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Newspaper Archive of
Shelton Mason County Journal
Shelton, Washington
December 29, 2011     Shelton Mason County Journal
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December 29, 2011
 
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!1 Hood Canal Coordinating Council projects get $550,000 By KEVAN MOORE that threaten the Sound in- water runoff before it is dis- nership is the state agency To help Puget Sound communities grow in ways that protect the Sound, the Washington departments of Commerce, Ecology and the Puget Sound Partnership are working together to of- fer $6.3 million in federal grants for 23 local projects to improve the health of the watersheds where Puget Sounders live. Here in Mason County, two projects being spear- headed by the Hood Canal Coordinating Council were awarded $550,000. Of that money, $300,000 will be used to complete an inte- grated watershed manage- ment plan using the Puget Sound Watershed Charac- terization that will guide the development of an in- lieu-fee mitigation program in the Hood Canal region. The remaining $250,000 will go towards a Hood Ca- nal regional stormwater ret- rofit plan. The council will identify, prioritize, and plan for retrofits of stormwater infrastructure in locations most important to protect, restore and limit surface water runoff and related pollution and boost rainwa- ter infiltration in the Hood Canal watershed. Member organizations include Jef- ferson, Kitsap and Mason counties and the Port Gam- ble S'Klallam and Skokom- ish tribes. The grant funds come from the U.S. Environmen- tal Protection Agency (EPA) t Journal file photo The Hood Canal Coordina ing Council got $550,000 to help preserve Hood Canal, which includes Twanoh State Park, above. and implement projects in- cluded in the Puget Sound Partnership's Action Agen- da -- the single playbook for prioritizing and focusing ef- a a F ad jobs." U.S. Rep. Norm Dicks so addressed the health of uget Sound. "As I continue to fight for crease. A multi-agency assess- ment released in November 2011 found the most com- mon way that toxic chemi- cals reach Puget Sound wa- tersheds is through polluted surface water runoff that flows off developed residen- tial, commercial and indus- trial lands. Runoff carries these toxic chemicals and other con- taminants across developed lands where it goes mostly untreated into the fresh wa- ter lakes, streams and rivers that drain to Puget Sound. The pollutants in local wa- tersheds come from many scattered, hard-to-reach sources that often are miles from the marine shoreline. Transforming forest lands and fields into roads, homes and businesses of- ten reduces fish and wild- life habitat. It can also have forts to recover and protect the Sound. Eighteen local, state and tribal entities in 10 Puget Sound counties p were offered funding. ]: "Healthy watersheds are s a key to a healthy Puget q Sound," said Governor tJ Chris Gregoire. "As our b communities grow and pros- n per, it's important that we b develop and use the land e in ways that protect our F fideral funding necessary other environmental im- t,, clean up Puget Sound, pacts on watersheds such it is gratifying to see these as diminishing the effective- rojects moving forward," icks said. "We know that tving Puget Sound will re- aire continued collabora- on amongst governments, asinesses and other orga- izations. These projects elp build on our collective !forts to protect and restore uget Sound for future gen- working lands, our streams e~ations." and the Sound itself. These | Officials note that as the grants will help us do that. l#nds within the 19 wa- The Sound plays a huge t_~rsheds that make up the role in the quality of life in t~uget Sound region get developed and more popu- our state, which in turn is a 1Tted, major driver of our economy pollution problems ness of wetlands and flood- plains to filter, cleanse and control runoff. Most funding recipients being offered grants will work with other partners. They will use the EPA fund- ing for a host of watershed projects that include inno- vative land-use planning and water quality improve- ments. These include: - Constructing a new wet- land facility in the town of Coupeville that will protect area shellfish resources by cleaning and cooling surface charged to Penn Cove. Aiding the Nisqually Tribe in creating economic and market incentives for landowners in the upper Nisqually River to restore and protect forested lands. - Establishing a trans- fer of development rights program in Skagit County designed to help stimulate commercial redevelopment in the city of Burlington while saving surrounding farms and forests. - Getting experts out in the field in Kitsap County to better identify critical fish- bearing streams and protect working forest lands. Restoring the Skagit River estuary while protect- ing local agricultural lands. - Retrofitting stormwater infrastructure throughout the Hood Canal watershed to better manage surface water runoff, reduce pollu- tion and boost rainwater in- filtration. "The projects we selected for funding include a wide range of approaches to protect and restore Puget Sound while helping sup- port local economies," said Department of Commerce Director Rogers Weed. "It's important to develop mar- ket-based solutions to main- tain working farms and forests, and also consider how to save money and pro- tect jobs by cost effectively developing urban areas to accommodate our growing population." The Puget Sound Part- responsible for leading the coordinated effort to restore and protect the Sound by setting regional priorities, spurring action by organiza- tions and providing account-. ability for progress. "Thanks to the work of our partners, we have many successes to celebrate to- day," said Puget Sound Partnership Executive Di- rector Gerry O'Keefe. "Con- tinued federal funding will advance science-based proj- ects that put people to work, improve water quality and protect Puget Sound." In 2010 and 2011, EPA provided $34 