Forests, Parks and Land Conservation

Even thought it was a difficult year member Washington Trails Association had some big wins thanks to their steady group of volunteers. They were able to advocate for Washington's natural areas and pass the Great American Outdoors Act and provided us with ways to get outside by sharing information and reports on both urban and wilderness hikes around the state.Kristin Ashley, WTA ambassador, shares some big wins that volunteers made possible in 2020. Volunteer appreciation week is Dec. 7-11, 2020. Visit wta.org/party-for-you for a host of fun at-home activities and online events 

Take 2 New & Recycled Apparel is taking a stand on deforestation, climate pollution and human rights abuses related to the surge in the growth of unsustainable palm oil.Make a donation to Take 2's Responsible Palm Oil Fund and Take 2 will match the first $500 of customer donations to the fund.Text eswa to 50155or visit https://secure.qgiv.com/for/edr/Click here for the poster or click here to see the presentation.Visit Take 2's Facebook pageWhat’s wrong with palm oil?It’s estimated that nearly half of packaged goods sold in your local supermarket contain palm oil. Unfortunately the boom in producing unsustainable palm oil has led to deforestation, displacement of indigenous peoples and the destruction of habitat of endangered species like orangutans, elephants and tigers.Should I stop buying palm oil?Fortunately there are ways to produce palm oil in a sustainable manner and conservation groups working on transitioning communities dependent on palm oil production to using those practices.What you can doLook for the labelsCompanies may label products like cooking oils, soaps, and food with the RSPO label which means the oil is produced in a sustainable manner or the Green Palm label which means they are helping their suppliers transition to better practices.Check the scoresThe World Wildlife Fund has a scorecard of major retailers to let you know who’s doing their part and where to shop. Your grocery store might not be doing all they can. www.worldwildlife.org/publications/palm-oil-scorecard-2016Let companies know you careSign the petition to let food suppliers know you care about the issue and that they should be sourcing palm oil responsibly. http://www.ran.org/snack_food_20EarthShare Washington would like to thank Take 2 New & Recycle Apparel for taking on an issue important to them and joining with us in supporting this cause. Take 2, New and Recycled Apparel, has been a well-loved part of Seattle’s Capitol Hill community since 1984.  They offer their customers well-priced new apparel, lovely jewelry, fun accessories, and exceptional consignment items.  This program represents our first small-fund/small-shop partnership where a local business takes on supporting conservation in a way that matches their goals, their company’s culture and their concern for the environment.The responsible palm oil funds the World Wildlife Fund, Conservation International and the Rainforest Alliance – groups working to help transition communities to sustainable production, providing sound solutions to those affected, raising awareness of the issue and convincing companies to make sustainable choices in sourcing palm oil.

Are you headed out to the back-country, local trail or national park this summer? Be sure to brush up on your "Leave no Trace" skills before you hit the trail. Our friends over at the Wilderness Society have a quick list for those looking to have a wild summer.Wilderness Society news - 29 critical "Leave No Trace" tips for wilderness visitors. Just as you rely on wild places to rejuvenate and restore you, those places rely on you to keep them in good condition.  29 CRITICAL "LEAVE NO TRACE" TIPS FOR WILDERNESS VISITORS 

 Make plans to celebrate the great outdoors with the National Park Service CentennialThe National Park Service turns 100 on August 25 and they want you to get out, explore, be inspired or simply have fun in your national parks.  Plans are being developed to ensure quality stewardship for these national treasures for the next 100 years but don't put off enjoying our parks now and joining this celebration. Washington state is home to some really excellent parks, forests and wilderness with Seattle ranking first among the top 25 largest U.S. Cities with 3.6 million acres of designated Wilderness within a 100-miles radius1. With so much to do you might need a little help getting connected to the outdoors.The National Park Service and the National Park Foundation want to help you Find Your Park. Those wanting to roam a little further than the Pacific Northwest who are looking for inspiration, ideas or help planning a vacation to a national park should visit nationalparks.org. Whether you're treking cross country or visiting your favorite local gem, stop in and wish the visitor center volunteers and park rangers a happy 100th. Other reasons to head to our parksGreat music in great settingsMusician Dana Falconberry and her group Medicine Bow are touring and playing shows at national parks all over the country. You can hear a track from their new album on NPR’s Songs We Love and see where she’s playing here.  "Our music is largely inspired by the natural landscapes preserved and protected by these parks, and we can’t think of a better venue for performing it than in the beautiful places from which it arose."—Dana FalconberryFree National Park Days this spring and summer:April 16 through 24: National Park WeekAugust 25 through 28: National Park Service BirthdayHelp clean the beachThe Washington Coast Cleanup takes place April 23rd at Coastal Beaches Olympic National Park. While it started in a park, over the years the event has grown into a massive event that includes much of the Pacific Coast.  Find your beach at coastsavers.org . Junior Ranger DayIf you have a child who wants to be park ranger or if you just want to have some fun in a national park don’t miss Junior Ranger day on April 16th at the Olympic National Park Visitor Center. Play games, take guided hikes, go on a scavenger hunt  and earn your Junior Ranger award. Visit all the national parksNumber of National Parks:59Number of total units under the National Parks Service: 410These units include national parks, monuments, preserves, historical sites, recreation areas, trails and a whole lot more. You're going to have some busy vacations from now through your retirement if you're going to visit all 410.  Helping our parks and wildernessIf you want to help out our parks and lands you can still join the Earth Day Challenge and do one thing to make our environment a little better, get out and volunteer and help us raise money for our local conservation members.Check out our Earth Day Volunteer page on Facebook for ways you can help make our parks great.1. Washington Wild report, "Seattle's Seattle’s #1 Wilderness Ranking," 2015.  

