HomeMy WebLinkAbout051926 email - On the subject of Protection Island Land TransferALERT: BE CAUTIOUS This email originated outside the organization. Do not open attachments or click on links if you are not expecting them.
Hello Jefferson County Commissioners. I recently heard that you may have tentatively supported the idea of a land transfer of Protection Island to the Jamestown S'Klallam Tribe. I want
to register my concern about this possible land transfer. I feel that it would be a mistake to give up one of the 570 national wildlife refugees of the United States to any entity at
all.
The hard fought battle to create the island's wildlife refuge status started in the late 1950s with Zella Schultz, a local woman birder who recognized the significance of the island
and was very concerned about it being turned into a commercial development with 800 lots planned and platted. In the 1970s, she was joined by Eleanor Stopps, who took the lead on the
project and enrolled the National Audubon Society, Seattle Audubon Society, and thousands of other people over the late 1970s and early 80s, including myself in saving this important
bird refuge. The state itself recognizes Protection Island, Padilla Bay and the Hanford reaches the three most important ecological sites in the state.
For her efforts, Eleanor was awarded the citizen of the century by this very county. It was a unique award.
The work was very difficult, and required support of the governors Dixie Lee Ray and Republican John Spellman, along with all of the Washington delegation, state and federal, including
Senators Magnusson and Jackson. Later near the end of the efforts, Slade Gordon was incredibly important for helping the Reagan administration understand the importance of naming this
island a refuge. It was the only such action that the Reagan administration took in eight years in office.
My concern is that the Trump administration is clearly working to get the federal government out of such conservation efforts. It is documented in Project 2025 as a goal. The Trump administration
has also been removing buffalo preserves from the Midwest and handing them over to the tribes there as well with no involvement of the non profit organizations that had setup and run
the reserves for decades.
I also have grave concerns about giving this island to the Jamestown S'Klallam Tribe. I want to make it clear that I am a supporter of the tribe, and have been one since producing two
films for them in the last decade. I produced Treaty Resources and Working for the River as a close friend of the late tribal elder Marlin Holden, who has spoken in this county numerous
times during his life on behalf of the tribe. As a filmmaker for the tribe, I was allowed to film tribal meetings, and met numerous times with the Tribal Council, the late Kurt Grinnell
and Ron Allen. It make me sad that I have to take this position on behalf of the protection of the island. It does not come lightly.
With that said, my concern comes from the fact that the Jamestown S'Klallam is not just a tribe, but also runs an aquaculture business that is wholy owned by the tribe. Its shareholders
are the tribal members. The inner workings of the company are not privy to outside scrutiny. The tribe is a sovereign nation, and as such live lives under a slightly different set of
rules than the rest of us do in our relationship to the government. I support them engaging in commercial aquaculture. The issue comes to head with such things as them being granted
co-management of the Dungeness Spit, and immediately pushing for a large aquaculture farm inside the bay, which was opposed by the biologist of the spit when first proposed. I am concerned
that the commercial nature of their business is overriding concerns for the environment inside the bay, where so many of the species of birds that the refuge was intended to protect
are reliant on food sources that come from the bottom of the bay, such as sand lance, herring and other fish that are actually in decline all over Puget Sound. Dumping 80,000 bags of
oysters (down from the initial proposal of over 100,000) does not make the bay’s benthic layer better. It buries it for the entire duration of those bags and future bags covering it.
A question for you: If the issue was whether we should support handing the island over to a commercial aquaculture entity like Taylor Shellfish, would you still be in support of that?
Additionally, the tribes many environmental restoration efforts have all come through funding by the federal government, along with some funding from the state government. When the federal
government relinquishes control of the island to the tribe, where will the money come from to support efforts of protection? Given the governments push to reduce federal expenditures
on non-military items, I don't see them being supportive of providing more money for this effort.
I have read the proposed land transfer draft bill, both the one they plan to give to Representative Randall and Senator Cantwell. These draft documents were presented to the Clallam
County Commissioners and Sequim City Council. I assume they may have provided them to you as well. These were drafted by their lawyers with no public input and that is another concern
that I have that this entire movement is being done with virtually no public input. And once the tribe has ownership of the island, it will be the tribes and the tribes alone to decide
who gets to give input on the future of the island and whether the tribe takes that input into their plans at all. My experience working with the tribe is that it's quite an insular
organization that does not even allow non-tribal members to their annual tribal meetings. At least that's what I was told when I was allowed to film one on their behalf some years ago.
I am not critical of that. I understand that perspective, but when it comes to managing something as important as a wildlife refuge, I think it does not suit the notion of what the
public expects.
The tribe has given vague assurances about their plans. The actual wording of their document, and frankly the wording of the Protection Island Act of 1982 does not lead me to feel good
about what might happen. The tribe would probably love to have the ability to do aquaculture on the near shore of the island. There are likely harvestable wildlife that have been never
exploited. The nearshore is apparently still going to be owned by Washington state and managed by DNR as it is now, however it's been my experience that DNR is extremely promiscuous
in its support of any entity wanting to expand aquaculture in the state. This is understandable given the states’ 2000 law that supported expanded aquaculture as a primary activity.
It has led to a vast expansion of commercial aquaculture into virgin bays and beaches across the Sound and Hood Canal with numerous lawsuits trying to stop that expansion. These lawsuits
have been led by homeowners who often times find commercial activity happening, literally in their backyard on the beach at all hours of day and night around the year. It is likely
that given the nature of the Federal ownership, that no one has attempted to ask the State for the ability to harvest there.
My ask of you is to slow this entire process down, and start public hearings about it. There are many well-meaning people here who support this without understanding the full possible
ramifications. I think that with a full open discussion of the pros and cons that it's been my experience that people suddenly stop and wonder whether this is really the right thing
to do.The island is technically in Jefferson County as I understand it so it is under your jurisdiction to some degree.
Again, I am very grateful and happy about all the work that the Jamestown S'klallam Tribe has done with federal and state funding to restore Jimmy Come Lately Creek, the Dungeness River,
and work done to clean up Dungeness Bay. However, I am extremely concerned that the outcome of handing the island to the tribe will carry consequences that we seriously do not understand
yet fully.
Ultimately this is a business transaction between our government and a sovereign nation. We must go slowly and possibly decide not to do this at all.
I want to close by the words of the very law that created the National Wildlife Refuge system:
The mission of the System is to administer a national network of lands and waters for the conservation, management, and where appropriate, restoration of the fish, wildlife, and plant
resources and their habitats within the United States for the benefit of present and future generations of Americans.” The part of “the benefit of present and future generations of
Americans is what caught my eye. This island is set aside for “all” Americans, including but not just for Tribes, corporations, Republicans or Democrats. It’s for all of us and the
rare species living there and virtually no where else. Once the island is gone, we will never get it back. It will be a part of a sovereign nation, with no way to ensure any specific
use or penalty for abuse. This simply seems like a mistake.
I want to clarify that I am not a member of any organization such as Audubon or any other environmental organization. I consider myself first and foremost, an environmental journalist
and have been reporting on these issues running the Olympic Peninsula Environmental News since 2007.
Would be glad to comment more on this in person if you wish.
Al Bergstein
Former member and chair of the Jefferson Marine Resources Committee
Editor/Publisher of The Olympic Peninsula Environmental News
Port Townsend
Attachments:
The Advertisement placed in the Peninsula Daily News on May 16th.
Protection Island Bill of 1982