Earth Share of Washington - News

1000 Friends of Washington applauds important King County Council vote for health and safety

SEATTLE (Oct. 25, 2004)--1000 Friends of Washington, the only statewide group focused on local environmental protections mandated under the state Growth Management Act, on Monday praised the King County Council's adoption of strong yet flexible rules to protect community health and safety from inappropriate development.

The new rules - a major update of the county's Critical Areas, Storm Water, and Clearing and Grading ordinances required by the state growth law - preserve traditional rural uses of farming, grazing, timber harvesting and recreation while ensuring that new developmen...Read the full story

October 29, 2004 | Comments Off

Earth Share Organizations 'In the News'

Aid agencies' warning on climate - BBC News
Earth Share of Washington organization - Friends of the Earth

The greenhouse effect could wreck attempts to lift the world's poorest people out of poverty and reverse human progress, campaigners say.

A report by a coalition of environment and aid agencies calls for urgent action to avert the threat.

The Working Group on Climate Change and Development says industrialised countries must cut carbon emissions massively by mid-century.<...Read the full story

October 28, 2004 | Comments Off

Metro Transit pilot project may tip balance for new statewide industry

Venture produces largest biodiesel-powered fleet in the state 

King County Metro Transit's nationally recognized fleet of clean buses is about to become even cleaner, and will help bring to Washington the first in-state commercial-scale production of biodiesel fuel made from seed crops. The pilot program will also serve as an investment in Washington's sustainable future. 

Today, the first buses in Metro's fleet got an extra shot of homegrown biodiesel power to help reduce the agency's reliance on imported oil while increasing statewide demand by an estimate...Read the full story

October 26, 2004 | Comments Off

Earth Saving Tips - Save Money at the Pump and Help the Planet

Courtesy of Earth Share of Washington organization, Union of Concerned Scientists

With the cost of gasoline hovering near all-time highs, many consumers are becoming more conscious of their vehicle's fuel economy. Fuel-efficient vehicles save money, lower heat-trapping and smog-forming emissions, and reduce our dependence on oil imports.

Here are some ways to help your car go farther on a gallon of gas:

Vehicle Maintenance

• Change your oil, spark plugs, and air filter regularly. And go to a rep...Read the full story
  October 25, 2004 | Comments Off

World Wildlife Fund Report Warns of Looming 'Budget Deficit' with Nature

WASHINGTON - People are consuming the earth's natural resources 20 percent faster than nature can renew them--a dangerous imbalance that is fueling the loss of species and may lead to critical resource shortages in the years ahead, according to a World Wildlife Fund study released on Thursday.

Driven largely by energy and materials consumption in the United States and other industrialized nations, the size of humanity's "ecological footprint," as measured by the amount of natural resources we consume, has increased 2.5 times over the past 40 years, while key environmental values hav...Read the full story

October 22, 2004 | Comments Off

Gov. Locke Announces Global Warming Targets

This story courtesy of Earth Share of Washington organization Climate Solutions

State leadership comes at a critical time

Gov. Gary Locke called for more aggressive actions to combat global warming in a press conference on Wednesday, in his first major recommendations since West Coast Governors Global Warming Initiative was launched by the governors of Washington, Oregon and California last year.

Locke called for Washington state to set greenhouse gas emissions targets, including a return to the 1990 statewide emissions level by 2010 and a...Read the full story

October 21, 2004 | Comments Off

River projects making progress

Two forthcoming projects on the Stillaguamish River are part of an aggressive 10-year plan to combat the loss of chinook salmon.

Since the listing of the chinook on the endangered-species list in 1999, tribal leaders, governments, loggers and farmers have sought to make a concerted effort to protect a river that chinook once frequented.

Current populations are about 8 percent of historical levels.

The repair of a landslide area that chokes an upstream portion of the Stillaguamish with sediment and the removal of dikes that prevent access to the river's estuary top a ...Read the full story

October 20, 2004 | Comments Off

Cleaner boats: City of Seattle subsidizes biodiesel ferry fuel

Seattle City Light continues to launch efforts to reduce greenhouse gases in the Puget Sound region, part of the city's policy to meet the goals set out in the Kyoto Protocol on climate change.

