportation Choices Coalition - Promoting Sustainable Transportation
Transportation Choices Coalition convened a group of progressive transportation interests with the goal of combining resources behind a short list of legislative priorities for 2008 and a powerful lobby day to capitalize on their political strength. They arrived at five top-priority issues for the 2008 session. Check out their successes:

• Reducing Vehicle Miles Traveled (VMT): Tools for a Sustainable Future - As part of the governor's Climate Advisory Team process, decreasing VMT was a "most promising" strategy at reducing greenhouse gas emission and easing congestions on our freeways. The Reducing Vehicle Miles Traveled proposal in HB 2815 will: Set initial state benchmarks to reduce per capita VMT, giving regions tools to succeed and launch a collaborative process to clearly identify key strategies to achieve VMT reduction.
• Transportation Education for Kids & The Matthew Tatsuo Nakata Act - Our local neighborhoods and communities thrive when we all have the opportunity to get around in ways that are healthy and safe. Named for the Seattle City Council aide killed in November by a motorist while crossing a West Seattle street, the Matthew "Tatsuo" Nakata Act (HB 2564) was passed by the House 73 - 22, and the Senate 45 - 2. It would add pedestrian and bicycle safety to the basic minimum curriculum for driver training.
• Local Solutions to Global Warming - The choices made in local land use and zoning plans have a huge impact on global warming emissions. SB 6580, which was approved by the House 58 - 35, and the Senate 30 - 18, will establish a competitive grants program for local governments leading planning efforts; will provide tools and technology to achieve their goals of significant climate reductions; and will launch a stakeholder process to make recommendations for policy changes necessary for local governments to reduce their climate impacts.
• Tolling: Stronger Vision, Pro-Transit Policies - The legislature built a foundation for tolling policy in this year's HB 1773, which was approved by the House 60 - 33 and the Senate 29 - 19. The bill is consistent with our stated principles including:
  • The featured role of variable pricing to achieve reliable movement of people and goods
  • Authority to reinvest tolling revenues into transit service and capital, demand management, better transportation choices, and safety and maintenance in the corridor
  • Consideration of social equity, environmental, and economic issues, as well as making progress towards greenhouse gas reduction goals.

NW Energy Coalition - Boosting Energy Efficiency
Energy efficiency is the cleanest, cheapest and most abundant source of energy available. Recent studies suggest that energy efficient efforts can slash our global warming carbon emissions by half. And energy efficiency makes good fiscal sense, with potential utility bill savings for homeowners and local governments totaling millions of dollars. With this in mind, NW Energy Coalition and other clean energy advocates and environmentalists supported state legislation this year aimed at saving money and energy for Washington consumers and businesses, while cutting climate pollution.

Three pieces of energy efficiency legislation passed out of this year's legislature and have been signed by the Governor. The bills were a fraction of the total package of energy efficiency bills introduced, but are a step forward.

A big win for clean energy and low-income advocates, the passage of SHB 2847 provides sales and use tax exemptions for low-income weatherization materials and services used by community action agencies. The tax relief will encourage more weatherization of low-income residents' homes, cutting energy use, and lowering utility bills.

SHB 3120 requires the Washington State Department of Community Trade and Economic Development to conduct a study on tax incentives intended to encourage green building. The study will be presented to the legislature December 1, 2008. It's hoped that future legislation to encourage green buildings will emerge from this report.

Finally, the small business B&O tax credit, HB 3362, will help small businesses afford certain highly energy efficiency appliances, such as freezers, washing machines, and ovens.

Recent studies have shown that we can meet all new demand for electricity through 2018 with energy efficiency and renewable energy. To meet the Governor's climate goals, we must continue to meet all new demand with clean energy and will need to replace an estimated 7,000 megawatts of obsolete fossil fuel power plants in the region with renewables and energy efficiency. NW Energy Coalition will continue to support and encourage State policies that promote energy efficiency as a mechanism that reduces energy use, consumers' utility bills and climate-changing pollution.

To find out more about the 2008 legislative session, please visit the Priorities for a Healthy Washington website - www.environmentalpriorities.org

Posted in the April 2008 Earth Page

Seattle Named a 'Solar America City'

- Submitted by Earth Share organization Northwest SEED

One of 12 cities to receive the DOE Award for 2008

On March 31, Mayor Greg Nickels announced that the city of Seattle was named a "Solar America City" by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). As a result, Seattle will leverage a $200,000 DOE grant with $200,000 in local funds on a variety of efforts to promote the development of a sustainable solar energy infrastructure.

"Climate change is a very real threat to the future of our city and our planet," Nickels said. "We must expand our options for clean, renewable power. Developing solar energy as a reliable power source will do just that."

With this grant, Seattle will:
* establish strategies to increase the deployment of solar energy technology;
* incorporate both building and community-scale solar standards into planning processes; and
* develop and implement solar education and outreach programs.

Seattle's partners are Northwest Sustainable Energy for Economic Development (SEED), which works to establish a clean, diverse, and affordable Northwest energy system based on efficient use of renewable resources, with maximum local control and ownership of energy assets; and the Washington State Department of Community, Trade and Economic Development.

Posted in the April 2008 Earth Page

My Grandfather's Legacy

- By Anna Fahey of Earth Share organization Sightline Institute

In 1930, when my grandfather was just 19, he drove with his mother from Seattle to Mt. Vernon, Washington, and stood on the county courthouse steps, anxiously watching as a handful of land auction buyers gathered around him. With little money in his pocket, he knew that if anyone else in the crowd intended to bid on the parcel he'd come for, he would walk away with a broken heart.

It was his luck--and our family's great blessing--that only he had come that morning to purchase land on Cypress Island. Part of the San Juan island archipelago in the Puget Sound, Cypress is an island that he'd fallen in love with as a kid. That day nearly 80 years ago, he paid 50 dollars down on nearly 100 acres. That land would anchor our family and shape all our lives.

Recently, I stood with my grandfather--now 97--a few blocks from the same courthouse steps as he, my dad and I signed a conservation easement--another down payment, if you will--that continues our stewardship of that land into the future. A conservation easement is a voluntary legal agreement between a landowner and a land trust to permanently limit certain land uses to protect a property's natural characteristics in perpetuity. The easement stays with the land even if ownership changes. Perpetuity is a big word, but this contract is meant to last. Our signatures that day made concrete our conviction that the place is not something to possess, rather a place that we have a responsibility to take care of and a legacy we want to leave intact.

Cypress is a magical spot. The Northern Straits Salish have lived in these parts for more than 11,000 years. A few homesteaders scratched out orchards and gardens on the rugged landscape in the 1890s--but didn't last long. There are a few private cabins on Cypress today. But the island has come through the years largely untouched. It is the biggest undeveloped island in the San Juans--without ferry access, paved roads, or much human impact. Parts of the island have been logged; the forest on the majority of the island today is magnificent and healthy 100-year-old second-growth.

People who know the island, either by exploring its rocky beaches, hiking to panoramic views from Eagle Rock, or circumnavigating it in a kayak, develop a fierce loyalty to it. My family, along with other landowners and concerned neighbors, spent decades working to protect the island's integrity. Starting in the 1960s, developers bought up most of the island, proposing subdivisions and extensive development. Plans were lined up for a 5-star resort that would take up three quarters of the island, including a golf course, air strip, and marina. Overnight, Cypress could have been transformed from a pristine gem to the most densely populated island in the San Juans.

Citizen action and visionary state leadership saved Cypress from that fate. In 1975, the Washington State Department of Natural Resources purchased its first parcel on Cypress. In the late 1980s, the DNR's mandate changed slightly: the state could hold especially unique or fragile land without logging it. These special places are managed as a "public trust" for the benefit of current and future citizens of Washington State. Cypress qualified. By 1996, on the 5,500 acre island, DNR had acquired 4,700 acres.

The easement process led my family to some unusual dinner-table conversations. There was no question about our intentions: To keep the place just as it is. But thinking through the details forced us to imagine the world in 10, 50, 100 years--and beyond. We wound up working through tough questions--and facing tough realities--about our hopes and fears for our family and our region.

This conservation easement is small in the face of larger concerns -- climate disruption, population, economic stability. But any family would benefit from conversations like the ones we had, imagining the world we'd like to leave behind. Because we're all responsible for protecting our grandfather's stake--or whatever place our souls call home.

Anna Fahey lives in Seattle and is the Communications Strategist for Sightline Institute. She wishes to thank her dad, Nick Fahey, for "leading the Friends of Cypress Island for all those years," Bob Rose and the Skagit Land Trust for unflagging "dedication to conservation," and her grandfather, George Fahey, for "being as visionary at 19 as he is wise at 97.

Posted in the March 2008 Earth Page

Clean Marina Washington Celebrates Milestone, Goes Statewide

- By Chris Wilke of Earth Share organization Puget Soundkeeper Alliance

In August 2007, the Puget Soundkeeper Alliance-sponsored Clean Marina Washington program officially completed two years as the recognized statewide environmental certification program for marinas as it proudly announced the certification of the 30th marina under the program. The program is based on, and continues to work closely with, the EnviroStars program, which certified its first marina in 1995.

The Clean Marina Washington program certifies marinas that take comprehensive steps to prevent pollution from marina and boating activities including fuel spills, boat maintenance, sewage disposal and stormwater. Clean Marina Washington now has 32 certified marinas, including public and private marinas, full service marinas, yacht clubs, military facilities and marina-resorts. Washington's strongest asset is the seven-member partnership created for the program which includes business interests, government agencies and environmental advocates.

Thanks to a recent Department of Ecology Public Participation Grant, Clean Marina Washington is now funded to operate the program statewide. Even though it has always been a policy to respond to interest throughout the state, this new funding insures that staff will be visiting marinas in every region of the state and offering assistance to marinas that work towards pollution prevention. New aspects of the program include a Dockwalker program to increase boater outreach and a bilgewater collection pilot project to increase the availability of facilities for the proper disposal of oily bilgewater.

