As a local Washington resident who’s grown up in areas around Seattle, Snohomish, Everett and Bellingham, I’ve grown accustomed to our weather, specifically the rain during almost every season of the year and the small bits of sun we might get if we’re lucky during the summer.
The season I was not prepared for growing up was what I would soon recognize as our Smokember, which began as wildfires erupted throughout the most recent summers. The fires this year in November resulted in Washington state having the worst air quality along the span of several days and caused areas surrounding Bolt Creak and Stevens Pass to be evacuated.
During this time, there was no direction by the governor or comment by legislators, just the unnerving anxiety that many residents felt while we waited for it to rain.
Going into the 2023 session, our state legislators have a chance to enact important updates to Climate Planning within the Growth Management Act. They have the responsibility to require the largest and fastest growing counties and cities to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and vehicle miles traveled through land use planning.
I want our state to be one of the first to put climate change at the front of every planning agenda and ensure all jurisdictions establish regulations and policies that fight for a better climate future. I encourage our state legislators to support these updates and allow Washington residents to breathe again and prepare for future climate crises.
Riley Benson
Lake Stevens
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