You don't have to leave the city to enjoy nature.  A new investment in Rainier Valley is revitalizing urban trails in south Seattle and making hitting the trail something you can do without a car. Washington Trails news - Community members in Seattle's Rainier Valley know that you don't always have to go far from home to get a great trail experience. Sometimes, you can even create one in your own backyard. At the end of September, Seattle City Council approved a $100,000 grant for the Cheasty Greenspace Trails and Bike Park, bringing an urban trail experience to one of the city's most diverse neighborhoods. New urban trails revitalize Cheasty Greenspace Since 2008, neighbors in Rainier Valley and Beacon Hill have been working to make Cheasty Greenspace a welcoming community gathering place after it had suffered years of neglect. Overgrown with invasive ivy and occasionally used as a dumping ground, it was not an inviting space, but the grant from the city will help realize a trails plan. "This grant [is] the first major step in its fund-raising process to restore and reclaim Cheasty Greenspace while engaging with the community to reimagine and reconnect the park for everyone," the Friends of Cheasty Greenspace at Mt. View said in a press release. A plan has been proposed to construct new trails in the greenspace in order to increase walkability in the surrounding neighborhoods and take...10/15/2015 - 19:55 URBAN TRAILS TO CONNECT NEIGHBORS WITH NATURE, EACH OTHER

Some bad news for pretty much every every public space in the country. The Land and Water Conservation Fund paid for public parks from royalties on oil and gas leases and it was allowed to expire last week.Mountains to Sound Greenway news - The federal Land and Water Conservation Fund paid for state, federal and local parks without any taxes, relying on royalty money from federal oil and gas leases. Or at least it did until Republicans recently killed it by letting the funding expire. Peter Jackson is a writer and the son of the late Washington Sen. Henry M. "Scoop" Jackson. He told KUOW’s David Hyde this decision's impact will be felt all around the country, including Washington state. “There's barely any county in the state that isn't affected in some way, whether it's a community pool, whether it's a county park,” Peter Jackson said. “There's the Mountains-to-Sound Greenway, Mount Rainier National Park. There's a $4 million proposal right now to help the Willapa National Wildlife Refuge.” So no taxes. Lots of examples of special places. What do Republicans say about why they let the fund expire? “In fairness we're talking about a minority of a minority of Republicans. In this case it’s Rob Bishop, who is the chair [of the House Natural Resources Committee] who has expressed concern that we can't even manage the lands that we currently have. But if there were a vote on reauthorization...Mountains to Sound Greenway news

Want to do something quick, easy and free to help out trails in Washington state and member groups Mountains to Sound Greenway Trust and Washington Trails Association? Go vote at REI for the Middle Fork Snoquamie Trail.VOTE to fix the spectacular Middle Fork Snoqualmie Trail!  REI is investing $500K to repair 10 trails across the US (including the MidFork), and are asking: how much money should go to each trail? VOTE: http://www.rei.com/h/middle-fork-snoqualmie-river-trail/?cm_mmc=sm_partner-_-trails 

There's a way your vacation can help make Washington a better place and get you prime camping real estate in the deal:Washington Trails news -Want to spend a week camping in one of Washington's most gorgeous locations? What if you didn't have to worry about packing all the food you'll need for that week? Sounds even better, right? WTA's volunteer vacations take you to some of the most beautiful parts of Washington, and provide you with gourmet meals to boot. These trips are extremely popular, but we've had a few spots open up recently, and now's your chance to sign up for a week of adventure, trail work, and good eating in the most scenic sections of Washington. Wondering what it will be like? Read Archana Bhat's blog about her Wonderland Trail trip. Featured location: PCT at Skyline July 4 - 11 (5 spots available) Views like this are a commonplace occurrence along the PCT near Skyline camp. Photo by John Sholten. Help restore access to vistas of snow-covered peaks, grassy meadows dotted with wildflowers, and an iconic hiking trail when you volunteer on the picturesque Pacific Crest Trail near Glacier Peak. At 10.5 miles, the approach may sound a little daunting, but it's along the Suiattle River Trail, a flat forest ramble with minimal elevation gain all the way to camp. We'll do tread repair, logout and...4 Ready-Made Trips! Snag Your Spot on PCT, St. Helens Volunteer Vacations