For a list of certified marinas and partner organizations go to: www.cleanmarinawashington.org

If you would like more information on the program or would like to get involved as a "Dockwalker" contact Chris Wilke at 206-297-7002.

Posted in the March 2008 Earth Page

Why MLK Day matters for environmental organizations

- Submitted by Earth Share organization EarthCorps

Everyone can be great, because everyone can volunteer for their community. – Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

In January, EarthCorps kicked off its 2008 volunteer season with the MLK Weekend of Service. EarthCorps grew from hosting one event, as in previous years, to hosting an entire weekend of service projects aimed at restoring urban forests in the Seattle area. This increase came about as part of a nation-wide effort promoting MLK Day as a “day on, not a day off,” as authorized by the US Congress in the 1994 King Holiday and Service Act. Over 500,000 Americans honored Dr. King’s legacy by participating in service projects in their communities. Here in Washington State, employers are catching on to the idea of giving employees MLK Day, not as a holiday, but as a paid day to engage in community service – and this spells opportunity for organizations that can combine their volunteer events with the principles of non-violence and civil rights that Dr. King espoused.

Civil Rights and Parks

For EarthCorps, this meant focusing on projects and partnerships in ethnically diverse communities and especially parks near the route of the MLK Day March on MLK Way in Seattle. Volunteers began the weekend of service on Saturday at Dr. Jose Rizal Park on Beacon Hill. There, volunteers pulled ivy while enjoying a unique view of downtown Seattle, Puget Sound and the International District. Their work contributes to reducing crime, drug-dealing and illegal encampments in the park, by showing that the community cares for this public space. Volunteers that day included a Brazilian delegation of the World Affairs Council.

On Sunday, volunteers joined EarthCorps and King County Parks and Recreation to help complete Phase I of the restoration of White Center Heights Park. They planted 110 Red Alders and Big Leaf Maples and 250 bare root Slough Sedges. A wetland species, these sedges had to be planted one-by-one by hand in frigid waters. White Center Heights Park has in recent years received a lot of attention beginning with its Starbucks Ultimate Park Makeover. The volunteers’ work was important in continuing the momentum started by this makeover.

On Monday, hundreds of volunteers gathered at the Cheasty Greenspace in the Rainier Valley. Once neglected and overrun by invasive plants and rubbish, Cheasty Greenspace is seeing a rejuvenation as an urban greenspace. A new walking/running path winds beside the road, and as trees have been freed from their heavy capes of ivy, the area is taking on a less creepy, more welcoming appearance.

In total, EarthCorps worked with 268 volunteers in restoration projects totaling 1,079 volunteer hours. Volunteers pulled one acre of invasive species and maintained half an acre of previous work sites. These projects contributed to healthier forests and wetlands, and most importantly, they have concrete social value in allowing neighbors to improve the quality and safety of recreational areas close to their homes.

In 2007, EarthCorps worked with over 11,000 volunteers; based on the MLK Weekend of Service, the 2008 volunteer year looks to be just as successful.

40 Days of Nonviolence - Building the Beloved Community

In addition to the physical service, EarthCorps partnered with Service for Peace to host a fair to promote community service and Dr. King's legacy of community engagement. Sixteen community organizations hosted tables at the fair, promoting their cause and interacting with community members face-to-face. The 300 fair attendees learned about nonviolence and Dr. King's Beloved Community. (This is a vision of a socially just society that Dr. King described, for example, in his “I Have a Dream” speech.) Over 100 people signed a pledge to practice nonviolence for 40 days – boycotting violent speech, actions and entertainment - to honor the 40th anniversary of Dr. King's assassination. The pledge included a commitment to volunteer with a group or organization that helps build the Beloved Community. Anyone can pledge online at www.40daysofpeace.org.

EarthCorps is a non-profit organization founded in 1993 with a mission is to build global community through local environmental service. Visit www.earthcorps.org to learn more or volunteer.

Posted in the February 2008 Earth Page

2008 Priorities for a Healthy Washington

- By Kerry McHugh of Earth Share organization Washington Environmental Council

Each year Washington's environmental community comes together to select four legislative Priorities for a Healthy Washington. By joining together, the groups that make up the Priorities collaborative are better able to advance ambitious goals in the legislature and make a difference for Washington’s land, air, and water.

This year’s Priorities encompass legislation to get our state on track to meet its goals for reducing global warming pollution, to make our communities denser and more climate-friendly, to protect and restore our urban forests, and to invigorate local farms while providing healthier food for kids.

The community is already hard at work - helping create coalitions, educate legislators, and engage environmental advocates to build support for the Priorities in the lead up to the 2008 legislative session which begins on January 14th.

Below is a look at the four Priorities for a Healthy Washington. If you’re interested in more in-depth coverage of a particular Priority go to http://www.environmentalpriorities.org to learn more.

Washington Climate Action
Earlier this year our state set goals to reduce global warming pollution. This Priority will create a structure and timeline for making these goals real. Taking action in 2008 is crucial to make progress on this important issue. Foot-dragging at the federal level is a problem, and we can take action at the state level to lead the nation toward solving this global challenge. Responsible limits on climate pollution will establish Washington as a strong leader in the clean energy economy, increase energy independence, create good new jobs, and deliver a better future for our children.

Local Solutions to Global Warming
About half of our state’s global warming pollution comes from transportation. We need to address this factor if we are to make significant headway. This Priority will help local governments make responsible plans about where we live, how we get around, and consider how those choices can reduce global warming pollution. With the dramatic population growth expected in our state, we must make responsible decisions - now - so we can reduce driving and promote efficient, livable communities.

Evergreen Cities
Since 1971, we have lost almost half of the urban forest land surrounding Puget Sound, which increases air pollution and stormwater flow, and costs the tax payers billions of dollars. Proper forest planning, management, and stewardship are necessary to reverse this trend. Keeping existing trees and planting new ones enhances quality of life for people, increases property values, gives us cleaner water and habitat for birds and wildlife, and will make Washington's cities evergreen.

Local Farms - Healthy Kids
This effort addresses two major challenges facing our state: concerns about the diet and health of our children and the well-being of our small and mid-sized farms. By connecting local kids with local food we get great Washington produce to schools and can improve children’s health. By creating vibrant demand for local food, we help stimulate local agriculture, which helps to keep working lands working.

Get Involved
There are many avenues if you are interested in helping pass these four Priorities -- two great opportunities are our annual Legislative Workshop (January 12th in Seattle) and then 2008 Lobby Day (January 23rd) where people from around the state come to Olympia to make their voices heard in the Capitol. For more information and to register, please go to Priorities for a Healthy Washington web site -- www.environmentalpriorities.org.

Posted in the January 2008 Earth Page

Can We Have Rails and Trails?

- By Shefali Ranganathan of Earth Share organization Transportation Choices Coalition

The complex three-party agreement to acquire the eastside Burlington Northern Santa Fe (BNSF) rail corridor running from Renton to Snohomish has been an on-again off-again affair that can leave even accomplished policy wonks scratching their heads. The rail corridor in question is the 47- mile BNSF Rail’s Eastside Rail Corridor, which runs from the north end of Renton to the City of Snohomish, plus a spur line running between the cities of Woodinville and Redmond. The rail corridor passes through the King County cities of Renton, Bellevue, Newcastle, Kirkland and Woodinville.

In 2003, BNSF announced its desire to sell the corridor which prompted an innovative effort by King County and the Port of Seattle to keep the valuable rail corridor in public ownership. The long and complex negotiation process that followed resulted in a decision in December 2007 by the Port of Seattle to buy the corridor for $107 million. The agreement transfers King County's right to purchase the corridor to the port, in exchange for which the port will determine its future use through a public process and give King County the right of first refusal if the port agrees to sell all or part of the right of way. If the county chooses not to purchase whatever is offered for sale, the port may sell it to any other public agency authorized to provide transit, rail services or trails. King County currently plans to purchase two segments of the corridor: a six-mile section from Renton northward to the Wilburton tunnel, and a seven-mile spur between Redmond and Woodinville south of Northeast 145th Street by June 30, 2008 in order to convert it to a recreational trail.

Yet the road to acquisition has been fraught with uncertainty throughout the process. The original plan involved converting the entire 42-mile corridor into a trail yet recent developments (including the failure of Proposition 1) have caused a handful of regional decision makers to question the effectiveness of tearing up the tracks and replacing them with a trail. Transportation Choices has maintained its stance for several years now that they want to see the corridor in public ownership as soon as possible. They support a rail and trail solution and several months ago signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the County, Port of Seattle, Cascade Land Conservancy, and Cascade Bicycle Club to make this vision a reality.

Posted in the January 2008 Earth Page

Developing Transportation Choices in 2008

- By Shefali Ranganathan of Earth Share organization Transportation Choices Coalition

Transportation Choices Coalition seeks to bring Washingtonians more and better transportation choices -- real opportunities to take a bus, take a train, ride a bike, or walk -- as well as drive alone. This year with the support of community groups, businesses and citizens, we were able to educate more than 7000 Washingtonians on transportation issues, increase resources for programs that provide commuters with transportation choices, and change the paradigm for transportation planning in the state with an emphasis on moving people and goods. We were also able to ensure that the new SR-520 Bridge across Lake Washington included a health impact assessment during the design phase. This health impact assessment - the first in the country - will identify and seek to mitigate the impacts of construction that adversely affect public health.

And we’ve still got a lot of work to do. In 2008 - with your help - we will:

• Confront the challenge of climate change by working with citizens, community groups, other environmental organizations and decision-makers to develop and implement innovative transportation policy, such as prioritizing transportation projects that reduce vehicle trips.
• Develop strategies to make more efficient use of our existing roads. These strategies will include comprehensive policy decisions and a public education campaign.
• Work with cities across the state to implement our new Sustainable Cities program, which will create and foster local transportation polices and budget decisions that encourage people to drive less.
• Work to redefine the goals of transportation planning to focus on “moving people and goods” rather than “moving cars” as a means of producing environmentally-sound and community-sensitive transportation projects.

