Puget Sound Action Team Comments at the rescheduled June 9, 2004 Final Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement and Public Hearing before the Jefferson County Board of Commissioners - A 2002 Comprehensive Plan Amendment (MLA 02-235 – Fred Hill Materials, Inc.) 

My name is John Cambalik, I am the Local Liaison for the Puget Sound Action Team partnership covering Clallam, Jefferson, and Kitsap counties.  My office is located at PO Box 3622, Sequim, Washington.  I would like to thank Board of Commissioners for this opportunity to speak to you today regarding this issue.

The Puget Sound Action Team is a partnership of federal and state natural resource agencies, tribes, businesses, and non-profit organizations working together to protect and restore the biological health and diversity of the Puget Sound basin, including the Hood Canal and the Strait of Juan de Fuca, through implementation of the Puget Sound Water Quality Management Plan.

With the heightened awareness and concern surrounding the general degradation of the Hood Canal ecosystem, particularly as evidenced by the:
 

• ESA listing as Threatened of the Hood Canal and Eastern Strait of Juan de Fuca Summer Chum, the continuing severe

• Low dissolved oxygen problem and associated fishing closures, and the recent

• Threatened listing of commercial shellfish areas under the state’s Early Warning System

We recommend that the county adopt the No Action Alternative on this amendment at this time, to allow for improvements in our understanding of how the Hood Canal ecosystem functions. A number of studies, that might help to better inform this issue, are currently underway using state, federal, tribal and local resources and community volunteers to gather and analyze data to answer the questions – what are the causes of low dissolved oxygen and how can we correct this problem that threatens the future of aquatic life in the Canal?

In light of the fact that the Hood Canal is a fjord, it is inherently complex and sensitive to change resulting not only from small-scale development but also from large-scale industrial projects like this one that will, potentially impose risks to the ecosystem beyond the borders of Jefferson County.  We feel that a decision to shift from a working forested landscape to a significantly expanded industrial mining operation in an area that is highly sensitive to human impacts should be avoided, particularly when mitigation is often not successful in restoring ecological functions.  Since this is a critical time in the future of Hood Canal as an ecosystem, a precautionary approach is most warranted.

The Puget Sound Action Team partnership is available to support you in your effort to make an informed decision regarding this Comprehensive Plan amendment and any future project-specific decisions.