2-2016 Update

Dear Sky Valley Residents,

Annual meeting of SVENA members will be next month, April 2016. Details of exact time, place and directions are coming soon. We will review what has occurred, what we want to occur and the content of the web site. Suggestions for topics are welcome.

We are working with WFLC (Washington Forest Law Center) and representatives of UW School of Law on a petition addressed to the Forest Practices Board. This petition will ask to improve notification to local residents about upcoming toxic chemical sprays and to expand included information and contacts.

We will be glad if you send us your high quality photos of the most beautiful views of
One of the mountain views with an old barn and an interesting background. Photo courtesy of Chris Hendrickson, reporter at Monroe Monitor.

the Skykomish Valley and also of the worst logging and pollution. Land and mud slides are also welcome. We will post the best photos at our website and make a gallery of what we can be proud of and not so much proud of. If possible, please submit information about the location of the photo and the date it was taken. We might have a photo contest if we get sufficient response for this request.

Here is a list of new FPAs (Forest Practice Applications) for our area. Please visit FPAs and Summary for FPAs page at svena.org for more information such as exact location. It is important to send comments (even they are past due) so they are in the system. The more comments, the more seriously government agencies will take them.

2815010 – Sultan area – comments due 3-16-2016 (temp. bridge)

2815021 – Gold Bar area – comments due 3-7-2016 (logging 102 ac.)

2815014 – Gold Bar area – comments due 3-3-2016 (road construction)

2815012 – Gold Bar area- comments due 3-1-2016 (logging 44 ac.)

2815006 – Monroe area – comments due 2-24-2016 (logging 26 ac.)

2815004 – Gold Bar area – comments due 2-22-2016 (road construction)

If you have concerns, it is important that you send them to the Northwest Region office of DNR (Department of Natural Resources) northwest.region@dnr.wa.gov . For more impact, please include recipients from Resources page: press, county and state legislators. Comments should be informed concerns relevant to the specific FPA. “Canned” comments will not be taken seriously.

List of possible concerns:

> logging and toxic chemical spraying harms public health and safety
> toxic chemical spraying contaminates drinking water sources, local watershed (creeks, streams, rivers) and harms salmon
> logging on steep slopes increases a risk of land/mud slides
> contaminating creeks and streams by putting fill for bridges during road construction
> logging and toxic chemical spraying hurts environment and wildlife
> reducing values of homes and properties
> reducing aesthetic values in the recreation and tourist active area
> harming local community, economy, businesses and residents

Comments can ask for conditions to be placed on a permit:

> excluding a steep area from the harvest
> doing a partial cut in a gully
> removing logs by helicopter instead of skidding them down a steep unstable slope
> putting a no-cut boundary around a domestic water source
> asking on-site Interdisciplinary Team Review (IDTeam) for the part of the greatest concern
> asking for analysis and evaluations of specific items

If you have more ideas for concerns and conditions, we will be glad to hear from you.