January 2008

In this issue

	State legislative session underway
	Field trip to Dabob Bay
	Federal priorities
	State public lands news
	Online resources for the Friends

About the Friends

The Friends of Our Natural Heritage is a group of citizens throughout Washington state who provide a voice for conservation. By taking simple steps to educate officials and community leaders about the value of our state's natural heritage, Friends are helping to safeguard and restore some of the most ecologically valuable lands and waters remaining in Washington. Stay involved -- and invite your friends to join the Friends!

For more information about the program or to sign up, visit our Web site or contact Jeff Compton at The Nature Conservancy: (206) 343-4345, ext. 384 or jcompton@tnc.org.

State legislative session underway

The 2008 state legislative session has begun in Olympia. As always, The Nature Conservancy has suggestions for decision makers, and we'd welcome your help.

Our priorities for the 2008 legislative session:
The Nature Conservancy is once again collaborating in the Priorities for a Healthy Washington. In 2008, this community of environmental and conservation organizations has agreed to work together on the following four priorities:

• Evergreen Cities - planting and protecting trees in our cities
• Local Farms, Healthy Kids - boosting local farm communities while improving kids' health
• Climate Action and Green Jobs - taking steps to meet global warming pollution goals approved by the state last year
• Local Solutions to Global Warming - helping local governments reduce global warming pollution through responsible planning

All four of these priorities have been translated into proposals that you can read now at the Priorities web site. These proposals are being crafted into specific bills you can support this winter. Please do check out that site to learn more about any of these efforts that speak to you and how you can plug in. Feel free to contact us with any questions, too.

January 23: Priorities for a Healthy Washington Lobby Day
Join other Washingtonians who care about our environment  for this annual citizens lobby day in Olympia. Spend the day learning about environmental legislation, then go lobby your legislators! You really make a difference when you participate in person. This is a family-friendly event, and is organized to make it easy for you. All day event, evening reception to follow.
Click here for details, bus options and registration information.

The Conservancy is also strongly endorsing two particular funding proposals this year:

• additional funds for the popular Ecosystem and Salmon Restoration Program (ESRP)
• funding for the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife as the required match to already appropriated federal "Section 6" funds for the purchase of conservation leases on rangelands in Okanogan County

GET INVOLVED! Your opinion matters to your elected reps in Olympia. If you support these worthy goals, contact your two state representatives and your state senator and let them know what you'd like them to do. You can find out who represents you and how to contact them at: http://apps.leg.wa.gov/DistrictFinder/Default.aspx.

Questions? Don't hesitate to contact Jeff Compton at jcompton@tnc.org for more information.

Field trip to Dabob Bay

Join us March 15 for a visit to Dabob Bay on the east side of the Olympic Peninsula, near Quilcene. Private and public entities are engaged in the effort to preserve this area and restore the forested uplands, the shoreline and the marine habitats in the bay. The Nature Conservancy acquired a shoreline parcel there last summer (read the press release).

Our local host will be dedicated Dabob area advocate Peter Bahls of the Northwest Watershed Institute. This will be a casual outing. We will visit a restoration project and a nearby county park while discussing the opportunities and challenges of preserving and restoring this coastal gem and other similar places.  

WHAT: Friends field trip
WHEN: Saturday, March 15, 10:30am
WHERE: Dabob Bay

Please write to jcompton@tnc.org (or call 206-343-4345 ext. 345) to RSVP or with questions.

Can't wait to get out to Dabob Bay? Then check out our beach clean up volunteer days February 3, 4 and 5.

     (photo of Dabob Bay by Keith Lazelle)

Federal priorities

First off: good news for fans of Ebey's Landing! Funding was finally approved in 2007 for the National Park Service to acquire an easement from The Nature Conservancy on the 35 acres surrounding the historic Ferry House. This will allow the Conservancy to establish an endowment for long-term ecological and historic stewardship at the reserve. You can read more about this Ebey's Landing project on our web site - scroll down to the "federal programs" section.

The Nature Conservancy continues to advocate for federal programs that benefit native species and habitat in Washington. We've put a brief summary of our federal fiscal year 2009 agenda on the Friends web pages. It includes work on global climate change, recovering salmon, and restoring and protecting Puget Sound.

Let us know if you've got any questions about our work at the federal level, and we will contact you when your voice can make a difference in D.C.

     (photo of the Ebey's Landing Ferry House by Keith Lazelle)

State public lands news

There have been some cool developments on state lands recently. We thought we'd highlight a couple of announcements.

In November, the Washington Department of Natural Resources (DNR) announced the combination of four separate state natural areas into one unit -- the 30,108-acre Morning Star Natural Resources Counservation Area. This public preserve, located in the mountains of Snohomish County, is a result of advocates speaking up for the preservation of important natural areas.
Read the DNR press release.

This month DNR announced a land swap with The Nature Conservancy. The state is negotiating land exchanges around Washington with the intention of consolidating ownership of trust lands and diversifying its portfolio for trust beneficiaries. The Conservancy has been participating in the process of developing the proposed exchanges to help ensure that native habitat conservation is considered in the mix. This particular exchange resulted in the Conservancy adding significant acreage to its Moses Coulee and Beezley Hills preserves in Douglas and Grant counties. 
Read the DNR press release.
Check out DNR's trust land exchanges online info.

Learn more about state Trust Lands and the Trust Land Transfer Program on the Friends web pages.

Online resources for the Friends

There is a section of The Nature Conservancy's web site dedicated to the Friends of Our Natural Heritage. There we post more information about our public priorities, links for finding officials, and other information to help you speak up for nature.

Friends quiz: What two pilot projects were completed for the Washington Biodiversity Council in 2007?

Go to nature.org/Washington/friends and bookmark the page for easy reference. Your feedback is most welcome.