There will be plenty of opportunities to get involved in 2008. You could volunteer, come to monthly educational forums, write letters to the editor, engage with policymakers and much more. If you would like more information on how you can help, please contact Shefali Ranganathan at 206-329-2336 or email shefali@transportationchoices.org.

Posted in the December 2007 Earth Page

Bicycle Commuter Specialist Peddles the Case for Bikes

- Submitted by Bobby Mullins from ESW organization Bicycle Alliance of Washington

Bicycle commuter specialist Kent Peterson completed a pedal-powered mission to check on the status of bicycle facilities around the state, meet local cycling advocates and spread the word about bicycles as transportation. Peterson, who combines his love of long-distance cycling with a job as the commute-program director at the Bicycle Alliance of Washington, racked up more than 1100 miles on a multi-county loop.

Peterson set off July 14 on a two-week odyssey that included visits to Port Townsend, Bellingham, Spokane, Walla Walla and Vancouver. In addition to long days on his bike saddle, Peterson scheduled visits to bicycle advocates in communities he pedaled through. Some joined him on the road to talk to him first-hand about the status of cycling in their own communities.

“I wanted to get a sense of what it's like to cycle in various parts of the state - cities, small towns and little country roads. I figured the people who can give me the best information about these places are the folks who live and ride there every day, so I spent a lot of time chatting with local cyclists.” Peterson says. “The issues that might come up in a place like Spokane are very different from those in rural areas like the Methow Valley.”

The information Peterson collected on his cross-state journey was used by the Bicycle Alliance of Washington, a Seattle-based group that represents the interests of bicyclists all over Washington. The group works with law-makers in Olympia to ensure that transportation plans include provisions for bicycles and addresses safety issues.

"As a state-wide group, it's really important that we know what kinds of problems local communities are dealing with," says Bicycle Alliance executive director Gordon Black. "An issue that is a barrier to bicycling in one city might well have been satisfactorily solved in another community. Kent's trip will allow us to gather information and at the same time strengthen our connections with groups all over the state."

Kent Peterson provided the Bicycle Alliance with updates from the road via phone calls, digital photos and blog entries. His complete trip report can be read at the Bicycle Alliance website at: http://www.bicyclealliance.org/, or follow his trip blog:
http://kentsbike.blogspot.com/2007_07_01_archive.html

Posted in the September 2007 Earth Page

State Legislature Votes for a Healthy Washington

For the past five years, twenty-two Washington-based environmental groups have come together and identified four critical environmental issues and committed to promoting solutions in the state legislature. Known as the Priorities for a Healthy Washington, this collaborative and focused approach is innovative and has proven to be a highly effective and a formidable force for change in the state.

2007 was a banner year for the Priorities. The coalition, led by Earth Share of Washington organization Washington Environmental Council (WEC) and our friends at Washington Conservation Voters, went an unprecedented four for four, as all of the Priorities passed and were signed into law. This is great news. It means a healthier Puget Sound, more money for Washington Wildlife and Recreation Programs, better air quality because of cleaner fuels, and ban on toxic fire retardants – the first of its kind in the nation!

A quick recap of the bills:

Clean-Air/Clean Fuels
The Clean Air-Clean Fuels bill will bring better air quality, reduced petroleum dependence, and a new source of good jobs to Washington. It will help keep Washington’s money in Washington, rather than using it to import gas and oil.

Passage of this bill will lead to 100% biofuels use in state and local fleets by 2015, dramatically increasing the Washington market for cleaner fuels and vehicles. This increased demand for cleaner fuels and vehicles should make both more available to the average consumer, as well as improving air quality.

Under the new regulations, Washington will create the infrastructure and incentives to produce and use biodiesel and cellulosic ethanol, actions which should reduce our greenhouse gas emissions and improve the quality of the air we breathe

Save Our Sound
Puget Sound touches almost all aspects of Pacific Northwest life, from recreational activities to providing livelihoods to the local fishing industry. And Puget Sound is sick. Thankfully, steps are being taken to return the Sound to health by 2020. These steps include a new commitment to action and accountability – real emphasis on making sure all money allocated to restore Puget Sound is part of a smart, coordinated, and prioritized effort.

To best organize these measures, a new agency has been created – the Puget Sound Partnership. This agency will ensure that our tax dollars are used for solutions for Puget Sound which make a difference. It will serve as a command center for all Puget Sound related actions – coordinating and evaluating relief efforts. This new agency and a newly created independent science panel will galvanize Washington’s fight to protect and restore the Sound for generations to come.

$100 Million for Wildlife and Recreation Programs
Included in this year’s budget was a big win for everyone who enjoys Washington’s outdoors. Priorities for a Healthy Washington lobbied hard and succeeded in having $100 million included for the Washington Wildlife and Recreation Program (WWRP) over the next two years.

This was a huge step, as the valuable programs administered by the WWRP have suffered from a stagnant budget since 1990, despite Washington’s dramatic population growth of 25% in the same period. The funds will support 135 projects, including new state and local parks, shorelines and wildlife habitat, plus the state's first ever funding for a farmland preservation program.

Eliminating Toxic Flame Retardants
Washington is the first state in the nation to ban all types of toxic flame retardants (PBDEs). Despite the existence of safer alternatives, until now, many manufacturers have used PBDEs in ordinary household products: televisions, computers, furniture, and carpeting. Unfortunately, like other toxic substances like mercury, PBDEs build up in the food chain and levels detected in humans, animals and the environment are sharply increasing. Exposure to PBDEs can negatively impact learning, memory and behavior. Thanks to Priorities legislation, Washington state will begin the process of ending PBDE usage.

While we’re only halfway through 2007, WEC and our partner groups are already thinking about the 2008 legislative session. To learn more about the Priorities and to get involved in the effort to make them a reality, visit www.environmentalpriorities.org.

Posted in the June 2007 Earth Page

May is National Bike Month

May 18th is National Bike to Work and School Day

The Bicycle Alliance of Washington offers programs to help you get started bicycle commuting

Are you looking for advice about commuting by bicycle? The Bicycle Alliance of Washington has the resources you need to select a route and learn the basics of riding in traffic. The Alliance can also help you select a bike and learn basic repair skills. Every Friday afternoon in March, April and May from 1:00 to 5:00 PM, Kent Peterson, the Bicycle Alliance Commute Program Director, will answer any and all commuting questions at the Seattle Bike Station, 311 3rd Avenue South.. Stop by to chat, get a bike map, learn how to fix a flat tire and learn more about commuting in the Puget Sound area.

Why ride you bike to work or school?

Bike commuting lets you:

• Ignore traffic reports
• Fit a workout into your busy day
• Feel energized when you arrive at work or school
• Get more control over your schedule
• Avoid parking hassles & costs
• Help improve the region's air quality
• Be part of a growing trend in King County
• Set an example of a healthy lifestyle for kids

What is a Bike Buddy and where can I find one?

If you're new to bicycle commuting, you'll get all of the support you need to get started through the Bike Buddy program. Your bike buddy or “mentor” can help you determine if your bike is "commute-ready" before taking it out on the road. Once you start riding, you'll also get a new rider packet with commuter items and discount coupons. On the other hand, if you're a more experienced rider, you'll get help only in the areas you specify.

In all cases, you will receive personalized, one-on-one attention from someone who has commuted by bike for years!

For bike commute advice anytime, call the Bicycle Alliance at 206-224-9252 or email bikebuddy@bicyclealliance.org

Interested in having a Bike Buddy presentation at your office or organization?

Experienced cyclists are available to conduct lunchtime sessions on bicycle commuting for interested colleagues. At the end of the session, participants can sign up to be individually matched with a Bike Buddy.

To schedule such a presentation, contact The Bicycle Alliance at (206) 224-9252.

Riders who want to learn basic repairs can get hands-on instruction.

Posted in the May 2007 Earth Page

Community Stewardship Along the Shores of the Duwamish

- By R.S. Mancuso, Earth Share of Washington Guest Author

R.S. Mancuso is participating in Earth Share of Washington’s Journalism Internship Program for Earth Share of Washington this winter. In addition to writing for Earth Share, she is a student at Prescott College in Arizona, working her way towards a degree in Marine Environmental Studies and Creative Writing.

I recently had the opportunity to visit a restoration site on the Duwamish River, organized by People for Puget Sound. Herring House Park in South Seattle is a lovely little park, formerly the site of Seaboard Lumber, one of the first and largest mills in Seattle from 1929 to the 1980's. When restoration commenced in 2000 the land was a barren dirt lot. With the help of the People for Puget Sound’s Sound Stewards, this park has been transformed into a lush haven for returning wildlife.

Eliza Ghitis, the Habitat Restoration Coordinator for People for Puget Sound, is proud of the fact that community members conduct the maintenance of each of the restoration sites. The volunteer Sound Stewards are responsible for maintenance, monitoring, and data collection from their adopted site. Eliza says, "One of the things that is helpful about the Sound Stewardship program, is it helps connect people to Puget Sound."

Sound Stewards, a program run by The People for Puget Sound, consists of ordinary - yet extraordinary – people who make this restoration possible by volunteering their time. When they sink their hands into dirt to plant grasses and trees, these volunteers are literally changing their world. Sound Stewards are trained by People for Puget Sound to care for shorelines and, in the process, they develop communities to help maintain and beautify the adopted shoreline.

Here at Herring House Park, little paths wind through grassy patches. Trees and assorted plants line the walkways. There are benches to sit on and watch the river drift by. The park is peaceful despite being situated in an industrial area. While I was visiting, quite a few people strolled through the park while others walked their dogs. This park held the feeling of community.

On the bank of the Duwamish River you can see a fenced area with strings running back and forth, cordoning off different sections where replanting of native grasses takes place. If you follow the path through Herring House Park, you walk through other restored sites, Terminal 107 and Puget Creek.

