There’s a lot going on in eco-land this month, and plenty of ways to get involved:
Some of the county’s Farmer’s Markets will wrap up when the weather turns south, but others will stretch out through the year. Check out a list here.
The Snohomish Conservation District, an organization that aids in natural resource management, is on the brink of getting stable funding through a new county tax. The county council will soon consider whether to draft an ordinance for an assessment to tax property on land that could benefit from the conservation district. The organization has proposed a five-year assessment term. A public meeting about the assessment is scheduled for 9 a.m. on Thur., Sept. 23. It’s likely that meeting will be held in the county council’s chambers in downtown Everett, but that hasn’t been confirmed.
It’s the green season for Snohomish County leaders, but I mean in terms of money, not in terms of the environment. You can do your part to make sure tax dollars go toward green efforts by taking part in the county budget process. County Executive Aaron Reardon is expected to propose his budget today, and a series of public meetings to discuss the budget is underway. Attend one: 6:30 p.m. on Wed., Sept. 10 at Willis D. Tucker Park at 6705 Puget Park Drive in Snohomish, or at 6:30 p.m. on Mon., Sept. 15 at the Edmonds City Council Chambers at 250 5th Ave. N. in Edmonds.
Seattle Weekly seems to be fanning the flames of debate that divide the people of western Washington. “Why They Hate Us: Our green ideals aren’t going down so well in rural King County” is the cover story for Sept. 3 – 9, and is illustrated with a painting of a supposed farm boy, wearing a green and yellow John Deere hat, shredding the newspaper’s banner with a pitchfork and glaring at all the city folk. The reporter interviewed farmers who were forced to deal with flooding after King County officials declared the area a wetland.
The landowners in the story argue that they should have the right to develop their property as they see fit, especially when county regulations create flooding that drowns trees and hinders fish runs. The article draws a line dividing rural landowners fighting for property lines and urban environmentalists fighting for preservation.
The headline and cover illustration aren’t as balanced as they could be, but it’s true that the issues are more hot-button now than ever before. Snohomish County leaders are trying to resolve the same issues, and have planned meetings for rural landowners – and the urbanites who are concerned about preservation – to create a road map for future land codes.
Attend! 6:30 p.m. on Wed., Sept. 17 at the Evergreen State Fairgrounds longhouse on Hwy. 2 in Monroe; 6:30 p.m. on Tue., Sept. 23 at Pioneer Hall at 20722 67th Ave. NE in Arlington; 6:30 p.m. on Thur., Sept. 25 in Public Meeting Room #1 at the Snohomish County Camps at 3000 Rockefeller Ave. in Everett.
And finally: Sarah Palin.
“Americans — need to produce more of our own oil and gas. And take it from a gal who knows the North Slope of Alaska; we’ve got lots of both.”
And:
“Starting in January, in a McCain-Palin administration, we’re going to lay more pipelines and build more nuclear plants and create jobs with clean coal and move forward on solar, wind, geothermal and other alternative sources.”
What to make of it?
Read the entire transcript of her speech Wednesdsay at the Republican National Convention here.
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