The Seattle-run utility is funding pilot programs to help the city's fleet and garbage haulers burn cleaner fuels in their cars and trucks. Seattle City Light also is working with the King County Metro to burn a 5 percent blend of biodiesel in buses.

Now the utility has started funding a one-year pilot program for three Washington State Ferries boats to run on a cleaner-burning diesel...Read the full story

October 19, 2004 | Comments Off

Subpoenas issued in oil spill; cleanup costs top $750,000

Marine scientists yesterday examined a seal pup that died after being found alive with oil on its fur, as cleanup workers ended their focus on open water to concentrate on beaches fouled by last week's Dalco Passage oil spill.

U.S. Coast Guard investigators have issued subpoenas to individuals, vessels and one facility in search of the culprit behind the mysterious spill, which has spread around Key Peninsula, Tacoma, and Vashon and Maury islands in south Puget Sound, officials said.
 
An oil spill cleanup crew picks up debris off a beach in Manzanita on Vashon Island. I...Read the full story

October 18, 2004 | Comments Off

Oil Spill Soils South Sound

Mystery ship sought; state response time criticized

TACOMA -- At dawn today, dozens of emergency workers will resume efforts to contain an oil slick that has already fouled 15 miles of beach on Vashon and Maury islands.
 
As workers tried unsuccessfully to stem the spread of the oil last night, investigators worked feverishly to home in on the mystery vessel responsible for the spill -- and state officials faced a rising tide of questions about why it took more than nine hours to begin cleanup operations.

The spill, first reported at 1:15 a.m. ye...Read the full story

October 15, 2004 | Comments Off

Pierce County Farmland Protection Advances

A measure aimed at shielding 31,000 acres of farmland in Pierce County from sprawl cleared a County Council committee Wednesday but took criticism from farmers, environmentalists and developers.

The council's five-member Community Development Committee wrapped up weeks of examination and public testimony directed at the effectiveness of the county’s land-use planning under Washington's landmark 1990 Growth Management Act.

The committee approved numerous changes to the county's land-use and transportation policies, including allowing urban villages in South Hill, limiting dev...Read the full story

October 14, 2004 | Comments Off

10 Best Hikes to See Mount St. Helens

Hikers have the best view of Mount St. Helens

Want to catch a glimpse of a Mount St. Helens' steam plume and lava activity? Hiking a nearby trail with a clear view of the volcano might be your best bet.

The rumblings of Mount St. Helens are generating lots of interest from people wanting to see an active volcano letting off steam. Many high-country trails are still accessible and offer breathtaking views of the volcano from a safe vantage point.

Here are 10 trails that offer views of Mount St. Helens, recommended by Washington Trails Association:

October 14, 2004 | Comments Off

Middle Fork of the Snoqualmie River is thriving again

NORTH BEND -- North Bend residents, who for years have been trying to reclaim the pristine Middle Fork valley from vandalism, garbage dumping, drug activity and shooting practice, are finally seeing their "back yard" revamped.

Among the changes welcomed by many of those living and working in communities along the Middle Fork stretch of the Snoqualmie River:

• A new, 45-site overnight campground -- the first new U.S. Forest Service campground to be built in the Northwest in 10 years -- is under construction.
• Three new trails were built this summer, providing walk...Read the full story
  October 13, 2004 | Comments Off

Mining a suburb? It's to protest 1872 law

SPOKANE -- An environmental group has staked claim to 20 acres of public land next to a posh subdivision to show just how antiquated the nation's mining laws are.

As allowed under the Mining Law of 1872, The Lands Council drove a stake Thursday near the Canfield Mountain subdivision in Hayden Lake, Idaho. Nearly a fourth of all the land in the United States -- more than 270 million acres -- is open to mining, according to Westerners for Responsible Mining, a coalition of environmental groups that includes The Lands Council.