Eliza pointed out that Puget Creek was once a dumping ground for cement kiln dust. In 1999, it was prepared for restoration by excavating 5,000 cubic yards of contaminated soils.

As a visitor in 2007, I see no evidence of its polluted past. What I see is a place where squirrels and crows have a home. I was able to walk down to a section of beach, watch the birds, and listen to the water lap at the shore. While this shoreline will never be completely wild again, it has been reclaimed by nature with a little help from caring individuals.

With the largest percentage of shoreline property being privately owned, there is a great opportunity for individuals to contribute to improving the health of Puget Sound. Eliza hopes to help people understand how this benefits the community. "We are trying to draw attention to the fact it can raise property values," says Eliza. "There is wildlife returning to these areas - osprey and beavers have moved into the area. I was just at Puget Creek on Saturday and a bald eagle flew by."

Everyone at some point has picked up a newspaper, or magazine, and felt despair when reading about the environment. Puget Sound is in poor heath: orcas are endangered; invasive species have seized hold in waterways; stormwater pollutes the water, poisoning marine creatures.

Can you make a difference?

The answer I found: yes, one person can make a difference. The change one person can effect on his/her surrounding may be small, but with enough people doing something, the total outcome can be vast. Little things can help such as, such as safely disposing of prescription medication (not in toilets or down drains), washing the car at a facility that reuses water, avoiding chemical pesticides. Organizations like People for Puget Sound give everyone a way to get involved with the greater issues concerning our local communities, Puget Sound, and parks.

Posted in the March 2007 Earth Page

Environmental Education Grants Available for High School Students

The Washington Foundation for the Environment (WFFE) offers grants ($200 - $2000) to support environmental education and innovative projects focused on environmental awareness. With the help of WFFE funds:

• Quillisascut Farm in Rice developed a "sustainable kitchen" handbook;
• Sound Experience in Port Townsend provided environmental courses for at-risk and low-income youth on the schooner Adventuress;
• And, Seattle Urban Nature Project created of an atlas on the plant life of Deadhorse Canyon to serve as the basis for monitoring and restoration of park assets by community volunteers.

Are you a high school student with a great environmental stewardship idea for your senior project? Interested in watershed restoration and need funds to purchase tree seedlings? WFFE awards up to four $500 grants annually to support student initiated or supported environmental projects meeting local community needs. Here are few more examples from past awards.

• Five Woodward Middle School students bought construction supplies for their construction of a platform used to protect Murden Creek.
• An Enumclaw High School student used the grant to create a native plant nursery that supports salmon habitat restoration.
• Two University Prep high school students applied their grant and elbow grease to the Green Lake habitat fence project.

To apply please visit the Washington Foundation for the Environment website at http://www.wffe.org/.

Posted in the February 2007 Earth Page

Telling Our Story: the Squaxin Island Tribe Is Given a Voice

- By Earth Share of Washington Intern Maggie McKeown

“That day could possibly be the proudest day of my life�? says Rick Peters about the moment when his tribe’s story was told, by the tribe, for the first time. Rick is 52 years old and has a fresh, motivated way about him. He recently completed his Bachelor’s degree after spending most of the 1990s working as a shellfish manager for his people, the Squaxin Island Tribe. Since he was young, Rick has been fascinated by the connection his people have with the Puget Sound environment. That interest blossomed during an internship with the Thurston Conservation District and the South Sound GREEN program. Rick never had the impetus to explore that connection, however, until he met Tom Kondin of Washington Foundation for the Environment. The two discussed the lack of awareness about his people and the environment, and they came up with an idea to create a learning tool that would introduce students and the greater community to the Squaxin Islanders. Rick produced a k-12 curriculum and DVD to be used in local schools. The project discusses the importance of the Northwest's resources to the Squaxin Island people and their culture, particularly the role of fish and shellfish in tribal life. It also covers the history and the impact of settlers and the consequences of treaties signed with the American government. Finally, it lets the audience know how one can help protect these resources and the tribal way of life based on them. Rick felt this story needed to be told.

The Squaxin Island Tribe comes from the region around the seven southernmost inlets of the Puget Sound. A small tribe of about 650 members, the "People of the Water" historically flourished on the natural bounty of shellfish, salmon, berries, and other resources. They used cedar to create both spiritual and practical tools, such as oceangoing canoes. The tribe's environment is the soul of who they are, and their relationship with the earth is their culture and their spirit.

As is the case with many other tribes throughout the United States, the lives of the Squaxin Islanders changed dramatically with the arrival of Europeans. Land was becoming scarce as more people entered the region; inevitably the American government proposed a treaty to the Squaxin people. On December 26, 1854, the Treaty of Medicine Creek ceded nearly all Squaxin ancestral lands and many of their traditional rights without the tribal elders' full understanding of the treaty’s language and implications.

One hundred and twenty years later, in a landmark 1974 court decision known as the Judge Boldt Decision, the tribe had restored many of the fishing rights that were so critical to their way of life. Federal Judge George Boldt became one of the most important figures in modern day tribal history when he reaffirmed the Squaxin Island Tribe's right to fish in accustomed places. He also reallocated 50% of annual catch to the tribes. Although treaties of the past were supposed to protect these fundamental rights, settlers with modern equipment and the backing of the American government gradually displaced tribal fisherman. Judge Boldt found that, through treaties, the government promised to secure fishing rights and that the tribes had the original right to the resource, which they extended to the settlers. Finally, Judge Boldt ordered the government to limit fishing by non-Indians in these ancestral lands.

So when Rick set out to tell the Squaxin Island story and develop a multimedia curriculum, he quickly realized it would need to be a team effort. The Tribe applied for a grant from Washington Foundation for the Environment, an Earth Share of Washington organization, to help support Rick’s work. His proposal reflected his extensive research into historical archives, photographs, and dusty artifacts representing his ancestors. The WFFE grant enabled him to collaborate with the Tribe's Museum and Research Center, the University of Washington, the Washington State Historical Society, the Thurston Conservation District, and others. Rick received countless hours of support from the Museum and its volunteers, including a retired teacher who worked with Rick to write the school curriculum.

In the end, it wasn't easy pulling it together. In fact, the Tribal Council reviewed Rick's work four times before they gave their blessing to go forward with this story. But the months of work and dedication paid off, and on July 20th, 2006, Rick presented the fruit of this labor at a dinner hosted by the tribe. In celebratory fashion, Rick showed the DVD and explained the school curriculum, which will be given to Thurston County and Tribal schools. So effective was Rick's presentation and his commitment that a solid partnership formed between the Tribe and Thurston County, one that will benefit tribal and non-tribal people alike into the distant future.

It was incredibly exciting for Rick to see people come together in this effort and the greater community of the region benefit from his hard work. The curriculum has been reviewed by teachers across the County and has been delivered to schools to be used in history and social studies classes. It will also be presented at Evergreen State College and at the National Conference of Conservation Districts in October.

According to Rick, a senior tribal member recently overheard a young native dancer ask, "Who is Judge Boldt?" He told Rick, "I really hope the tribe will use this story in its education program so no other senior citizen of this tribe has to hear a Squaxin Island child ask that, unaware of the tribe's history." Rick can now relish the fact that the kids of the lower Puget Sound community will have a deeper understanding of his people.

Posted in the January 2007 Earth Page

ProBike/ProWalk Coming to Seattle in 2008

The National Center for Biking and Walking announced at its most recent Pro Walk Pro Bike conference that Seattle, WA had been selected for the 2008 conference.

Seattle will be the first city to play host to the biennial conference for a second time. Thanks to the efforts of the Bicycle Alliance of Washington and other bicycling and pedestrian advocates, along with the support of the City of Seattle and local business leaders, this will be an opportunity for Seattle and the rest of the state to showcase bicycle and pedestrian facilities. Seattle last hosted the conference in 1986.

The Bicycle Alliance of Washington is particularly excited about hosting the event as it draws attention to the ongoing efforts of transportation advocacy groups in our state and recognizes the progress we have made since the group last met in Seattle. Much has been accomplished in the last 10 years, such as Safe Routes to School programs, Complete Streets legislation, and further work on urban pathways such as the Burke-Gilman trail. While many more opportunities exist, the conference should draw the attention of community and political leaders to the work being done, successes, and future opportunities we still face in Washington and around the country.

The conference will be held the week after Labor Day and attracts over 600 planners, health professionals, traffic engineers, advocates, community activists and more to the 3-day conference.

Posted in the November 2006 Earth Page

Understanding the Impacts of I-933

- By Angela Uhl of Earth Share organization Futurewise

STAFF NOTE – William Borden, Executive Director - Earth Share of Washington endorses no legislation nor candidates for political office. With that as a preface, few issues have galvanized community opposition as initiative 933. As author Angela Uhl points out in story #2, several Earth Share non-profits – plus organizations representing farmers, firefighters, commercial workers and others – share concerns about this initiative. I hope you will read her story below.

Bryan and Renee Ross in Oregon learned the hard way what Oregon’s measure 37 could do to neighborhoods. They have owned their rural property in Clackamas County for 13 years. But now, under Measure 37, the county commission has approved a gravel mine right next to their home. As Bryan and Renee explained in a recent letter to the editor, “this gravel mine could very likely ruin our property value... This measure has given our neighbors special rights and taken away our rights.�?

The impacts of I-933 are dramatic and far-reaching. I-933 will cost taxpayers millions of dollars, allow governments to waive rules that protect our communities, and create loopholes for development leading to increased traffic and pollution. I-933 will also take away a neighborhood’s right to protect themselves and their property, and will lead to bureaucratic chaos and endless law suits.

Understanding and educating the public about the impacts of I-933 is critically important. Futurewise and a diverse coalition to defeat I-933 are working together to eliminate confusion and to deliver the facts to the people of Washington.

How can you get involved?

The good news is that a strong coalition is has joined together to defeat I-933 in Washington. The No on 933 Campaign has organized a remarkably broad coalition of opposition – over 200 organizations ranging from Futurewise to the League of Women Voters to the State Council of Firefighters to the Union of Food and Commercial Workers to the Greater Seattle Chamber of Commerce.

