Cover Story
Meet Whatcom County’s Climate Action Manager
by Stevan Harrell Whatcom County’s Climate Action Manager Lauren Clemens has been on the job for five months, and she has been busy. What with wildfire smoke, flooding, extreme heat, and the beginnings of sea level rise, coordinating climate action … Continue reading
Cover Story
How Can We Protect Urban Trees and Climate Resiliency?
by Michael Feerer Protecting urban trees and forests to enhance our climate resiliency —- how can that be compatible with new development, such as much-needed infill housing? Learn how one relatively new local nonprofit — Whatcom Million Trees Project … Continue reading
Beaks and Bills
To Everything There Is a Season
by Joe Meche From a song of some renown by Pete Seeger: “To everything, turn, turn, turn there is a season, turn, turn, turn and a time to every purpose under heaven.” Except for the phrase, “turn, turn, turn,” … Continue reading
Watching Government
Compiled by Barry MacHale Action Taken at July 11, 2023 Meeting Shall the council: 166. Authorize the executive to sign a 2,464 contract (amendment #2) with the Arc of Whatcom County? The contract will provide information, education and family support … Continue reading
Watching Government
Action Taken at July 10, 2023 Meeting Shall the council: 128. Authorize the mayor to award the low bid of ,263,168 to Bear Wood Windows of Lakewood for Old City Hall repairs? The engineer’s estimate was ,177,000. The building was … Continue reading
Watching Government
Compiled by Bill McCallum Action Taken at July 11, 2023 Meeting Shall the commission: 57. Modify a lease with Aliotti Enterprises to add professional offices for an authorized use at 1030 C Street? At the 1/5/2021 meeting, vote #9, the … Continue reading
Agriculture
Wireworms Pester New Farmers – Part 2
Editor’s Note: Whatcom Watch has entered a cooperative agreement with Salish Current. When possible, we will share each other’s content. Salish Current, an online-only news organization, covers the North Sound area and Whatcom Watch mainly covers Whatcom County issues. This … Continue reading
Climate
Articles You Might Have Missed
Around the world people are taking the initiative to mitigate climate change. Here are some good news briefs compiled by the Climate Issue group of the LWV of Bellingham/Whatcom. The Fortune of Torrential Rainfall For generations, during dry periods, California … Continue reading
Community Service Spotlight
by Brylie Taylor I remember exactly where I was the very first instance I had a panic attack. I was 17, standing directly outside the door of my afternoon English class. My school counselor was talking to me about my … Continue reading
Dear Sasquatch
Middle Housing Is Affordable Housing
by Annika Sampson Dear Sasquatch, I love living in Bellingham. It’s a beautiful city, full of people who care about community and the environment. I want this to be my home for a long time. But dang — the … Continue reading
Looking Back
We were sad to discover Terry Weschler passed away on July 6, 2023. We at Whatcom Watch would like to express our appreciation for the work and assistance Terry Wechsler provided. She wrote 18 articles for Whatcom Watch during the … Continue reading
Pollution
Scrap Metal Chat? Time for a Public Conversation
by Bill Craven I would have thought that transforming the scenic Bellingham waterfront into an industrial export hub for western Canada’s largest scrap metal company, ABC Recycling, would have generated a larger public buzz. Now, ABC has purchased 20 acres … Continue reading
Bellingham’s ‘Single-Stream’ Rollout Begins
by Meghan Fenwick This August, residents of the Birchwood neighborhood in Bellingham retired their red, white and blue recycling bins to make way for a single green 96-gallon toter. On Feb. 27, the City Council approved renegotiation of the city’s … Continue reading
