Is Puget Sound on a Track to Die Following the Next Wave of Development?

The Thurston County Board of County Commissioners has requested a seminar by Tom Holz on “Why DOE drainage standards will not protect Puget Sound”. The seminar will describe how low impact development is the only path to protect the Sound.

If a healthy Puget Sound is important to you, please help persuade Thurston County to adopt low impact development standards by appearing at the seminar on:

Wednesday, March 30, 2011
4:00 PM
Thurston County Courthouse, Building 1

The Washington State Department of Ecology (DOE) appears to be on a path to continue using the same standard for development for the next five to eight years that has been used for the last decade. DOE calls it the “flow-duration” standard. It more accurately should be described as the 0/100/100 standard. That is, DOE will require “0%” forest set-aside, will allow “100%” hardened surfaces, and will allow “100%” runoff of precipitation falling on a site. As almost everyone knows, healthy streams are found in watersheds that are 100% forested. Stream channels begin to destabilize following the clearing of about one-third of its watershed. Thus DOE will allow development that will result in exactly the opposite of a healthy watershed.

At this juncture, there is almost no organized public opposition to DOE’s proposal. Your presence at the seminar will help to signal that there is opposition. Please come.

UPDATE:
If you were unable to attend this meeting, you will find Tom’s presentation now on YouTube. It’s in two segments. Click here for the first segment, which is 52:35 in length. Fast forward about 4 minutes in, to begin the presentation. Click here for the second segment, which is 14:56 in length.
   
 
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