Watching Government

  June 2017

Port of Bellingham Commission

Action Taken at April 4, 2017 Meeting Shall the commission: 42. Modify a lease and a surplus personal property transfer agreement with Bitter End Boatworks and authorize the executive director to sign a certificate for surplus port property? Bitter End … Continue reading

Comments Off on Port of Bellingham Commission

  June 2017

Whatcom County Council

Compiled by Barry MacHale Action Taken at April 4, 2017 Meeting Shall the council: 58. Authorize the executive to accept a $18,375 state grant for water safety patrols? The grant will fund patrols by the sheriff’s office during the peak … Continue reading

Comments Off on Whatcom County Council

  June 2017

Bellingham City Council

Action Taken at April 10, 2017 Meeting Shall the council: 63. Send letters to Senator Patty Murray, Senator Maria Cantwell and Representative Rick Larsen regarding the federal budget? The letter addresses a proposal to zero out Housing and Urban Development … Continue reading

Comments Off on Bellingham City Council

  June 2017

Trump’s Budget Dumps on the Struggling

by Bob Schober This section is devoted to studying the local impacts of specific issues the Trump Administration or Republican Congress will propose. “Words may show a man’s wit, but actions his meaning.” — Benjamin Franklin “Actions speak louder than … Continue reading

Comments Off on Trump’s Budget Dumps on the Struggling

  June 2017

Trump’s Adversary — Truth

by Lyle Harris Sr. The president has no clothes. David Brooks, the respected conservative columnist for The New York Times, wrote that Trump has the “dangerousness of an immature man” under the headline, “When the World is Led by a … Continue reading

Comments Off on Trump’s Adversary — Truth

  June 2017

Eelgrass Meadows, Our Tidelands Nursery

by Ron Kleinknech Part 1 If you have ever been to Whatcom County beaches during a minus tide you have likely seen eelgrass — the long green slender blades that drift in the tide. It turns out these marine grasses … Continue reading

Comments Off on Eelgrass Meadows, Our Tidelands Nursery

  June 2017

Our Environmental Future Depends on Viable Local Farms

by Fred Likkel and Brad Rader In the April 2017 issue of Whatcom Watch, one of the leaders of RE Sources effectively presented the environmental group’s position on dairy farming. Simply put, their position is that most of our 90-some … Continue reading

Comments Off on Our Environmental Future Depends on Viable Local Farms

  June 2017

Maru Mora Villalpando and Latino Advocacy

by Kathryn Fentress Maru Mora Villalpando was born and raised in Mexico City. She first came to the United States in the early 90s for economic reasons. She returned to the United States in 1994 for political reasons. She lived … Continue reading

Comments Off on Maru Mora Villalpando and Latino Advocacy

  June 2017

Birding the Olympic Coast South by Southwest

by Joe Meche Part 1 Every year when March and April come around, the first shorebirds begin showing up on local beaches. At the same time I think about the Washington coast and the large-scale migration of these unique birds. … Continue reading

Comments Off on Birding the Olympic Coast South by Southwest

  June 2017

9th Circuit Refuses to Hear 
Culvert Case Appeal

The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals earlier today (May 19, 2017) refused to hear the state of Washington’s most recent appeal of the culvert case. The U.S. government filed the case in 2001 on behalf of the tribes. The decision … Continue reading

Comments Off on 9th Circuit Refuses to Hear 
Culvert Case Appeal