Local coalitions are also organizing their activists in counties around the state to spread the word to friends and neighbors about what I-933 would really do. The push is on to reach hundreds of thousands of voters to educate them about this destructive initiative before the November Election. For more information on what’s happening in your community, volunteer opportunities and other ways you can help defeat I-933, visit www.NOon933.org.

Posted in the October 2006 Earth Page

Bicycle Alliance of Washington supports the Fish Lake Trail

The Bicycle Alliance is teaming up with the Inland Northwest Trails Coalition, Spokane REI, and other interested parties to organize Friends of the Fish Lake Trail. This group of volunteers will be trained to lead walks and bike rides along the undeveloped portions of the corridor so citizens can experience and envision what this trail could be like. Members will also lead work parties to clean up segments of the corridor, and advocate for the trail’s completion. This project is supported by a grant from REI. Interested in getting involved? Contact Louise McGrody, 206.224.9252.

The Fish Lake Trail is an abandoned Burlington Northern railway line that runs from Spokane towards Cheney, and currently ends at Fish Lake. The corridor is currently owned by the City of Spokane, and is considered a city park. It starts from behind the Sunset Hill Baptist Church at the corner of Sunset Boulevard and Government Way and runs South across I-90. It follows the West side of State Highway 195 and then veers West to follow the Cheney-Spokane Road past Marshall to Fish lake. The three main access points are: 1) just across I-90 at the stop sign on Lindeke Street; 2) where the trail is broken, one mile south on Marshall Road after it takes off from Thorpe; 3) at Scribner Road just off the Cheney-Spokane Road.

The Fish Lake Trail is a crucial link in a potential cross-state bike route that includes the Centennial Trail, the Columbia Plateau Trail and the John Wayne Trail. At the Spokane end, it could be easily connected to the Centennial Trail at the Sandifur Bridge. Its terminus at Fish Lake is the current trailhead of the Columbia Plateau Trail, which is paved as far as Cheney and continues as a gravel trail to the Tri-cities.

There are several challenges to overcome for the Fish Lake Trail to achieve its potential as a transportation corridor and recreation resource. At least one of the three bridges over the I-90 corridor needs re-decking. A bridge will need to be constructed over Marshall Road where the trail is currently discontinuous. Two railroad lines will need to be crossed, either by bridges or tunnels in order to make the connection at the West end. Once these obstacles have been hurdled, the trail will need to be paved. (A short section from opposite the Spokane Memorial Gardens, through Marshall to Scribner Road is already nicely paved.)

What can you do to help?

As more people use the trail, the more widely known it will become. The best methods for traveling on the trail at this time are by foot or mountain bike. When there is snow in Spokane, it is an excellent cross-country ski trail.

You can also contact the mayor and members of the Spokane city council to let them know how important this is for the community.

Posted in the October 2006 Earth Page

Earn Commuter Cash for Carpooling

Earth Share member Transportation Choices Coalition, in addition to their work statewide for more and better transportation choices, is teaming up with the City of Seattle and King County Metro to get the word out about a program called Commuter Cash. It's open to anyone who lives or works in Seattle. There's no better time to get serious about busing, walking or biking to work more often!

Save yourself stress and do something that's good for your health, your pocketbook and the environment all at the same time -- and for a limited time only get paid for doing it! Commuter Cash gives you a way to lower the number of days you're driving alone to work and earn up to $150 on a debit style gift card that you can use anywhere Visa is accepted, for whatever you want.

Do you already commute without driving alone? You can earn $20 for each person you successfully refer to the Commuter Cash program.

Sign-up today on the Commuter Cash website:
http://www.seattle.gov/waytogo/commutercash.htm

To learn more about Transportation Choices Coalition, visit their website www.transportationchoices.org or give them a call at 206-329-2336.

Posted in the October 2006 Earth Page

Transportation Choices Coalition Tackles Upcoming Transit Legislation

- Submitted by Earth Share organization Transportation Choices Coalition

In 2007, voters in King, Pierce, and Snohomish Counties will be asked to pass a substantial Sound Transit and Regional Transportation Investment District (RTID) joint ballot package. This package will contain billions of dollars for new capital projects and service improvements. Its contents will have positive or negative impacts on air quality, physical activity, land use patterns, and mobility options. The outcome of this vote will dramatically reshape the direction of transportation and impact our health, environment and quality of life.

More Transit

Transportation Choices Coalition is a strong advocate for more transit options, including an expansion of light rail. With the entire region under construction, including the Alaskan Way Viaduct, the 520 Bridge and I-405, we'll need a way to efficiently move people through these corridors. Targeted transit investments will facilitate regional mobility. Light rail will connect our downtown job centers and retail developments, while increasing property values and providing guaranteed, predictable travel times.

Keep it Active-More Sidewalks and Bike Lanes

There's a growing recognition of the connection between health and transportation, and with half of our state's residents not getting enough exercise, we’re facing a growing health crisis. Sprawling, unconnected neighborhoods don't help--they limit opportunities for exercise, contribute to the nationwide obesity epidemic, expose communities to harmful air pollution and subject residents to increased risks of car accidents.

Don't Forget About Roads

The 520 Bridge and Alaskan Way Viaduct are in need of significant repairs. Decision-makers should carefully consider how they spend taxpayer money, ensuring that we fix the state's crumbling infrastructure first; use innovative congestion management strategies; and build road projects that preserve and enhance our neighborhoods.

Governor Gregoire and the legislature recently mandated full funding for the 520 bridge replacement. Now it's up to the region to design and build the right project. We must also continue to prioritize funding for the Viaduct and seawall replacement. Transportation Choices Coalition has long supported what we call the "Three T's" for this corridor--a tunnel, great transit, and the use of tolling to manage congestion and to pay for the project. Both these projects are important for public safety.

Manage congestion the right way

RTID officials must also prioritize two innovative ways to manage traffic and move more people and goods with our existing highways. First, tolling is an important way to provide congestion relief and fund increased choices like transit, vanpools, sidewalks and bike lanes. Second, our regional High Occupancy Vehicle lane network needs to be completed.

Transportation Choices works tirelessly to keep the public informed an advocate for more transportation alternatives in our region. For more information, please visit www.transportationchoices.org.

Posted in the August 2006 Earth Page

Seattle will be the host of the Tour De Fat on August 12, 2006

The Tour de Fat brings together bike enthusiasts and advocates for an afternoon of fun, music and merriment. Costumes and decorated bikes are the rule as the participants come for a casual ride, good music and entertainment. New Belgium Brewery will provide drinks, poured by volunteers from the Bicycle Alliance of Washington and our Friends.

Amid the hoopla, Tour de Fat also raises money for the Bicycle Alliance, the statewide advocacy group who work on behalf of bicyclists and bicycling. The Bicycle Alliance contributes to a bike-friendly Washington by pushing for safety legislation and design policies and runs programs including the Bike Buddy Program and the Metro Lost Bikes.

The festivities kick off with a cruiser bike parade, featuring your wildest costume and biggest smile. Leave the road racing machine at home.

From noon to 6 bands will provide the entertainment for you as you soak up the revelry and raise awareness and money for the Bicycle Alliance.

"Tour de Fat's goal is to recycle and divert as much waste as possible at the event. At each event on the Tour, participants help keep around 85% of the total trash out of the local landfills by composting the used beer cups and paper plates and recycling plastic water bottles and soda bottles. In addition, bands play from a solar-powered stage and the entire crew travels on B100 biodiesel fuel.

"Tour de Fat is a hair-raising, high-flying, death-defying show of incredible bike silliness and skill," said Chris Winn, Event Evangelist. "You come out to the event, hang out with your friends, ride bikes and drink a little beer. At the end of the day, you’ve done your community some good just by having fun."

The Bicycle Alliance of Washington is seeking volunteers to help with activities at the event. You can join them.

They need several dozen volunteers to make this event successful. Volunteers are needed for the following shifts:

1. Set-up the beer garden, booth tents, banners, etc 7:30 - 10:30 AM
2. Morning ride registration 8:00 - 10:00 AM
3. Beer selling 10:30 AM - 1:30 PM or 1:30 - 4:30 PM
4. Beer selling and tear down 2:30 - 5:30 PM
5. Merchandise selling 10:30 AM - 1:30 PM or 1:30 - 5:30 PM
6. Break down event 5:30 - 7:30 PM

If you're able to volunteer, send an e-mail to barbc@bicyclealliance.org or phone her at 206-224-9252 indicating your desired shift.

Posted in the August 2006 Earth Page

Sign-up for a Transportation 101 Workshop

Do you have burning questions about transportation? Then come to a “back-to-basics�? Transportation 101, hosted by Transportation Choices Coalition!
- Submitted by Melissa Briody of Earth Share organization Transportation Choices Coalition

As a member of the environmental community, you probably care very much about real transportation solutions – more transit like buses and light rail, more active transportation like bike lanes and sidewalks, and innovative congestion relief like HOT (High Occupancy Transit) lanes. Although you probably know a lot about these issues, when we go out into the community and meet with transportation experts, even they invariably have questions about what’s going on! Transportation issues are very complex and ever changing, so in an effort to simplify things and make these complicated issues a little easier to understand, Transportation Choices Coalition (TCC) created their new "Transportation 101" program. Transportation 101 is essentially a dynamic presentation and question / answer session to discuss who the major players are in transportation, what big decisions can voters expect to see in the next year or two, how all these different agencies are funded and governed, etc. TCC will come out to your business, community group, church group, college class, or political meeting – no group is too large or too small. They’ve done these brown-bag lunches everywhere from Microsoft to Real Change.

They'll answer burning questions like…
* What transportation votes are coming up in 2006 and 2007?
* Is Metro going to put more buses on the streets anytime soon? What about Sound Transit's light rail to the Airport?
* What issues will Transportation Choices Coalition focus on this year?
* Why is Tim Eyman running another anti-transit initiative?
* How can I get involved in the process?

