Murray, Dicks promote Wild Olympics bill

SHELTON — Sen. Patty Murray and Congressman Norm Dicks are visiting the Olympic Peninsula on Thursday to promote their Wild Olympics legislation. They’re stopping at a Taylor Shellfish site near Shelton and touring areas that would be affected.

Bills in the House and Senate would create nearly 200 square miles of new wilderness in Washington’s Olympic National Forest and designate 19 rivers and seven tributaries as Wild and Scenic Rivers.

Murray and Dicks say they have made compromises to overcome objections the designations would be too restrictive on logging and recreation.

The Aberdeen and Cosmopolis city councils and Grays Harbor County commissioners have passed resolutions opposing the Wild Olympics campaign.