"Hardrock mining trumps all other uses and values a...Read the full story

October 12, 2004 | Comments Off

Stories of a Wildlife Rescue - "Return to Fort Flagler"

by Naturalist Kevin Mack from Earth Share of Washington member PAWS Wildlife Rehabilitation Center, published in the October 6, 2004 edition of Wild Again

On September 21st, 2004, a small group of people stood in a picnic area next to the water at Fort Flagler State Park. On the grass nearby, a large pet carrier sat in the morning sun. The door to the carrier had been left closed to provide a bit of time for the being within to calm down after her two-hour car ride. She was about to go through a major ...Read the full story

October 11, 2004 | Comments Off

National Audubon Society Honors Leavenworth Woman

Multifaceted Harriet Bullitt honored for long environmental fight

LEAVENWORTH, Chelan County - Astride her horse, Harriet Bullitt paused at the bank of Icicle Creek, remembering when the water tumbled freely from the Alpine Wilderness, rushing over rocks and sweeping into the Wenatchee River.

Those were the days before a series of dams blocked fish from swimming upstream and turned the currents into stagnant pools.

"That's 60 years of environmental degradation," said the unconventional Bullitt who, at various points in her 80 years, has been a social...Read the full story

October 08, 2004 | Comments Off

The Struggle to Reclaim Seattle's Only River

The Road Back - From Seattle's Superfund Sewer to Haven Once More

They call this part of the Duwamish River the Turning Basin, a bowl of placid water five miles from where the last of the river merges into the mud with Elliott Bay. It's up here in the basin that tugboats and barges have room to come about and point downriver again, ploughing back to the bay and to the sea beyond.

Nowhere is the collision of nature and industry more apparent than it is on this, the last stop for ships on the waterway. From a kayak, the Turning Basin reveals a sad tangle of w...Read the full story

October 07, 2004 | Comments Off

IslandWood's Green Lessons

A suspension bridge sways 52 feet above a forested ravine. Students sprawl face down on its metal grating, fear changing to awe as they observe the verdant scene below. At a new environmental learning center called IslandWood near Seattle, Washington, kids are being immersed in nature, then challenged to be stewards of their surroundings.

"IslandWood's focus is on taking care of the environment," says Barbara Nielsen, principal of Kimball Elementary in Seattle. "Clearly there is an attempt to make this a very special experience."

At the center on suburban Bainbridge Island, ...Read the full story

October 06, 2004 | Comments Off

Lead Levels in Water Misrepresented Across U.S.

Utilities Manipulate or Withhold Test Results to Ward Off Regulators

Cities across the country are manipulating the results of tests used to detect lead in water, violating federal law and putting millions of Americans at risk of drinking more of the contaminant than their suppliers are reporting.

Some cities, including Philadelphia and Boston, have thrown out tests that show high readings or have avoided testing homes most likely to have lead, records show. In New York City, the nation's largest water provider has for the past three years assured its 9.3 mi...Read the full story

October 05, 2004 | Comments Off

Stories of a Wildlife Rescue - "Released For Good Behavior"

by Naturalist Kevin Mack from Earth Share of Washington member PAWS Wildlife Rehabilitation Center, published in the September 22, 2004 edition of Wild Again

On Thursday, September 16th, I was parked outside of a King County Parks and Recreation facility in Renton. I had arranged to meet a park manager who would be assisting with the evening's release, but it was still about 10 minutes until our scheduled 6 pm meeting time. I decided to check on my charges to see how well they had weathered their journe...Read the full story

October 04, 2004 | Comments Off

Cruise ships to plug in to reduce pollution

Using dock power is part of regional plan

Air pollution caused by cruise ships docking in Seattle is expected to be reduced by one-third by plugging Princess Cruises' ships into dockside electrical outlets instead of powering the ships by running their diesel engines, officials said yesterday.

Gov. Gary Locke, Mayor Greg Nickels and others gathered at the port to praise the cruise line's action -- part of a program to reduce diesel emissions in Washington, Oregon, California, Alaska and British Columbia.

"Reducing diesel emissions will decrease the i...Read the full story

October 01, 2004 | Comments Off