Often these events are done over a "brown-bag" style lunch, but they can also do mornings or evenings. If you think your colleagues or friends want (or need!) a Transportation 101, please contact Transportation Choices Coaltion to set one up -- Rachel Smith – rachel@transportationchoices.org or 206.329.2336.

Posted in the July 2006 Earth Page

Stand Up for Your Parks!

- Submitted by Shane Farnor from Earth Share organization National Parks Conservation Association

The national park system suffers from an annual $600 million budget shortfall. Under-funded parks offer fewer interpretive programs, have fewer rangers patrolling the backcountry and leave historic structures in disrepair. This is why the National Parks Conservation Association will be returning to the parks this summer to encourage visitors to stand up for the parks they use and love. And they're looking for volunteers to help them reach these park visitors!

The National Parks Conservation Association will be setting up a tent and table at five Northwest national park units this summer-Mt. Rainier, Crater Lake, Olympic, North Cascades and Lake Roosevelt. As visitors come and go, they'll be asking them to take specific actions on the spot to help protect national parks from chronic under-funding and support strong park leadership. This is a great way for volunteers to see the region's parks AND do something to help protect them at the same time. For more information on how you can be involved, please contact Shane Farnor, Volunteer Coordinator in NPCA's Northwest Regional Office at (206) 903-1444 ×24 or by email at: sfarnor@npca.org.

National Parks Conservation Association was established in 1919 to protect and enhance America's national park system for present and future generations. For more information about NPCA, please visit www.npca.org.

Posted in the June 2006 Earth Page

Developers' Initiative I-933 Threatens Clean Air, Water, and Livable Communities

- Submitted by Angela Uhl from ESW organization Futurewise

On February 8th, the Washington State Farm Bureau filed Initiative 933 proposal to roll back over a decade of community protections by forcing local governments to either pay landowners for claims of diminished property value due to land use laws, or not enforce those laws at all. Effectively, the initiative would force waivers of our safeguards for land, air, and water because local governments would be unable to pay developers to follow the law. Washington voters rejected a similar initiative, Measure 48, ten years ago.

I-933 in Washington would overturn safeguards that ensure that development keeps pace with schools and roads, so that children have a good education and parents don't sit in traffic for hours each day. It would rollback protections that keep drinking water aquifers free of contamination, and that keep wells from going dry. It would strip away limits on the size of junkyards and gravel mines in communities across the state.

The Community Protection Coalition is working tirelessly and effectively to show the initiative's true colors and to build the coalition opposing the initiative. To join the coalition, please contact Aisling Kerins at aisling@protectcommunities.org or call 206-323-0520.

Posted in the April 2006 Earth Page

Policy changes threaten pristine national parks

- Submitted by Josh Walter from ESW organization National Parks Conservation Association

Protecting national parks, such as Olympic, Mount Rainier, and the North Cascades for future generations has been the priority of the National Park Service (NPS) since inception. The 1916 Organic Act, which created the Park Service, directs that the national parks be preserved “by such means as will leave them unimpaired for the enjoyment of future generations."

However, sweeping changes proposed to the National Park Service's management policies, which park superintendents and managers use as the guiding principles for running their parks, put this tradition in jeopardy. Based upon National Parks Conservation Association’s (NPCA) analysis, these draft policy changes weaken the protections for America’s national parks.

While making some potentially positive changes to the existing (2001) management policies, such as including language about the NPS's increased homeland security responsibilities and certain business practices, the Department of Interior’s current draft includes several damaging proposals. Most notably, the proposal removes significant language about the importance of conservation in park decisions.

These changes could lead to increases in more damaging park uses, such as off-road vehicles, jet skis, and snowmobiles as well as ease the way for questionable development and commercialization.
The deadline for public comments is February 18, 2006, and NPCA's Northwest Regional Office would like your help in sharing this important public feedback on this harmful management policy rewrite with the Park Service. For more information, please visit www.npca.org/stoptherewrite, or email Josh Walter at jwalter@npca.org.

This is a critical opportunity to help shape the future of our national parks and ensure they do not lose their inherent natural wonder.

Posted in the February 2006 Earth Page

Focusing for 2006: Priorities for a Healthy Washington

- Submitted by Washington Environmental Council

By working together, the environmental community achieved major wins last spring in the 2005 Legislative Session. A coalition of Washington environmental groups helped pass legislation setting new, cleaner car emissions standards, and they helped establish the nation’s first green building law requiring new public construction to use sustainable materials and design concepts. Passing these bills wasn’t easy, but it was made possible by thousands of environmentally minded people across the state who came together to support these priorities by spreading the word, writing to their newspaper, and calling their legislators to demand change.

This year is no different. The environmental coalition has narrowed their agenda to just a handful of joint priorities for the 2006 legislative session. They’re organizing for energy security, a cleaner Puget Sound, electronics recycling and the elimination of toxic flame retardants. They are also united to defend our state’s land protections. Their shared goal is to have these priorities signed into law in 2006 to ensure that our health and the health of our environment and economy will be protected.

Priorities for a Healthy Washington - 2006

• Promote Energy Independence Through Renewable Fuels. “Biofuels�? – renewable fuels produced using plant materials – can dramatically improve our energy security and agricultural viability by reducing expenditures on imported petroleum and providing a major new market for Washington farm products. Biofuels reduce emissions of global warming pollution, which is a serious threat for our snow pack-dependent region. By replacing some of our gasoline and diesel fuel with renewable fuels, this legislation will increase our energy independence by powering our lives, our jobs and our economy with homegrown fuels.
• Launch Electronic Waste Recycling. Millions of unwanted computers, monitors and TVs are piling up in homes in Washington State, and there are relatively few options available for their safe recycling. These obsolete electronics turn into millions of pounds of “e-waste�? each year, which contains toxic chemicals that are hazardous to human health and the environment. This legislation will give people a simple, free and safe way of recycling their old computers and TVs, creating jobs, conserving valuable resources and protecting public health.
• Clean Up Puget Sound. Puget Sound is in trouble. The water is polluted, our Orcas are endangered, and dead zones have destroyed marine habitat. Unfortunately, a recent Puget Sound Action Team report on the state of the Sound found that the solutions underway and those proposed are not scaled, paced or funded to match the magnitude of the problems the Sound faces. In this first step of our two year priority, we are working to support the Governor’s Puget Sound Initiative and to promote funding for cleanups, water quality improvements and shoreline restoration.
• Protect Kids’ Health by Eliminating Toxic Flame Retardants. PBDEs are persistent toxic chemicals used as flame retardants in countless consumer products including televisions, computers, furniture, and carpet. Chemical cousins of PCBs, these toxic flame retardants are rapidly building up in our bodies, our food supply, and wildlife. Building upon the significant progress made on this issue in 2005, the coalition will work to pass a bill that bans PBDEs, particularly the most heavily used form called “deca�?.

In addition, the defensive priority is to protect our quality of life from efforts to roll back land protections. The Growth Management Act has helped maintain a high quality of life in Washington over the past 15 years even as we have faced dramatic population growth. Unfortunately, these land protections are at risk as irresponsible developers seek to exploit fallout from Oregon’s Measure 37, an attempt to discard land use protections. The environmental community is united to combat this effort by halting the rollback of land use protections, and finding solutions to legitimate problems that hamper effective growth management.

Washington State's environmental community is building bipartisan support for these essential priorities. The public overwhelmingly supports a new generation of protections for our air, land and water, and our elected leaders are starting to respond. Working together, we can create a model for the nation and true legacy for generations to come.

The organizations participating in Priorities for a Healthy Washington are:
American Rivers
Audubon Washington
Center for Environmental Law & Policy
Climate Solutions
Conservation Northwest
Futurewise
Heart of America Northwest
League of Women Voters of Washington
NW Energy Coalition
People for Puget Sound
Puget Soundkeeper Alliance
Sierra Club Cascade Chapter
Transportation Choices Coalition
Washington Citizens for Resource Conservation
Washington Conservation Voters
Washington Environmental Council
WashPIRG
Washington Toxics Coalition

You can learn more about the Priorities for a Healthy Washington by visiting http://www.environmentalpriorities.org/ or by attending the upcoming workshop – see upcoming events listed below.

Posted in the January 2006 Earth Page

Transportation Choices Coalition is gearing up to support high capacity transit

- Submitted by Melissa Briody from Earth Share organization Transportation Choices Coalition

In 1996 voters in the urban areas of King, Pierce, and Snohomish Counties approved "Sound Move," a ballot measure to build the first phase of a regional transit system to connect regional employment and population centers in the Puget Sound area.

Sound Transit Phase 1 included Sounder commuter train service from Everett and Tacoma into Seattle and back (with limited runs), Sound Transit regional buses connecting Seattle and Bellevue with Everett, Tacoma and many other cities, Tacoma Link light rail line which began operating in 2003, and the 14-mile Link light rail initial segment, which will connect downtown Seattle to the airport that's now under construction in Seattle.

Right now Sound Transit is in the planning stages for its next round of regional transportation investments for King, Pierce and Snohomish Counties, called Sound Transit 2. There is a good possibility that there will be a regional transportation package including Sound Transit 2 on the Fall 2006 ballot.

Transportation Choices Coalition is lending our expertise and support for a Sound Transit 2 that promotes healthy, connected urban centers and real transportation choices. We're working with Sound Transit to include high capacity transit (light rail or bus rapid transit) to the Eastside, light rail to Northgate, more frequent Sounder and Regional Express bus service, bicycle and pedestrian paths, and strong transit-oriented development and commute trip reduction incentives in the next ballot measure.

They're also working to ensure that Sound Transit 2 includes innovative proposals to increase ridership and improve access to Sound Transit stations and services. TCC is advocating for:

• Discounted bus passes for people living near stations.
• Increased development density near park-&-ride lots and transit centers. More people living and working near stations means more riders!
• More local bus service to and from Sound Transit stations, so people can get where they need to go.
• Considerable pedestrian and bike improvements to encourage active transportation choices and facilitate transit use by those who cannot drive.

