Source: DNR Resources Protection Division
The two-part series on the number of fires caused by railroads in Washington State wrapped up last night on KING-5 TV . Yesterday (Nov. 5), Ear to the Ground looked at fires from all causes over the past 10 years on the 12.7 million acres that DNR protects from wildfire. This chart (above) shows the pattern of railroad-caused fires on DNR-protected lands from 1998 to 2008 (We’re still compiling our 2009 numbers).
Source: DNR Resource Protection Division
King 5 TV News aired a report last night (Nov. 4) looking into the issue of railroads causing fires in Washington. The report found 234 fires across Washington in the past decade attributed to railroads, using data from DNR and the State Fire Marshal’s office. This chart (above) comes from the DNR database showing fires from all sources between 1998 and 2008.
DNR protects about 12.7 million acres of state, public and private land from wildfire. Most of these lands are forested and often at elevation.
Most of the Simmons surface mining site was buried by a massive landslide in October. The company recently told DNR it wanted to resume operations, even though DNR considers the site an active landslide. Photo: WDOT
DNR has issued an Emergency Order to Suspend Surface Mining at a mine near the south-central Washington town of Nile in the Naches River Valley. That’s where the massive Nile Landslide occurred on October 11, 2009, closing Highway 410, re-routing the Naches River, and damaging several homes. All but one acre of the 50-acre surface mine at the site was buried in the landslide (see photo).
The stop-order was prompted when DNR geologists were advised Oct. 28 that the mine’s owners – Simmons & Son Hauling — wanted to resume operations. DNR found that problematic for two reasons: 1) one digging at the toe of an active landslide (the Nile Landslide is still not considered stable by DNR engineers) raises the danger of a new landslide that would endanger the public (including eight nearby homes) and, 2) mining the site and reclaiming it as outlined in the permit issued in 1994 might not be possible because the slopes were changed so dramatically by the landslide. The Emergency Order says: “The changed site conditions caused by the Nile Landslide make it impossible to conduct reclamation at the Simmons Pit without signficant deviations from the existing plan.”
DNR says it has not yet determined the cause of the landslide, which covers more than 80 acres. Bottom line: a professional geotechnical/engineering report acceptable to DNR is needed before any mining should start again. Click here to see the DNR Emergency Order issued yesterday and Simmons’ original application from 1994.
Starting today, Reiter Foothills Forest in Snohomish County is temporarily closed to everything but foot traffic while DNR and volunteers restore damaged habitat, begin building new trail systems, and work to improve public safety. Interested in lending a hand? Volunteers will play a key role in helping reopen Reiter. Contact David Way at 360-856-3500 or david.way@dnr.wa.gov.
The approval Friday afternoon (Oct. 31) by the State Board on Geographic Names to designate the collective waters of Puget Sound, Strait of Juan de Fuca and Georgia Strait as the Salish Sea got broad press coverage around Washington, including the Seattle Times, Kitsap Sun, San Juan Journal, and the Spokane Spokesman-Review. The news also was reported around the nation [Baltimore Sun], in Canada [Vancouver Sun], internationally by the AFP news service, and in several blogs.
A clarification for some of the reports is that the use of Salish Sea is not mandated for nongovernment cartographers to use (unless they are making a map on a state contract, that is). There also is the concept of ‘cartographer’s privilege,’ meaning the cartographer designing the map decides whether the words “Salish Sea” will make sense to include or not. In other words, the map of your favorite inlet, cove, or bay on Puget Sound won’t need to include “Salish Sea.”
For those who want to read the Revised Code of Washington, here’s the section on geographic names: RCW 43.126. A list of the official names (‘Salish Sea’ is in the process of being added), with map coordinates and dates of adoption, are here, including Okanogan County’s own Hee Hee Mountain.
Members of the Yakima Ski Benders meet with DNR staff to sign an agreement for winter recreation services. From left to right: Ronna Younie, Yakima Ski Benders (YSB); Mike Van Amburg, YSB; Devon Dekker, YSB vice-president; Carl Denton, YSB president; Robert Dengel, DNR; Mike Williams, DNR; and Paul Younie, YSB. Photo: Liz Van Amburg/YSB
Things were looking pretty bleak for snowmobilers who love to ride the dry winter powder on state trust lands near Yakima and Ellensburg.
Due to budget cuts earlier this year by the Legislature, DNR was planning to suspend its winter recreation program at five snow parks this season. Concerned about the possibility of not having access to their favorite winter recreation sites , the snowmobiling community decided to get proactive.
In a short few weeks, members of the Yakima Ski Benders collected the $25,000 necessary to keep the program alive.
Earlier today, members of the Ski Benders handed over a first-installment check of $10,000 to Mike Williams, DNR’s recreation program manager for the Southeast Region.
