Some more local history: The Skagit tribe apparently settled in three permanent villages around the shores of Penn Cove, including one location just west of us. Apparently this area was considered to be the most desirable part of Whidbey Island, since only a few other settlements were scattered on...
After a year long process that started with my Forest Stewardship Class, my Open Space Timber Land classification for 11 of my 15 acres was officially recorded with the county today! There were many details along the way, but here were the highlights of the process: Completion of 2...
As I wrote last month, today was the Ecological Forestry Seminar sponsored by Kirk and the other helpful folks at Northwest Natural Resource Group. It was held at
Another great forestry event is being planned by Northwest Natural Resources Group: the seminar Ecological Forestry: Restoring Habitat Complexity in Managed Forests. Here's a description from them: "Forests in the Pacific...
I have thoroughly investigated the two most relevant Island County tax relief programs for us: the Public Benefit Rating System / Rural Stewardship Program and the Open Space Timber Land Program. And the winner is … drum roll … The Open Space Timber Land Program! As part of...
Island County provides online Critical Areas maps, which show areas generally thought to be bodies of water, wetlands, steep slopes, historic places, and other...
If a landowner wants to formalize a commitment to preserving healthy ecosystem features plus get tax credits for doing so, then completion of an Island County Rural Stewardship Plan is the way to do that. This type of plan is integrated with Low Impact Development (LID) techniques and the Public...
Today I received the final signature page from the helpful DNR forester. So, it is now truly completed and ready to use with Island County and timber management programs. Yay Yippee Yahoo!!!
The National Wildlife Foundation's Backyard Wildlife Habitat program has helped many urban, suburban, and rural property owners think about how their own small part of the Earth can be a wildlife habitat and not just a yard for a house. It has been a fairly successful ongoing program, and acts as a...