Stay Tuned! The time for action is near, but not quite here. There will be numerous chances to submit public comments and attend informational open houses around the region on Sound Transit 2.

To be notified of action opportunities and learn more about Sound Transit 2 and the potential 2006 ballot measure, sign up for Transportation Choices Coalition�s email Action Alerts on their website, www.transportationchoices.org.

Posted in the October 2005 Earth Page

Protecting People and Property

- By Tom Geiger of ESW organization Washington Environmental Council

Recently, at our three-year old son�s childcare, I was reading a story about a certain wolf trying to ruin the quality of life of a threesome of little pigs. The kids were entranced. As I read, I realized that we have a great honor as we work to preserve what is great about the quality of our state. Their future really does depend on what we do today.

And today, our quality of life is soon to be threatened. Land speculators and others who would benefit from the removal of effective land use laws are getting poised to strike at the heart of our state�s bedrock land use law.

What am I talking about? Let me explain. In Washington State we have protections that keep our growing population from resulting in California-style sprawl, even more gridlocked traffic, and loss of our open space and rural communities. The state�s Growth Management Act, while far from perfect, has done a fairly good job over the last decade at stemming out-of-control and poorly-planned growth. It continues to help us grow without losing our quality of life.

What if these protections were taken away? What if a huge mall was allowed to be built in your neighborhood, or next to the farm that grows food for your local market � and there wasn�t anything you could do about it? Unlikely, you say? Can�t happen?

Well you might think twice before you say that. Oregon used to have laws that protected its communities from irresponsible development. But last fall an Initiative (Measure 37) passed there that overturned three decades of good protections. It allows certain property owners to demand a ransom from the taxpayers whenever basic zoning laws curb development. If the public can�t pay, the protections go away. Maintaining existing safeguards could cost billions and, because Oregon's local governments lack the funds to pay, it�s expected that many of the state�s land use restrictions and environmental protections will be waived.

Take the example of land in a residential area, which has a higher dollar value as a shopping center, and was purchased before it was zoned residential. In this case, taxpayers would either be required to pay the property owner the difference between what the land is worth for a shopping center and what it is worth for houses, or else allow the shopping center to be built in the middle of a residential neighborhood.

Indeed, the Polk County Board of Commissioners recently approved a proposal to pave over 1 million square feet of land in a farming community to make way for a massive mall-like development. And there are over 1,000 other applications in process throughout Oregon to approve other types of land use changes.

And now there is an effort underway in Washington to bring that Initiative north of the Columbia River to our state. You might remember Tim Eyman, who already has decimated local government finances in Washington. Well, he and others, like the lobby for industrial farms and big-time land speculators, are looking to put this type of initiative on the ballot in Washington next year.

That�s why Washington Environmental Council has joined forces with conservation organizations like Futurewise and Washington Conservation Voters and others to make sure they don�t succeed. We know that people want to protect themselves and their property. We feel that balanced and fair local protections that lead to better communities, safer streets and cleaner water are worth keeping.

Posted in the September 2005 Earth Page

Policing the Wilderness - A pilot study with big results

- Submitted by Tania Holden from Earth Share organization Friends of the Trail

Friends of the Trail (FOT) was instrumental in acquiring funding for "emphasis patrols" in areas that needed help - not only with illegal dumping on public land, but also in curbing some of the illegal activities that seem to have a strong relation to the problem, i.e. illegal target shooting, illegal off-road vehicle use, drug labs, teenage drinking/partying, and the like. The patrols are carried out by off duty King County Sheriff's officers.

Using grant funding from King County to hire deputy sheriffs to work on weekends and holidays, officers patrolled back country roads in eastern King County, especially the Middle Fork Snoqualmie Road. They were to patrol locations where shooters were either shooting guns illegally or shooting in a fashion to create a large amount of litter, and make enforcement actions as appropriate.

From May 28 through December 4, 2004, a total of 15 officers participated with the total of 164 patrolling hours. The individual officers varied from 4-32 hours of patrolling, each.

The principal objective of the program was to discover and warn illegal shooters, or legal shooters who were leaving litter, ask for cleanup of the area, and to ticket them as appropriate. The officers kept logs of their activities using the standard sheriff's officer's form.

Study finds patrols worthwhile
This pilot study confirmed that it is feasible to find and hire deputy sheriffs to patrol back country roads on weekends to try to suppress illegal activity. The principal objective was to reduce illegal shooting, or legal shooting but associated with littering in the woods. 16 such episodes were identified, and in each case the officers admonished or warned the people involved. This included warning for littering, discovery of abandoned or stolen cars, discovery of persons with outstanding warrants or engaged in illegal activities, illegal tree cutting, and assisting people injured or lost. The study shows that there is substantial value to the citizens of the County to have officers patrolling these areas on weekends, over and above the impacts on illegal shooting/dumping.

Friends of the Trail is actively working with the King County Sheriff's office to assign officers to patrol these areas on weekends, routinely and on a rotating basis, as part of their regular schedule.

Posted in the August 2005 Earth Page

Becoming a Native Plant Steward

- Submitted by Catherine Hovanic from Washington Native Plant Society

"There was life before the Stewardship training program and then there is life after. They are wildly different. I cannot sufficiently express how valuable the experience was for me. So many new doors opened. Learning about native plants has been thrilling. At the risk of being too dramatic, I can report frequent flushes of glee at new discoveries and an insatiable appetite for more ..." - Cleveland Hall, Native Plant Steward

The Native Plant Stewardship Program is one of the Washington Native Plant Society's (WNPS) major outreach programs. Begun in 1996 in response to numerous requests for public information about native plants and native plant habitats, the program has graduated 288 stewards who have contributed over 50,000 volunteer hours promoting the awareness, appreciation, education and restoration of native plants in Washington State. Thousands more volunteer hours are diligently contributed but not reported. According to WNPS records, Native Plant Stewards have made over 236,000 outreach contacts with the public concerning native plants by teaching, leading walks, supervising other volunteers, and training or advising citizens in the Puget Sound region since the beginning of the program.

The success of the Stewardship Program has largely resulted from its ability to recruit citizens who have a potential passion for native plants and to nurture that passion so the individuals become motivated ambassadors and leaders in the preservation and conservation of native plants and their habitats. This is a unique cadre of people from all walks of life - housewives, educators, doctors, landscapers, master gardeners, and retired professionals - who band together for about 10 weeks training and become lifelong native plant advocates.

Stewardship Programs
There are currently two stewardship programs within the Central Puget Sound Chapter: a Spring Program taught in King County and a Fall Program taught in Snohomish County. In exchange for approximately 100 hours received for training, stewards make a commitment to return at least 100 volunteer project hours in the year following training. Restoration of degraded habitats, native plant conservation and environmental education are the activities that Stewards become involved in to return their hours in service projects. WNPS encourages Stewards to take leadership roles in community restoration projects and the average trainee puts in 172 volunteer hours.

The training and curricula for both Stewardship Programs are similar. Twenty-five trainees are selected to receive instruction in basic botany, native plant identification, Puget Sound ecosystems, the use of native plants in gardens and landscapes, and habitat restoration methods and techniques. Field trips are required in addition to classroom instruction.

In Kind Support
No discussion of the Native Plant Stewardship Program would be complete without recognition towards the phenomenal support this program has received from professionals who so generously give of their time and expertise to teach classes and to lead field studies. Calculation of in kind support from professionals for this program averages about $18,000 per class. What a gift to the Washington Native Plant Society and all those Stewards whose minds have been engaged through this program!

To learn more about native plant stewardship or get involved with their program. Please contact the Washington Native Plant Society at 206-527-3210.

Posted in the August 2005 Earth Page

Seattle's First Ever 'Green Map' Makes its Debut

- By David Wortman

Seattle has long been considered the "Emerald City" for not only for its lush forests, but also for its eco-friendly attitude. Now, there's a new tool for Seattle residents and visitors to tap into the wealth of green and community-oriented destinations and resources across the city.

On June 2, a coalition of grassroots organizations and individuals launched the Seattle Green Map, a cutting-edge, web-based map providing residents and visitors with the city's first-ever interactive tool to discover all things green and sustainable about the Emerald City. The map showcases the talents of tech-savvy Seattle, using emerging web technologies and the visually appealing icons of the international Green Map System. Residents and visitors can look up eco-friendly buildings, recycling sites, organic and natural food stores, cultural sites, community centers, trails and transit, polluted sites, and more. The online map (www.seattlegreenmap.net) includes detailed site descriptions, locations, and contact information, as well as video features of "sustainable stories" from across the city created by students at Seattle Girls' School.

Completion of the map caps four years of work by volunteers who worked together to define, organize, and build the new and innovative green resource. The map reflects hundreds of volunteer hours and dozens of meetings and workshops involving 400 citizens. In addition to a core steering group, key to the project has been the dedication of several "Theme Teams," of volunteers organized around issues such as culture and design, economic development, transportation and mobility, renewable resources, and nature. Together, the teams reviewed more than 600 sites nominated for inclusion on the map, added new sites, updated information about sites, and clarified map icon definitions and criteria.

Among the most inspiring aspects of the Seattle Green Map has been the involvement of over 200 youth and teachers from local schools, supported by a Green Map curriculum designed by the Seattle-based Homewaters Project and funded by a City of Seattle Technology Grant. Using green mapping, students at Cleveland and Nathan Hale High Schools developed neighborhood green maps, learning together about their communities and the environment in the process.

Seattle Green Map is supported by several community groups including Feet First, Homewaters Project, Sustainable Seattle, The Design Resource Institute, People For Puget Sound, BALLE Seattle, the Transportation Choices Coalition, and the Seattle Urban Nature Project. City support has come from Seattle City Councilmember Richard Conlin, and from Mayor Greg Nickels' Office of Sustainability and Environment, among others.