Carl Denton, president of the Yakima Ski Benders, said that nearly 120 people and businesses donated enough money to fund DNR’s management of the winter recreation program. Average donations were about $100, with some individuals and businesses contributing $1,000 or more.
All parties—snowmobilers and DNR staff—agree that resorting to collecting donations was not the ideal way to resolve the issue. But the effort demonstrates how a group of determined citizens worked together with DNR staff to find a short-term solution.
“We’re hoping we don’t have to this every year or biennium,” Denton says.
Instead, Denton and his group will be looking at new ways to fund winter recreation.
“I’m glad we could work together to get through this challenging time,” added Mike Williams, recreation program manager with DNR’s Southeast Region.
Thanks to the generous donations from the snowmobiling community, the following DNR-managed areas will open for winter recreation: Manashtash, southwest of Ellensburg; and Ahtanum Meadows, Ahtanum Guard Station, Rattlesnake, and Lily Lake, near Yakima.
Next step: Pray for snow!
A team of high school students present findings of their purple martin study to staff from DNR and the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife. Photo: Janet Pearce/DNR
High school students in Olympia are helping DNR and the Washington State Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) get a better understanding how to keep the western purple martin a common sight across the Puget Sound region. That knowledge also is helping shape plans to restore a vital natural area where martins nest.
For the past two years, a group of students from Capital High School have helped DNR and WDFW study the dwindling numbers of western purple martins at Woodard Bay Natural Resources Conservation Area (NRCA), north of Olympia. Coordinated by DNR’s Environmental Education program, the students monitored this species of concern over the summer and presented findings to both state agencies (see photo). The students’ data about a colony of martins at the NRCA will help DNR make important management decisions about restoration projects at the site.
The main portion of student monitoring happens in the late spring and early summer of their junior year of high school. Students are trained by agency staff to identify, observe, and record data about the purple martins.
One student, Chelsea Crane, wrote, “One of our favorite experiences was getting to watch the throw-down between two purple martins and a violet green swallow. I think a better name for the violet green swallow would be the violent green swallow, because its fighting tactics were brutal. We were all excited to see the martins win in the end, and got quite a show.”
A DNR feasibility study for restoring the nearshore habitat at Woodward Bay calls for retaining some of the wood pilings in Henderson Inlet to give purple martins a place to build nests over the water. The study included data collected by students in 2008. Since these birds have never been monitored at Woodard Bay, the students’ data provides a baseline of information for how many martins nest there.
This spring, students will recruit and help train the next group of high school juniors who will monitor the martins during the summer of 2010. We don’t know for sure but we assume the purple martins will be especially grateful for the students’ help in keeping their nesting area.
Triangle Gravel Pit, a popular target shooting area in Capitol State Forest, before (left) and after (right) a volunteer cleanup last Saturday (Oct. 24). Photos: Project Wilderness & DNR
The Triangle Gravel Pit, a popular spot for target shooting in Capitol State Forest, got the volunteer treatment this past weekend… as in people pitching in to pick up after others. The area west of Olympia has been the site of illegal dumping and unsafe target shooting. DNR regulates and enforces recreational target shooting target shooting rules on DNR-managed lands. On Saturday, 18 volunteers from Project Wilderness arranged with DNR’s Pacific Cascade Region office to clean up the site. DNR Law Enforcement was on hand to keep the area closed during the cleanup. It took about 7 hours to remove 11 pick-up truck loads of garbage – a lot of it riddled with bullet holes — including a refrigerator, a cut car roof, several televisions, countless computer monitors, dozens of propane tanks, a microwave and, as Project Wilderness noted in its blog, ”…sadly, Clifford the Big Red Dog, Scooby Doo & Snoopy. Who executes our childhood cartoon favorites?”
By early next week when this “after” photo was taken (right) the site was starting again show some signs of dumping and irresponsible target shooting. Clifford, indeed!
Today, DNR closes a short section of non-motorized trail between Margaret McKenny Campground and the E-9500 road in Capitol State Forest. Normally, that non-motorized trail stays open for equestrians and hikers until December 1.
DNR will close the Margaret McKenny Campground November 1 for the season (a month early). Both the trail and campground are due to re-open May 1, 2010.
Adult salmon have been seen in Waddell Creek recently so today’s trail closure – and next week’s campground closure — are intended to protect salmon habitat. Salmon redds (depressions in streambed gravel caused by salmon layng eggs) have been spotted in Waddell Creek. The loss of a bridge across the creek in a storm two years ago has forced trail users to ford the creek at that point, causing damage to the stream’s habitat.
DNR is building a new bridge to span Waddell Creek near the campground but due to stream protection regulations, it cannot be installed until spring.
Go online to keep up with the latest on DNR-managed recreation sites, including Capitol State Forest.
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