Cover Story
County Council Moves to Protect Cherry Point
by Eddy Ury Over the last decade, communities across the Pacific Northwest have risen up against a series of giant proposals to expand fossil fuel ports, shipments and pipelines, stopping them time and again. Now unable to build new terminals, … Continue reading
Cover Story
Samish Way Urban Village Progresses
by Giovanni Roverso The Samish Way urban village redevelopment project at the site of the former Aloha Motel, condemned in September 2015, will likely not be breaking ground until late spring or early summer in 2019, according to the Bellingham … Continue reading
Cover Story
The Cherry Point Aquatic Reserve is a unique aquatic ecosystem located in the Strait of Georgia on the western shore of Whatcom County, The offshore waters from Birch Bay State Park on the north to Slater Road on the south, … Continue reading
Beaks and Bills
by Joe Meche With the January hump behind us we can begin anew, having experienced the wild windstorm of Dec. 20. Wind gauges at Mt. Baker measured gusts of 117 mph and the shoreline roads in Birch Bay and on … Continue reading
Dear Watchers
Dear Watchers: A response to Dick Conoboy about his “Climate Chaos, Tipping Points and The Final Buzzer” article in the January issue. It’s certainly a well-intended piece. And I thank him for it. However, one problem is that it implies … Continue reading
Being Frank
Ruling Strengthens Habitat Protection
by Lorraine Loomis A recent Washington Supreme Court ruling has strengthened a state law aimed at protecting the waters, shorelines and streambanks essential to salmon recovery. The ruling also reflects the U.S. Supreme Court ruling in the culvert case that … Continue reading
Watching Government
Watching Government
Action Taken at December 3, 2018 Meeting Shall the council: 191. Authorize the mayor to sign a 5,000 settlement agreement with Haskell Corporation for the following terms: dismissal of a lawsuit and resolution of all claims? The following came from … Continue reading
Watching Government
Action Taken at December 11, 2018 Meeting Shall the commission: 169. Approve nominations for commissioners to serve on the following organizations and committees? See endnote for details. (7982/Action Item 2) Approved 3-0 170. Authorize the executive director to sign a … Continue reading
Watching Government
Compiled by Barry MacHale Action Taken at December 4, 2018 Meeting Shall the council: 206. Appoint Heather Christianson to the Drayton Harbor Shellfish Protection District Advisory Committee? The committee advises the County Council on proposed actions and operations relating to … Continue reading
Conservation District Election
Whatcom Conservation District Election
The Whatcom Conservation District is governed by a board of five supervisors, who are all local residents. Formed in 1946, the district serves all of Whatcom County and is committed to fostering a healthy, sustainable relationship between people and the … Continue reading
Housing
Samish Station: New Student Housing
by Giovanni Roverso The Samish Station “boutique” student housing will be completed in the Samish urban village area. Geared toward students, construction on the Samish Station housing project is underway by Genetic Electric, LLC, and residents should be moving in … Continue reading
Housing
HomesNOW! Winter Haven Tent Community
by Lynnette Allen After working on a project with HomesNOW! (Homes for the Homeless NOW, Not Later) for some time now, I’ve noticed how quickly this group of volunteers, now a 501(c)(3), is making progress on its goal of ending … Continue reading
Human Rights Film Festival
19th Human Rights Film Festival
The Bellingham Human Rights Film Festival offers the Bellingham community an annual 10-day film festival of powerful, thought-provoking films on the rights of people and Earth. The Bellingham Human Rights Film Festival is composed of volunteers whose primary goal is … Continue reading
poetrywatch
Boris Schleinkofer, poetrywatch editor Poetry has a voice in our community, and the Whatcom Watch is adding to its chorus. You all love poetry, right? Well, here you go! Subject matter is unlimited, but poetry featuring or specific to Whatcom … Continue reading
Salish Sea
Can We Fix Puget Sound’s Beaches?
by Christopher Dunagan Editor’s Note: This series was originally published in the Encyclopedia of Puget Sound. Recap of Part 1 If building a new bulkhead has undesirable effects on the Puget Sound ecosystem, then removing old bulkheads should help with the … Continue reading
Twenty Years Ago
Lummi Nation Program Restores Salmon Habitat
by Jim Hansen Since January 2014, Whatcom Watch, has been rerunning articles from issues printed 20 years ago. The below article appeared in the February 1999 issue of Whatcom Watch. During 1998, efforts on multiple fronts were carried out to … Continue reading
Whatcom: Chronic & Acute
Northwest Healthcare Reformers Cornered
by Robert A. Duke ©2018 Editor’s Note: We’re sorry to announce this is the last columnwritten by Robert A. Duke, who wrote his first Whatcom: Chronic & Acute column for Whatcom Watch in August 2014, and continued writing more than 25 articles, … Continue reading
A Contrarian View of Corporate Healthcare
by Robert Duke For a contrarian view of corporate healthcare under PeaceHealth and St. Joseph Medical Center, and Whatcom Alliance for Health Advancement, Northwest Life Passages and others, see the following: • “Waking Up Dying: Caregiving When There Is No Tomorrow” … Continue reading