Seattle joins a growing list of Green Map projects worldwide. Since the creation of the world's first Green Map of New York City in the early 1990s, communities in 45 countries around the world have initiated over 285 green map projects, from Sumatra to Dublin, Hiroshima to Victoria.

Seattle's Green Map is connected to the Green Map System (GMS) and its global network of locally-based green map-making teams (http://www.greenmap.org), which celebrated its 10th anniversary in March 2005. The GMS is coordinated from a New York City office by Wendy Brawer, founder and director, and her staff. Wendy has received numerous awards and international recognition for her work as a designer and innovator.

Brawer, a former Seattle resident, says that the Seattle Green Map is a reflection of Seattle's leadership in moving towards a more sustainable future. "As founding director of the global Green Map movement, I'm so pleased by the outcomes showcased by the Seattle Green Map," says Brawer. "This team has set a new standard for excellence - their years of effort involved scores of community members in mapping the community from a sustainability perspective, resulting in a high caliber, practical and expandable digital Green Map."

The map will continue to evolve over time. According to Steering Committee member T.J. Moore, some recently nominated sites are being added to the online map, along with design refinements and technology improvements. Seattle Green Map is pursuing funding for a print-based map, and hopes to make copies freely available around the city in the near future to residents and visitors interested in experiencing the green in Seattle.

Brawer may best sum up the aspirations of all those who've worked so hard to make the Seattle Green Map a reality. "I hope that through it, every corner of the city will find itself turning toward choices that help cultivate an evermore beautiful, healthy and culturally rich Seattle."

To start using this new resource and learn more about the Seattle Green Map, visit http://www.seattlegreenmap.net.

Posted in the July 2005 Earth Page

Big Wins for a Healthy Washington - A legislative wrap up

- By Tom Geiger from Earth Share organization Washington Environmental Council

For the third year in a row, leading conservation groups working at the state level have successfully advocated for new and improved laws to better protect people, land, air and water in Washington.

A new law to promote green building, as well as a law to clean our air by limiting auto emissions, will help people and nature breathe a little easier. Progress was also made on helping promote the health of Hood Canal and Puget Sound, and eliminate some very toxic chemicals from our household products.

The conservation community's development of four common-sense Priorities for a Healthy Washington for the 2005 session was crucial to this success. (To learn more, go to www.environmentalpriorities.org) Instead of going to the Capitol with a laundry list, the short list made a splash from the get-go. The Seattle P-I's editorial on December 27th called our proposals "a smart approach that should help lawmakers of both parties focus on a few areas where action can make a difference."

Now we are celebrating some great success. After lots of hard work by the conservation community, all our partners and key legislative supporters, the Seattle Times opined: "Give the environmental community credit as well. For the third session, asking for less has meant more success."

We are making progress and are being successful in getting real improvements to the laws that will help millions of people live healthier lives.

Here is a summary of what happened to each of the four 2005 Priorities for a Healthy Washington.

High Performance Green Buildings

On April 8th, Governor Gregoire signed this bill into law. The new law requires state buildings, schools, and universities to be built and certified as high performance, green buildings. This will result in buildings that save energy and water, are cheaper to operate, and improve student learning and employee performance.

Cleaner Air - Cleaner Cars

The Governor signed Cleaner Air - Cleaner Cars into law on May 6th. We'll all breathe easier with cleaner cars - that's a win worth smiling about! Cleaner Air - Cleaner Cars will reduce cancer-causing emissions and global warming pollution from new cars, increase consumer choice, and save consumers a bundle at the gas pump.

Sound Solutions - Saving Hood Canal and Puget Sound

While major bills did not pass, the conservation community secured over $6 million dollars for local clean water projects, including funds to clean up Hood Canal, and a grant and loan program to help homeowners fix failing septic systems. A bill to prioritize tax incentives for habitat buffers did pass. And a key bill that would reduce water pollution from septic systems passed the House but came two votes shy of going to the full Senate for a vote.

Phasing out Toxics

The Priority to phase out a particularly toxic set of flame-retarding chemicals failed to pass the legislature. However, the legislature did provide funding to the Department of Ecology to develop a plan for banning the most widely used form of toxic these chemicals. The department will report back to the legislature with recommendations in December.

Other Good News

Some other good bills that passed include: Oil Spill Prevention; improvements to the state's approach to transportation funding; a new program for the Washington Wildlife and Recreation Program; and programs to increase solar power, renewable energy and energy efficiency.

Priorities for a Healthy Washington is a combined effort of Earth Share organizations American Rivers, Audubon Washington, Center for Environmental Law and Policy, Climate Solutions, Futurewise, NW Energy Coalition, People for Puget Sound, Sierra Club, Transportation Choices Coalition, Washington Citizens for Resource Conservation, Washington Environmental Council, and Washington Toxics Coalition and includes other non-Earth Share members League of Women Voters of Washington, Northwest Ecosystem Alliance, Washington Conservation Voters, and WashPIRG.

Posted in the June 2005 Earth Page

State Legislature Supports Audubon Center with Capital Budget Funding

- Submitted by Hilary Hilscher from Earth Share organization Audubon Washington

The children and families of Southeast Seattle in particular, and the Puget Sound region in general, are a giant step closer to connecting with nature through an environmental education center in Seward Park, thanks to bi-partisan support in the 2005 Legislature's budget signed today by Gov. Christine Gregoire.

Legislators from the 11th, 37th, and 41st districts joined forces to secure a significant state investment in the Audubon Center at Seward Park: the historic Tudor-style Annex building on Lake Washington will receive $400,000 from the state toward the renovation costs.

"This project allows all people to understand the importance and the impact the environment has in our daily lives," said Rep. Eric Pettigrew, who represents Southeast Seattle.

"Enthusiasm and hard work carried the Seward Park vision forward," said Nina Carter, executive director of Audubon Washington. "Well-deserved applause goes to Rep. Bob Hasegawa, Rep. Eric Pettigrew, Rep. Fred Jarrett, Rep. Judy Clibborn, Rep. Sharon Tomiko Santos, Rep. Zach Hudgins, Sen. Adam Kline, Sen. Brian Weinstein, Sen. Margarita Prentice, and Rep. Hans Dunshee."

This funding adds to the City of Seattle's contribution of $618,000 from the Pro-Parks Levy of 2000, and will help attract federal and private support, according to Carter.

The 3,200-square-foot, 1927 Annex building at the park entrance carries a total renovation price tag of $2 million. Together with the former fish hatchery, the buildings will house the program's classrooms, citizen-science laboratory, nature library, natural history exhibits, and welcome center.

The Audubon Center will provide a safe place for at-risk youth and their families with after-school programs and school field trips to help children learn about issues relevant to their lives including environmental health, sustainability of local resources, and how individual actions can build healthy communities.

Seward Park is a 277-acre forested peninsula on the shores of Lake Washington, where natural diversity meets human diversity. Southeast Seattle is the city's most ethnically diverse neighborhood - it's home to 73 different ethnic groups - and is the only neighborhood in Seattle without an environmental education facility.

At full capacity, Audubon will serve approximately 58,000 children and adults annually through 850 programs including after-school projects, school field trips, summer camps, teacher trainings, senior classes, and adult and family courses. Audubon programs will offer opportunities for hands-on, inquiry-based learning in a variety of disciplines including arts, humanities, and sciences, utilizing the natural resources of Seward Park as an outdoor classroom.

Numerous community groups such as SouthEast Effective Development, Woodland Park Zoo, Community Coalition for Environmental Justice, and Seattle Audubon have asked to create partnership programs at the Audubon Center at Seward Park.

Posted in the June 2005 Earth Page

"Active Transportation" Projects Linked to Public Health

- submitted by Melissa Briody from ESW organization Transportation Choices Coalition

Five to fifteen per cent of Washingtonians use active modes of transportation to get to work, to school, and to amenities in and near their neighborhoods. Yet today in Washington, only about one per cent of state funding is budgeted for "Active Transportation" projects safe routes to school & transit, pedestrian & bicycle connections, and walking & bicycling routes in transit-oriented development--that can help improve the overall transportation system and the public's health.

While five to fifteen per cent may sounds reasonably good, Washington State faces a major health care crisis--and one of the factors driving this crisis is a lack of physical activity. In the Central Puget Sound region, half of all auto trips are five miles or less (that's less than a 30 minute bike ride), and 16 per cent are two miles or less (less than a 30 minute walk). However, nearly half of Washington adults are not getting enough physical activity, and even worse, an estimated 10% of our population is defined as inactive, getting less than 10 minutes of moderate physical activity in a week.

Adding insult to injury, air pollution from our auto dependence has resulted in 10% of kids in urban areas such as Seattle and Spokane suffering from asthma, compared with less than seven percent nationally. Lack of physical activity and over-dependence on polluting automobiles contribute to many of our biggest health problems--obesity, heart disease, diabetes, and respiratory problems.

There are ways to begin to solve this health crisis while addressing the funding inequity for Active Transportation projects. Investing in Active Transportation can increase physical activity and create healthier communities. Investing in bike, pedestrian, and transit-oriented development projects saves us money, improves our health and air quality, and helps relieve traffic congestion.

Transportation Choices Coalition convened a coalition of health- and transportation-related government agencies, non-profits, and businesses. We've been working hard since then to come up with ways to address the health crisis through transportation solutions. In that time, the group endorsed the following five Active Transportation campaign goals for the legislature to take up during the 2005 session, which ends on April 24.

1. Increase funding for Active Transportation by $20 million/year in the 2005-2007 biennium, increasing over time to address the large backlog of projects, and to meet rising demand. This investment would build safe routes to schools, safe routes to transit, bicycle and pedestrian connections and bicycle and pedestrian routes within transit-oriented development.
2. Engage public health professionals and advocacy groups (including bicycle, pedestrian, and transit advocates) early in the concept development phase when performing major investment and corridor studies, so that new transportation projects are designed to