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News and Information for Sierra Club Members and Supporters in
San Juan, Skagit, and Whatcom Counties
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Wintry Mt Baker from Artist Point
Photo by Ned Vasquez
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Golden Dragon
Buddhist Monastery, Bhutan
Photo by Ned Vasquez
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WA Chapter Legislative Priorities
Each year, the Washington Sierra Club Chapter selects legislative priorities for the legislative session. The priorities for the 2025 session include:
1. Protecting Funding for Climate and Natural Investments
2. Clean Transportation for All
3. Investing in Forests
Stay up to date on these priorities, other issues the Chapter is supporting, and ways to be involved in our legislative process by clicking here.
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Welcome Ashore!
Sea Turtles in Maui
Photo by Rick Eggerth
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NW Plastics Bags Bans Need Strengthening
By Nick Engelfried
Washington and Oregon are among several states to have passed plastic bag bans modeled after California's groundbreaking 2014 bag law. However, loopholes in all three West Coast states' bag bans have undercut their effectiveness, with bags labeled as "reusable" being given out by stores at checkout and treated by consumers as essentially disposable. Last year, California took action by strengthening its bag ban, and now the Northwest has a chance to follow suit.
Click here to learn more in this Columbia Insight article by Nick Engelfried.
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Maui Sunset
Photo by Rick Eggerth
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Climate Activists and State Action
By Nick Engelfried
With the Trump administration in power, state-level climate action is more important than ever; in New York and Vermont, activists are pioneering a bold new strategy to hold polluters accountable for climate damage. Could this approach work here in Washington? Learn more here about how New York climate advocates passed the second-ever "Climate Superfund" law, and what it could mean for other states.
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Ravens in Formation and Prayer Flags
Nepal
Photo by Ned Vasquez
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Canada Sued Over Delayed Orca Protection
From Alexandra Gayek
In late January, six environmental groups sued two Canadian federal ministers over a delay in issuing an emergency order recommendation to protect the endangered southern resident killer whales.
The litigation stems from a federal threat assessment which concluded that, despite interim protection measures, an “imminent threat still exists” to the survival of this orca population.
Click here to access the full article in The Orcasonian.
Wildfire Risk in the San Juan Islands
From Alexandra Gayek
A recent article in the Islands' Sounder reflects on wildfire risk in the San Juan Islands, in the context of the recent catastrophic fires in Los Angeles. Learn some key points regarding this risk by clicking here.
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Morning Frost
Photo by Ned Vasquez
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Why Are We Still Exporting Logs?
From Mike Sennett
Food for thought..."the US continues to export nearly $3 billion in raw logs a year and thousands of jobs, mainly to China, Japan, Canada, South Korea, and Vietnam".
Why does our country continue to do this, especially in the face of ongoing loss of old growth and legacy forests in the Pacific Northwest?
Is this an issue that our state should be dealing with?
Read additional comments from Counterpunch here.
Scroll way down until you see the photos of ships being loaded with logs.
We hope to bring you additional information about this topic in future MBG newsletters.
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Snow Ghosts at Artist Point
Photo by Ned Vasquez
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Upcoming MBG Outings
From Laura Rainey and Nick Engelfried
Our Outings Leaders have been busy planning events for 2025. Join us for one or more of these outings!
Click the blue titles below to register and read details.
Saturday, February 8, 2025 1:00 PM
Whatcom Falls Park Winter Walk
Join us on this leisurely walk along Whatcom Creek, through Whatcom Falls Park to Bloedel Donovan Park, and back to the historic stone bridge to view the beautiful main falls of Whatcom Creek.
Difficulty level: easy (3 miles round trip with 50 feet of elevation gain).
Saturday, February 15, 2025 9:00 AM
Birding in Samish Flats
Join MBG for a birding adventure in Skagit Flats, one of the premier winter birding locations in Northwest Washington! We'll drive to three different locations in search of bald eagles, short-eared owls, trumpeter and tundra swans, great blue herons, and any other avian species we might encounter. Bring binoculars if you have them!
Difficulty level: easy.
Saturday, March 8, 2025 1:00 PM
Semiahmoo Spit Walk
Join us as on this beautiful, walk along the Semiahmoo Spit loop trail. We will start at Semiahmoo Park (near the Totem Pole), and follow a mostly paved trail to the end of the spit and back. Clear days have amazing views of Olympics and Northern Cascades, including Mt. Baker.
Difficulty level: easy.
Sunday, March 9, 2025 10:00 AM
Blanchard Mountain Oyster Dome Hike
Join us for a day hike on the trail to Oyster Dome, a spectacular viewpoint overlooking Samish Bay and the San Juan Islands. On the way up, we will pause along the trail to admire plants and animals we find and discuss the history of logging in this region.
Difficulty level: moderate (5.0 miles round trip with 1,050 feet of elevation gain).
Saturday, March 29, 2025 10:00 AM
Skagit Nature Trail Loop
Join us on this leisurely 2.1 mile loop Port of Skagit Nature Trail in the beautiful Skagit Valley near Burlington Washington.
Difficulty level: easy.
Saturday, March 29, 2025 2:00 PM
Tour of the Heritage Flight Museum
Please join us as we tour the Heritage Flight Museum near Burlington in the beautiful Skagit Valley. This social event follows an earlier morning walk in the nearby Skagit Nature Trail, which is listed separately for RSVP.
Sunday, May 11, 2025 10:00 AM
Lake Serene Trail Hike
Join us for a hike in the Central Cascades near Index. Spectacular waterfalls and a picturesque alpine lake at the end make this a popular hiking route that is well worth the effort.
Difficulty level: strenuous (8.2 miles round trip with 2,521 feet of elevation gain).
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Pumori
Mt. Everest Region, Nepal
Photo by Ned Vasquez
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"In nature, nothing exists alone."
Rachel Carson
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