by Meghan Fenwick
What does a family logger and the founder of a nonprofit dedicated to forest preservation have in common?
A shared understanding of the value of forested land adjacent to a vital watershed.
On February 14, the City of Bellingham’s purchase of 754 acres of zoned residential and commercial forestry property was finalized. Nielsen Brothers Inc. sold the property for $3.65 million. The property borders Lake Whatcom Park below Stewart Mountain, and has not been clear-cut since the 1940s.
Michael Feerer, founder and board treasurer of Whatcom Million Trees Project (1), poured over the timber evaluation reports and found a mix of hemlocks, Douglas firs, and other native trees reaching up to 50 years old. The older the tree, the more ecological benefits, including carbon capture, reducing runoff and flooding and more.
These benefits are crucial in the city and county’s efforts to clean up Lake Whatcom, which was placed on the list of polluted water bodies under the Clean Water Act in 1998. After a century and a half of European settlement and development in the watershed, phosphorus and other byproducts of human activity degraded the water quality past state and federal requirements.
The health of the lake not only has implications on the ecosystem, but it is a public safety concern — the lake provides drinking water for over 100,000 residents of Whatcom County. The lake water is pulled from two separate basins [The city of Bellingham pulls water from the 2nd basin, Sudden Valley pulls water from the 3rd basin] and is treated before reaching the tap. Bellingham invested over $1.6 million to upgrade a water treatment plant in 2018.
The biggest contributor to high levels of phosphorus is development in the watershed, where sediment is carried by rainwater to the lake. Annual reports from Western Washington University monitor indicators of the lake’s health such as phosphorus, nitrogen, bacteria and dissolved oxygen.
The 2022/2023 report showed signs of progress, where many measurements stabilized or increased at a slower rate than years prior. (2)
The City of Bellingham credits Feerer for re-opening the door to negotiations with Nielsen Brothers Inc., after conversations fell flat a few years prior
“Logging requires logging roads to access them, which create additional sediment pollution issues for the lake,” said Feerer. “Logging also typically leads to herbicide spraying post-clear-cut to lessen competition by other plants among the next round of newly planted trees. Then, the process repeats 40 years later. Now that this land is protected and won’t be logged, those repeated negative impacts won’t occur.
Preserving Watershed Land
Watershed Land Whatcom County, the City of Bellingham and the Lake Whatcom Water and Sewer District formed the Lake Whatcom Management Program in 1998 to coordinate restoration of the lake and surrounding watershed. Their actions are guided by a 5-year work plan, the most recent approved by the management program at the end of January. (3)
Land preservation is the first of 12 program areas listed in the work plan. Protecting land from development is more efficient than mitigating the damage after the fact, such as expanding and retrofitting storm-water systems to treat runoff.
Laura Weiss retired from a career in environmental work and moved to Bellingham seven years ago. She spent 20 years in Portland, where the Bull Run watershed provides drinking water to almost one million residents. Logging, mining and even recreation is off limits at Bull Run. The state of Lake Whatcom and the contrast in management practices inspired Weiss to serve on the city’s former Watershed Advisory Board.
“If you develop a site, you have to capture the storm-water from that site, and it can get very expensive,” said Weiss. “If you just protect that piece of property in perpetuity from being developed, it is the cheapest way to go in the long-term. You avoid all of that and the property is protected.”
The purchase of the Nielsen site was funded through the Lake Whatcom Land Acquisition and Preservation Program, which collects a watershed fee on utility bills. (4) A single-family residence in Bellingham contributes $18.13 monthly through their water bill. The fee generates about $7 million annually for the program.
Prior to this purchase, the program has protected over 3,500 acres since 2001. The Nielsen site marked the largest purchase to protect Lake Whatcom. The announcement of the deal coincided with Weiss’ birthday, giving her two calls for celebration. She still worries that preservation progress will be hindered by new developments. The latest buildout analysis released by the City of Bellingham reported a potential to build over 1,300 new developments in the watershed. (5)
courtesy: City of Bellingham
The Nielsen site’s proximity to other protected watershed land adds continuity to restoration and preservation efforts from the local government and nonprofit organizations.
“We strive to continually increase the amount of property we acquire each year,” assistant public works director Renee LaCroix wrote in an email. “However, our ability to purchase land in the Lake Whatcom watershed is entirely dependent on willing sellers and property availability.”
A large majority of the watershed falls into the jurisdiction of Whatcom County, and over 12,500 acres have been protected to date between both the city and county.
Restoring Parcel by Parcel
Retired hand surgeon Kyle Bickel moved to his property in the Lake Whatcom watershed in late 2021. He grew up in California, where hobbies like surfing, skiing and hiking fostered a connection with nature.
After practicing medicine on both the east and west coast, he set his sights on Bellingham. Lake Whatcom is a popular spot for outdoor recreation, and attracts both real estate and tourism.