million in targeted grant funding to Washington state agencies to restore and protect Puget Sound. The federal agency provided: - $8.5 million to the de- partments of Ecology and Commerce to restore and protect Puget Sound wa- tersheds -- of which $6.3 million has been offered to 18 local, tribal, state and regional agencies and envi- ronmental organizations. - $8.5 million to the de- partments of Fish and Wild- life and Natural Resources to restore and protect ma- rine and near shore habi- tats. - $8.5 million to Ecology to prevent, reduce, and con- trol toxic and nutrient pollu- tion. - $8.5 million to Health and Ecology to prevent, re- duce, and control pathogen contamination. Harstine Continued from page B-1 after the Whittier Narrows earth- quake in 1987. I think it would be a great new year's resolution for all us to get involved if only in a Dolphins Continued from page B-1 slowed down, is much loud- er than others and sounds just like a shotgun blast. The Bonnetts think the dolphins use this particu- lar noise to stun their prey before attacking. Also, Dave Bonnett said the spaces between clicks are very precise and seem to form patterns. If sci- entists could ever decode these patterns, he said they might be able to un- derstand how sophisticat- ed the communications be- tween dolphins really are. The Bonnetts plan to return to the Amazon this winter with incredibly pow- erful recording software "Now we're moving to the next level which hope- fully means we'll have some more sophisticated science down there," Dave Bonnett said. "We've actu- ally gotten more sophis- ticated recordings - this year we're going to take equipment down that will allow us to fully measure the sound these dolphins make." The Bonnetts don't have any plans to stop studying their beloved dolphins any time soon. "We've begun the talks to go down and do a one year or multi year around / limited fashion. All you h~ve to do is imagine something happen-" ing to our bridge. How wo~ld you get to the mainland or hoW would you get help if all the pow ~r went out? With Fire District 5'~ help with training you will leal 'n that; first, we need to learn the facts about what to expect following a major disaster in terms of imme- diate services; second, learn about our own responsibilities (as there will be no governmental help) for mitigation and preparedness; third, train in the needed life saving skills with emphasis on Courtesy photo A pink dolphin swims near the surface of this river. The mammals are reclusive and don't jump like saltwater dolphins. meeting at 1:30 p.m. on Friday, Jan. 13 at the Shel- ton Timberland Library. the clock study," Dave Bon- nett said. The Bonnetts plan to Page B-6 - Shelton-Mason County Journal - Thursday, December 29, 011 ~lve a talk on their project ~t the next Retired Sci- ehtists of Mason County decision making skills, rescuer safety and doing the greatest good for the greatest number; fourth, organize neighborhood teams so that we are an extension of first responder services offering imme- diate help to victims until profes- sional services can get to us. Harmony Continued from page B-1 Schodde said the pro- gram is a complement to cancer treatment and works to reduce feelings of isolation in cancer patients. After that,. Holland, who runs two mara- thons a year, started dedicating one of her annual marathons to Harmony Hill to raise money for the organiza- tion. Holland just finished a 185-mile, 10-day bike ride from the Andes to the Amazon for Unicef. She said there is much more to running than exercise, and can ap- ply it to her work for the non-profit and any charity. "For me marathon- ing is setting a goal and challenging myself everyday to do what I said I was going to do," she said. "It's always an opportunity to stretch myself, to see how far can I run and how fast can I do it ... it's taking time for yourself, focus- ing on what is in front of you, doing something for others." Holland has spent her 37-year career in business, starting at IBM. Two years ago, she moved back to her native Portland, Ore, and took a more active role in her position at Harmony Hill. "I've always been a remote board member," she said. When Schodde an- nounced her retire- ment, Holland was an integral part of the team to find a replace- ment. But part way through the hiring pro- cess, Holland and other board members real- ized that she should ap- ply for the job as well. Now Holland is ex- If you are worried about gain- ing weight during the holidays why not come to a TOPS meeting. Take Off Pounds SenSibly meets at 9 a.m. every Monday morn- ing at the Harstine Island Com- munity Hall. Visitors are always welcome. cited to use her busi- ness skills to continue Harmony Hill's mission into the future. "I've reprioritized mission over money," she said. Schodde will still work part time at Har- mony Hill as Founder and Director Emeri- tus. However, she said working part time will be hard because it con- flicts with her philoso- phy on work and Har- mony Hill. She com- pared it to her experi- ences living on a farm. "I grew up on a farm," she said. "It's a lifestyle, it isn't a job." Holland is working with Schodde to realize the founder's dream for the future of Harmony Hill. "I asked Gretchen, stand at the bottom of the hill and tell me what you see in 10 years," Holland said. "We're teaming up to- gether." Holland plans to work hard to increase funding for Harmony Hill, increase capacity and beds at the facility, get all its programs up to full enrollment and bring Harmony Hill programs "off the hill." They also want to include programs for entire families dealing with cancer. Overall, Harmony Hill aims to take can- cer patients from feel- ing like they're "dying from cancer," to saying they're "living with can- cer," Holland said. Holland said she is inspired by the work Schodde has done to create Harmony Hill. "There's a lot of peo- ple in the world that have dreams and that's it," she said. "Gretch- en's one of the only people I've met that can have dreams and real- ize them."