Whatcom to hold first water adjudication meeting this Thursday, Bellingham purchases an additional 40 acres around Lake Whatcom to protect local watershed, $70 million bond to fund Blaine Public Schools to be on November ballot, Whatcom County Public Works director urges property tax bump to fund road maintenance in advance of winter, Dept. of Transportation to fund west coast states in converting to electric trucks, WA changes ballot curing process, New orca calf born to L-pod
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KMRE brings you local news for Tuesday, September 24th. Good afternoon, I’m ______.
STORY: Whatcom to hold first water adjudication meeting this Thursday
Whatcom County’s first water adjudication hearing is scheduled for this Thursday, at the County Council Chambers.
Water adjudication is a legal process to review water use and resolve management disputes. Over 30,000 residents are required to file court claims within the next year, except for those using city or public water sources.
Due to the involvement of tens of thousands of water users, in-person seating will be limited, but the hearing will be live-streamed to prevent overcrowding.
STORY: Bellingham purchases an additional 40 acres around Lake Whatcom to protect local watershed
The City of Bellingham has added more than 40 acres of forest around Lake Whatcom to its watershed protection program.
City Council President Dan Hammill announced the deal at the end of last night’s meeting, and council members approved it unanimously. The lake is the drinking water source for more than 100,000 people in Bellingham and Whatcom County. The City says the acquisitions not only improve the drinking water quality, but also provide habitat for a variety of fish, including native kokanee and cutthroat trout.
The deal brings the total area protected by the Lake Whatcom Land Acquisition and Preservation Program to about 2,815 acres.
STORY: $70 million bond to fund Blaine Public Schools to be on November ballot
For the second time this year, the Blaine School District is asking voters to approve a $70 million bond to fund renovations at the middle school.
The bond fell short of passing in February by 5 percentage points. The proposal differs from the previous plan in that it extends the payback to 20 years and it includes funding for a roof over the elementary school’s tennis courts to expand outdoor education options.
In an interview with the Cascadia Daily News, Superintendent Christopher Granger said there was a lot of quote “misinformation” during the February election. Since then, the district has been working to publicize accurate information about the bond.
STORY: Whatcom County Public Works director urges property tax bump to fund road maintenance in advance of winter
Whatcom County’s Public Works Department says it is facing budget challenges due to rising costs and declining tax revenue.
In a committee meeting two weeks ago, Public Works Director Elisabeth Kosa told the County Council that inflation has increased the price of labor and materials, causing the department to tap into its reserves. As a result, snow removal could be slower this winter, and road repairs may be delayed in the spring. Kosa said cuts of nearly 20% have already been made for the next budget cycle, including deferred road maintenance and the elimination of some programs.
Additionally, Kosa said that layoffs are possible, and proposed a 1% annual property tax increase as well as using the county’s $3.6 million dollar “banked capacity” to address the shortfall. The “banked capacity” concept allows cities to be more fiscally conservative by taking only the amount of taxes they need, without jeopardizing their ability to take up to the full amount when necessary. According to Kosa, even with these measures it may still be necessary to implement a larger tax hike– known as a levy lid lift.
She says without these measures, current service levels will become unsustainable.
STORY: Dept. of Transportation to fund west coast states in converting to electric trucks
The U.S. Department of Transportation is giving $102 million dollars to Oregon, California, and Washington to establish a network of charging and fueling stations for zero-emission trucks along Interstate 5.
The ‘West Coast Truck Charging and Fueling Corridor Project’ aims to install at least 34 electric vehicle charging stations and five hydrogen fueling stations along the 1,400-mile highway. The goal is to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from medium and heavy-duty trucks by connecting major freight hubs in cities like San Diego, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Portland, and Seattle.
According to the Department of Transportation, freight traffic between these cities accounts for nearly 30% of U.S. emissions.
STORY: WA changes ballot curing process
Washington state has made changes to the process for curing ballots in the event of mismatched signatures. The August primary proved the new process was consequential to the outcome. Reporter Eric Tegethoff has more.
BALLOT Audio
WX: Sunshine, lollipops, and rainbows
And now for your Whatcom County weather:
Today is expected to be warm and sunny, with some scattered clouds. Highs are projected in the mid-70s, with calm west-northwestern winds. Additionally, we’re seeing a chance of showers this evening, alongside lows in the high 50s.
That rain is expected to stick around for tomorrow, accompanied by increasing winds and a chance of thunderstorms.
OUTRO:
Today’s newscast was produced by volunteers Carlos Braga (BRA-guh), Connor O’Boyle, Jayne Kuhlman (COOL-mun), Tristan Trudell, Kyler Cantrell, Theron (THAIR-in) Danielson, Paloma Ortiz, Anna Hedrick, and Miguel Garduño (mee-GEL gar-DOO-ño). Tune in to local news on KMRE weekdays at 3, 4 and 5 p.m. For news tips and feedback, send us an email at news@kmre.org or call 360-398-6150. KMRE is a nonprofit community radio station, powered by listener donations. Check out our Patreon page or go to kmre.org and click on the banner. I’m ________________, and thank you for listening.
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STORY: New orca calf born to L-pod
Scientists are working to keep a newly-born orca calf, her mom and other killer whales well fed.
The orca calf was spotted off the coast of San Juan Island on September 15th. Reports then indicated that the calf looked healthy, but still had just a 50-50 chance of survival.
Salmon are the whales’ favorite food. The Sammamish River is one part of the ecosystem responsible for delivering salmon to the Salish Sea, which makes what happens in the river important to the survival of the calf.
The work done by groups like Whale Scout, a whale-watching organization that restores salmon habitats along the Sammamish River, is essential to improving survival rates. Whitney Neugebauer (NOY-geh-bauer), a scientist and the founder of Whale Scout, says her organization’s work seeks to help increase those odds.