“Over the 30 plus years that I lived there [California], I just watched it become overrun with people, like ants discovering a crumb on the ground,” Bickel said. “All the things that I loved about it became harder and harder to access.”
A first Bellingham home was built in the 1980s and an addition that nearly doubled the square footage was constructed before Bickel purchased the property in 2021. The five acres includes critical wetland habitat, where Bickel is required by a Whatcom County ordinance to carry out a mitigation plan.
Bickel hired a wetlands restoration specialist from Shelterbelt LLC to guide his project. Since 2022, 750 native plants have been introduced, including conifers to shade a creek that splits the property in half.
About half of the property was already forested, which Bickel has no plans of changing. Aside from some ornamental flowers near the house, he plans to continue to preserve and protect the natural ecosystem. The addition of native plants and removal of invasive species has attracted a variety of birds, butterflies and other wildlife. To Bickel, the combination of creek, forest and plains is more rewarding than a traditional lawn.
“ It’s really, really amazing to watch it take off and to watch those plants grow. It’s rewarding to see that, and, in the process, you know, we’re adding filtration to the creek that goes directly into Lake Whatcom.”
Uncovering Stewardship Potential
One piece of the puzzle that Bickel was unaware of was his storm-water system. In 2016, Whatcom County set new storm-water regulations for development. The addition to Bickel’s house was built in 2021, meaning that a storm-water site plan had to be approved.
Bickel first discovered the storm-water system through land plots when researching for restoration. Two large rectangles above the wetland were labeled as collection areas.
A typical residential storm-water system will include storm drains that collect rainwater and carry it ”through pipes to an underground reservoir where sediment and pollutants settle at the bottom. The treated water is then directed towards the nearest body of water, such as Lake Whatcom.
Bickel’s storm-water system is more sophisticated. After the storm-water is filtered, it disperses into the wetland and will eventually move hundreds of feet underground into his well. While every Whatcom resident relies on storm-water treatment for clean drinking water, Bickel’s system is more localized. [Water is pumped from ~40 ft. down in Basin 2 to ensure it is relatively clean and routed to the treatment facility for further treatment.]
“We drink what we create,” said Bickel.
These few years of watershed living have been a learning curve for Bickel, between restoring wetland habitat and understanding the ins-and-outs of storm-water. He feels fortunate to have the resources and time to dive-in head first, including purchasing an additional reverse osmosis water filter for the kitchen.
“ I think a lot of the things that people do that negatively impact their water management and the quality of the lake are really done out of ignorance, not out of malice,” said Bickel. “Most people don’t realize when they wash their car in their driveway, that all of that residue, that all the soap and all the additives go into the lake.” [The City of Bellingham has invested a lot of staff time in the Homeowner Incentive Program (HIP), as well as provided training to lake residents to make them aware that their actions in the watershed have the potential to impact water quality.]
Five-Year Plan
The five-year work plan lists several actions under the goal of education and engagement. These include increasing residents’ awareness of their storm-water systems, best practices and necessary maintenance. The Lake Whatcom Management Program publishes a quarterly newsletter, and their website can direct community members to events and updates.
For maintenance concerns and general questions, residents can contact the City of Bellingham and the county. County staff maintains public storm-water systems, but private property owners are responsible for their own systems. The county’s website includes manuals, virtual workshops, and inspection checklists, and can connect residents with contractors.
Residents can also utilize LWMP’s (HIP), which provides financial and technical assistance for property owners looking to improve water quality through vegetation and general drainage improvements.
The use of fertilizers that contain phosphorus is not only commonly known to be harmful, but has been banned in Whatcom County and Bellingham since 2011. A lesser-known negative impact is the creation or use of unofficial trails, according to Assistant Director of Public Works Renee LaCroix. This can cause soil erosion and harm native vegetation, including tree roots.
There are many avenues for residents who don’t live in the watershed to actively protect their drinking water. Weiss recommends tuning into city, county meetings, and nonprofit actions, including organizations such as RE Sources who advocate for greater protections for the lake. On April 22, the LWMP will provide an update on the program in the City of Bellingham’s council chambers from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m.
The Nielsen purchase is a victory for the lake and those who rely on it, and the most recent data showed the most promising results since monitoring began. However, the cleanup project is on a 50-year timeline as required by the EPA, with a deadline in 2066. The 2023 data is just a snapshot in terms of ecological timelines. If the future holds a vibrant and sustainable watershed, it will be preceded by more strides in preservation, restoration and awareness.
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Meghan Fenwick is a graduate of Western Washington University who recently earned her degree in environmental journalism.
References:
- https://whatcommilliontrees.org/
- https://cedar.wwu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1031&context=lakewhat_annualreps
- https://cob.org/wp-content/uploads/LWMP-2025-2029-Work-Plan-January-2025.pdf
- https://cob.org/services/environment/lake-whatcom/lw-property-acquisition-program
- https://cob.org/wp-content/uploads/lw-annual-buildoutreport.pdf
