The Whatcom Environmental Council (WEC) announced in February that it has filed an appeal under the Washington State Growth Management Act (GMA). The appeal highlights critical failures to ensure affordable, transit-oriented development and watershed protection in the City of Bellingham’s Comprehensive Plan adopted by the City Council in December.
Unfortunately, the city’s plan misses the mark on climate and conservation goals. WEC points out that the plan needs to provide for increased housing densities while protecting the environment:
• Misaligned Growth: The plan fails to adequately direct more housing and development to areas served by frequent transit and accessible bike routes. Without this focus, the city risks missing greenhouse gas emission targets and inadvertently encourages sprawl.
• Threats to Drinking Water: WEC is deeply concerned that the plan accommodates excessive development in the Lake Whatcom Watershed, the primary drinking water source for over 100,000 residents. This move contradicts years of community effort to pass watershed protection ordinances.
“This is a step backward,” WEC Board Member David Stalheim said. “After years of the community drafting language to protect our drinking water, this plan weakens those safeguards.”
This is the city’s chance to provide for transit-oriented, affordable housing while protecting water quality and reducing sprawl into agricultural land and natural areas. The next Plan Update is not for 10 years, so WEC is acting now to help ensure our community moves forward on affordability and quality of life.
