Water

  July 2020

Five Solutions to Whatcom County Water Issues

by Eric Hirst At the February 2020 City Club meeting, Whatcom County Executive Satpal Sidhu asked us to offer five solutions to the problems we think are most significant for the county. Here are my suggestions to deal with our … Continue reading

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  April 2020

Challenges to a Water Supply in a Changing Climate

by Judy Hopkinson and Ellyn Murphy   The Community Research Project was conducted on behalf of the Whatcom County Climate Impact Advisory Committee. The purpose of this project was to reach out to community leaders and stakeholders on how the … Continue reading

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  January 2020

Nooksack River Too Little Water, and It’s Getting Worse

by Eric Hirst   There is less water during the summer in the Nooksack River today than five decades ago. These lower flows are one of many factors adversely affecting salmon and the orcas that feed on salmon. (1) This … Continue reading

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  January 2020

Watershed Management Board

This local organization is responsible for addressing water supply and quality issues within the Nooksack River basin and for salmon recovery. Its members include Whatcom County, City of Bellingham, Public Utility District #1, Lummi Nation, Nooksack Indian Tribe, and the … Continue reading

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  September 2019

A Meeting About Protecting Lake Whatcom

by April Markiewicz and Laura Weiss Interested in protecting, preserving, and restoring Lake Whatcom, our community’s primary source of drinking water? Please join us at the downtown Community Food Co-op Connections Building (405 E. Holly St.) classroom on Wednesday, September … Continue reading

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  May 2019

About Lake Whatcom

Lake Whatcom is the primary drinking water source for about 100,000 residents of Whatcom County. The lake is comprised of three sub-basins from which samples are collected in October through December, in February and April through September each year. The … Continue reading

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  May 2019

How We Can Keep Lake Whatcom Safe and Clean

by Karlee Deatherage Our drinking water is at a tipping point. The drinking water source for over 100,000 Whatcom County residents, Lake Whatcom, faces an onslaught of threats — from logging and development to pesticides and invasive mussels hitching rides … Continue reading

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  August 2017

Improve Water-Use Efficiency: Focus on the Outliers

by Eric Hirst Whatcom County enjoys ample water supplies when averaged over the year, but summer conditions are quite different. Winter rains recharge groundwater and fill our streams, but summer’s hot, dry weather increases demand, especially for irrigation, and cuts … Continue reading

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  May 2017

Clean Water: Lake Whatcom Water Quality Update

by April Markiewicz Clean water. Each of us gets up every morning, turns on the water faucet and expects to have clean, fresh water at our disposal. We make coffee with it, prepare food, brush our teeth, take a shower, … Continue reading

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  Oct/Nov 2016

Eric Hirst Letter to Whatcom County Council

by Eric Hirst Dear Whatcom County Council Members, Last week’s council meeting included several rural residents, builders, and realtors opposed to the recent Supreme Court decision on the future of rural permit-exempt wells. I hope attendance at next week’s hearing … Continue reading

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