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JOURNALEDITORIAL
GUESTCOLUMN
Fingerscrossed maOWlaS n t ehn e water supply in
h e there's into str; ns and othel water bodies
We've got our enough for all of our water needs. Espe- I called surface water, wer on the
fingers crossed that ff/- cially living west of the Cascades, who Earth's surface). Another portion is
/\\;
the weatherman
is wrong and that
the 30th Annual
OysterFest will be
a sun-drenched af-
fair.
As of mid-week.
the forecast calls
for ram on both
days. Regardless
of the weather,
though, we're sure
//0YSTER0000
that this year's event will, once again, be a suc-
cess.
No single event, with perhaps the exception of
the Forest Festival at the start of summer, better
highlights all things good about Shelton and Ma-
son County.
Folks from Olympia. Seattle and beyond come
here every fall to shuck, slurp and savor the briny
bivalves that grow right here in our backyard.
The Skookum Rotary and dozens of other non-
profits put on a wonderful festival and, in turn.
support myriad local causes and young people
through the awarding of scholarships.
So. rain or shine, plan on setting aside some
time this weekend to swing by the festival in or-
der to eat some amazing food while supporting a
great cause.
OysterFest first-timers or those who want to
get a leg up on the crowds can check out a special
insert inside this week's Journal that is chock-
full of info about how to get to the festival conve-
niently and what to expect once there.
hasn't longed for more sun to break up
the winter days of gray and drizzle? So
there must be an up side - we have lots
of water, right?
Many people may be surprised to
learn that water availability can no lon-
ger be taken for granted in our state.
Even in wet years such as this one,
streams dry out by late summer. Next
time you drive by your local creek, take
a look and you can see this for yourself.
The Pacific Northwest's natural cli-
mate cycle of wet winters and dry sum-
mers often results in water being most
|imited at the times it is most in demand,
in the summer and early fall. And there
are many additional challenges and
demands on our limited water supply.
These include population growth and de-
velopment; potentially reduced summer
stream flows due to the effects of climate
change; and the increase m "imperwous
surfaces" (impervious surfaces are those
that cover the land and prevent or re-
strict water from soaking into the ground.
such as pavement and buildings).
The winters in Mason County are
rainy - there's no denying those wet
days seem to go on forever. In some
parts of the county we also get some
snowfall and certainly enjoy looking at
it on top of the Olympic Mountains. But
what happens to rain and snow once it
falls to the ground?
Some of the rain flows over the land
sorbed into the ground (groundwate
and stored in aquifers. Aquifers are
underground geologic formations th;
store and move groundwater to spri
streams and marine waters.
As snow melts, it also goes to our
streams and aquifers. Snowmelt car
be an important source of water in t
spring and summer in some areas.
In the dry months when stream
flows naturally drop, groundwater
is still moving from the aquifers int(
creeks and lakes. Because of this. tb
water we see flowing in some of our
streams in late summer and fall is
mostly from groundwater.
All our water is connected: withdre
ing water from our streams, rivers an
lakes affects groundwater and vice-ve
There are many water wells throu
out the county. The use of any single
well is probably not going to have a b:
impact on water supply. It is the cure
lative use - the effects of many, man
users drawing water from individual
wells - that really adds up, and can 1
significant impacts on the amount of
ter in both our streams and aquifers.
The good news is that each of us. t
small actions, can help conserve our
precious water supply. Turning off t
water when brushing your teeth saw
as much as three gallons of water ea
time. Run the clothes washer and dis
washer only when full and you can st
/lason County?
yP:; :1 000 g lyl insper le :ntth S h: en
b- you'll save up to 150 gallons per month.
:) These are the types of simple actions
that can really add up to mak a big
t difference. For more water saging tips,
lgs, go to Mason County's webpag at www.
co.mason.wa.us.
Declining stream flows and aquifer
levels are of concern to everyqne and
• e everything that depends on adequate
water in the streams.
People need water for drinking and
daily uses. Fish and other aquatic species
need adequate water at key life stages
as an important part of their habitat.
Companies and farmers with existing
water rights rely on water being there
to run their operations. The importance
w- of adequate and reliable water supplies
] cannot be overstated: the avaihbility of
rsa. water determines our qualityflife and
,h- the success of our commtmitie& farms,
businesses and industries - ad Wash-
g ington's competitive position in the global
u- economy.
We are all stewards of the environ-
ment we live in. With careful water
tve management, we can have sufficient and
a- reliable supplies of water now and into
the future. Whether we know it or not,
,y we are all - each and every one of us
water managers. Thanks for doing your
part.
e
s
h
h-
we
Sally Toteff
Director, Ecology's Southwest
Regional Office Washington
LETTERSTq)THEEDIT()R
WORDONTHESTREET
to the editon We ::Will print .signedi origina I:letters
of Iocal.interes00i 00iil not .....
publish..letters th:at
for the: JoUrnaL
Whitman
for FD 6
the job.
