Flooding's roots further upstream

Regarding the Feb. 3 letter, "City made flooding to the south worse":

I can truly sympathize with the writer. I also have been flooded and it was a very traumatic event. Since that event I have done research on the subject and I conclude that the writer's focus of blame on the city of Stanwood is misplaced. The real problem is further upstream and includes the entire Stillaguamish watershed. The culprit is the speed with which the water arrives in the valley. It used to take days for the water to drain down to the mouth; now it takes hours. This is due to the increased development in the rural portion of the watershed and the resulting loss of vegetation needed to slow the water flow.

Here is what I find ironic -- the person the writer specifically thanks is County Councilman John Koster. However, for years he has been one of the councilmen who most aggressively pushed for this destructive development in the rural areas. Just check his voting record. He was one of the prime supporters of converting Island Crossing farmland (flood plain) to be used as a car lot, he supported legislation to allow fully contained communities in rural areas, he voted in support of the Soundview development in Warm Beach, plus he supports density bonuses for rural cluster developments. All of these actions are designed to drive greater development/populations into rural areas. This creates more impervious surfaces in the watershed and speeds the surface water flows to the river.

Now, guess who voted against increased funding for surface water management? Yes, John Koster! So, I believe praise of John Koster is also misplaced. He bears a strong responsibility for the letter writer's flooding predicament.

Dave Ridgeway
Stanwood