Watching Government

  March 2020

Port of Bellingham Commission

Compiled by Bill McCallum Action Taken at the January 7, 2020 Meeting Shall the commission: 1. Approve liability insurance standards for port agreements for fiscal year 2020? It includes items like lease agreements, rental agreements, boat rental agreements, ground transportation, … Continue reading

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  March 2020

Whatcom County Council

Compiled by Barry MacHale Action Taken at January 14, 2020 Meeting Shall the council: 1. Authorize the executive to sign a five-year contract with the state of Washington? The contract with the Secretary of State will address cost sharing for … Continue reading

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  March 2020

How Businesses and Citizens Can Help WTA Grow Ridership

by Preston L. Schiller  Part 4 This is the fourth and final part of a series about how to improve Whatcom Transportation Authority’s (WTA) transit ridership in Bellingham and Whatcom County. Since at least 80 percent of its ridership, and … Continue reading

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  March 2020

Bellingham City Council

Action Taken at January 13, 2020 Meeting Shall the council: 1. Allocate $55,000 in undesignated funds for two public festivals? Council Member Pinky Vargas serves as the chair on the Lodging Tax Advisory Committee, which is funding two events this … Continue reading

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  March 2020

Film Festival Celebrating 50th Anniversary of Earth Day

What: Wild & Scenic Film Festival Where: Mount Baker Theatre, 104 N. Commercial Street When: April 22, 5:00 – 9:00 p.m. The Wild & Scenic Film Festival comes to Bellingham! Join the Nooksack Salmon Enhancement Association (NSEA) and Huxley College … Continue reading

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  March 2020

Bellingham Hires Climate and Energy Manager

The City of Bellingham has hired Seth Vidaña as its first-ever Climate and Energy Manager. He began in that position on Feb. 18, 2020. Vidaña has worked to create a more sustainable community and reduce energy consumption at Western Washington … Continue reading

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  March 2020

Whatcom Conservation District Election Cancelled

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

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  March 2020

Whatcom Forests Provide Resilience Amidst Changing Climate

by Ellyn Murphy and Chris Elder At a recent meeting of the Whatcom County Climate Impact Advisory Committee (CIAC), County Executive Satpal Sidhu stated that he would like to see our community plant a million additional trees over the next … Continue reading

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  March 2020

Groundfish Management Shows Way to Recovery

by Lorraine Loomis Twenty years ago, West Coast groundfish stocks such as sole and rockfish were in serious trouble. Decades of overfishing had brought their populations to the cliff edge of collapse. In 2000 federal managers declared a fishery disaster … Continue reading

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  March 2020

Corvids … Something to Crow About

by Joe Meche After another interesting winter, complete with every form of precipitation and bitter northeast winds, spring is upon us. The months of March and April are usually part of the more exciting transition periods for birds and especially … Continue reading

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