Darrell Franks
Union
Editor, the Journal
I am a member of the
Onion Fire Department, and
I endorse Tim Whitman's
candidacy for Commissioner
of Mason County Fire Dis-
trict 6. The Union Fire De-
partment needs Whitman,
and I hope that District 6
voters will join me as I cast
my vote for him.
Whitman is a retired pro-
fessional firefighter, and he'll
bring experience and a genu-
me understanding of the fire
service to the Board of Com-
missioners. Whitman is a
firefighter, and as a firefight-
er he understands the unique
requirements of running a
successful department.
I know Whitman to be a
man of honor and integrity.
He's intelligent and capable.
And he carefully considers
all aspects of an issue before
he comes to a decision. He's
approachable, has a great
sense of humor and is hum-
ble as well. Whitman is in-
terested in serving the Union
community by bettering the
fire department.
It's time to put Whitman
on the District 6 Board of
Fire Commissioners. We
need him to lead the district
beyond the negative politics
of the past several years and
into a period of advancement
and cooperation. The citizens
of Union deserve the very
best leadership of their fire
department, and Whitman
is the very best candidate for
Vote for
Johnston in
District 6
Editor, the Journal
I encourage your vote to
retain Dave Johnston as Fire
Commissioner for District 6 in
Union. For some time I have
had the opportunity to work
with Johnston on service
boards and have found him
to be enthusiastic, dedicated.
versatile and well-informed
- qualities that stand him in
good stead in a leadership ca-
pacity. Your vote for Johnston
for Fire Commissioner would
be well-placed.
Judy Likkel
Union
Were they
praying or
not?
Editor, the Journal
With reference to the cap-
tion of the above-the-fold
photograph on the front
page of the Sports section of
the September 22 issue of"
the Journal, were the play-
ers praying, as the caption
states, or were they just tak-
ing a knee out of respect for
their injured teammate - a
sportsmanlike and appropri-
ate practice and one that as
many in the stands noted
the Central Kitsap football
team did not observe. The
photograph shows nine play-
ers t the helmet of one of them
is just barely visible over the
left shouder of number 24 on
the left side of the photo) and
only two of them have their
heads bowed as if they might
be praying. I know, I know.
one can pray without bow-
ing one's head. but the other
seven players simply do not
appear to be praying, as the
caption states they are. In ad-
dition, the helmetless player
on the far right pretty clearly
is either talking to the player
on his right, or he is looking
up into the stands. And while
the two players in the center
foreground of the photograph
might be praying and while l
intend no disrespect to either
of them or to any other player
or person who might or might
not have been praying at
this or at any other time. the
two players in the center of
the photo do not remotely
seem engaged in prayer. So,
and finally here is the point,
it seems that the caption is
inaccurate and may dem-
onstrate an editorial bias of
some sort. If that is the case,
I wanted to inquire and to
draw attention to it. Such a
bias is or would be fine. but
if this is a news-paper, as I
believe it purports to be. then
any such bias should be clear
and perhaps even explicit.
Eric S. Valley
Shelton
!' Shelton-Mason County lh
!i['," .: 'i' ...... , " il ,
USPS 492-800
POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Shelton-Mason
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Published weekly by Shelton-Mason County Journal, Inc.
at 227 West Cota Street, Shelton, Washington
Mailing address: RO. Box 430, Shelton, WA 98584
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SUBSCRIPTION RATES:
$37 per year for Mason County addresses,
$51 per year in state of Washington but outside
Are you plannin!
OysterFest? Why
Ann
Baker
Mason County, $61 per year out of state.
Owned and published by
Sheton-Mason County Journal, Inc
Page A-4 - She ton-Mason County Journal - Thursday, September 29, 2011
I on going to
or why not?
"No, I just don't enjoy the
crowds."
George
Cook
"Sure_ I'll go. I'm looking for-
ward to the oysters."
In the article titled "16 vie for op
Mason County Commission seat" t]
article says that Randy Churchill is
member and president of Kristmastov
Newsroom:
Kevan Moore, managing editor
Aria Shephard, North Mason.
environment, reporter
Jesse Mullen, general mgr. Advertising:
Dave Pierik, advertis
Harvey Morris, ad re
Front office:
Donna Kinnaird, boo kkeeper
Natalie Johnson, reporter Margot Brand. circulation
Emily Hanson, sports reporter Cricket Carter, mailrcom
Adam Rudnick, copy editor supervisor
Bob
Bottman
"Yes, I'm looking forward
to the food. The oysters
and salmon frybread are so
good."
Jennifer
Robinson
"No I'm working. I'd ratller
work and stay busy than go
to OysterFest."
n Kiwanis.
m It should have said that Churchill
a was a past president of the organiza-
'n tion.
ng manager
)resentahve
Composing room:
William Adams, graphics
Koleen Wood, classifieds/legals
Becky Corr, typing
Pressroom:
Kelly Riordan, production manager
Travis Miller press operator