Islands' Weekly, December 30, 2014

The

INSIDE Orca news

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Auditor column

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Changes at dump

Anne Willis photo

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www.islandsweekly.com 360-376-4500

Spirit Award winners

By Rhea Miller Special to the Weekly

Around a campfire on the bluff at Odlin Park in 1976, a young man courted a young woman with his guitar and folk songs, which they sang together. This was Carol and Al’s first introduction to Lopez Island. That same year they bought 10 acres of

land overlooking Hummel Lake and started building a tent platform on weekends and holidays. In June of the following year, they moved into an 18 by 52-foot green army tent with a parachute liner.

For the next four years they raised four kids, 6 through 12 years of age, without electricity or run-

Lopez Islander Resort NEW YEAR’S EVE

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Lopez Center

Spirit Award Potluck

Saturday, January 10th Andy & Dolly Holland Spirit Award Potluck 2014 recipients

Carol Steckler & Al Lorenzen 5pm potluck, 6pm program & music Bring a potluck dish, place settings & cutlery

Islands’ eekly W

Contributed photo

Al and Carol, this year’s spirit award winners. ning water. Old-time islander Jerry Graham brought in his sawmill and milled boards from downed trees for their house. Bit by bit they built home with the help of Hugh Lawrence and other dear friends.

They have adult children and grandchildren on the island, nearby in Anacortes, in Winthrop and just outside of Baltimore, Maryland.

According to Carol’s son Scott, a carpenter living on Lopez with his wife Janet and two children, “To us, as children, living in a tent wasn’t a burden.

I was able to venture into my backyard and climb trees. I raised animals and felt as free as I can imagine a child feeling. Morning chores, like breaking the ice on the drinking water buckets and filling the lamps with kerosene, contrasted sharply to the life I had led for 11 years in the city

turning faucets and flipping switches. Herding goats, riding horses and hauling hay were all daily activities in my life. I was born into a family of dreamers and doers.”

Today, Carol and Al have a spacious five bedroom home, complete with a large vegetable, herb and flower garden, an unheated glass greenhouse for starts and tomatoes as well as a small

Submitted by Kwiáht

A warming trend in the Pacific Ocean contributed to exceptionally high summer water temperatures in the San Juan Islands and significant changes in the behavior of outmigrating chinook salmon and their fishy prey, according to the sixth annual monitoring report of Kwiáht’s marine food web study team.

Climate impacts will be the focus of this winter’s SalmonAtion event on Saturday, Jan. 17 at Woodmen Hall. As

Wellness Publishes Jan. 28, 2015

Wellness Guide is a Publication of the Weekly, Sounder and Journal

Sales Deadline January 2

Call 376-4500 and book today!

orchard of apple, plum, pear, cherry and peach trees. Raspberries, strawberries, kiwis and grapes round out the food sources on the land. There is always a bountiful repast at their dinner table where they share gratitudes as a normal dinner ritual.

Al worked for 25 years with the Lopez School District as a bus driver and custodian. Thirty-eight

years later Al is still singing, most recently with Chicken Biscuit, which usually appears at fundraisers for the local radio station KLOI. Despite the fact that Carol commuted for 22 years in a career at Catholic Community Services in Everett, Wash., she became heavily involved in the Lopez Community.

SEE AWARD, PAGE 4

Climate change affecting islands’ salmon

2015

Guide

VOLUME 37, NUMBER 52 • DECEMBER 30, 2014

Thank you Lopez community for helping to make the Spirit of Giving such a success this year.

Thanks to all the businesses, churches and individuals for your support for this program and all our programs throughout the year! ~ The Lopez Island Family Resource Center Staff

always, the annual research slideshow presentation will be accompanied by food, wine, music, art and an opportunity to celebrate Lopez Island’s intrepid marine science volunteers.

Gretchen Wing and Lance Brittain, Vita’s and Lopez Island Vineyards help make SalmonAtion a unique fusion of science, education and mid-winter community gathering.

“After five years of pretty consistent interactions between juvenile salmon and the herring and sandlance that bring them to the islands every summer,” says Kwiáht director Russel Barsh, “things turned upside down in 2014.” Local herring thrived but few salmon showed up to eat them.

Herring also remained in the islands’ waters later into fall, a boon for seabirds. Barsh speculates that warmer waters helped herring eat better and their eggs develop faster, but discouraged young salmon from leaving mainland estuaries.

“We also observed a significant increase this year in VHS, a disease of herring as well as other fish that is more virulent at warmer temperatures,” Barsh says, suggesting that 2014 may have been a preview of changing ecological conditions in the near future.

Kwiáht’s work on juvenile Chinook in the islands drew the attention of the Salish Sea Marine Survival Project, a recently formed consortium that includes NOAA, SeattleKing County, many of the Tribes and the University of Washington, and now, Kwiáht as well. Last year, juvenile Puget Sound Chinook were sampled repeatedly as they migrated from river deltas through the sound to Lopez Island. “It looks like Chinook switch from eating invertebrates to eating fish when they get to the islands,” Barsh SEE CHANGE, PAGE 6

Community Calendar

THURS, JAN 8 ARTS: Winter Arts Night, 6:30 p.m., Lopez Center for Community and the Arts.

Secondary drama, art and music students will present to the community.

EVENT: Lichens on Lopez, Coffee and goodies at 9:30 a.m., the meeting starts at 10 a.m. at Woodmen Hall, Fisherman Bay Road. Local researchers Russel Barsh

and Madrona Murphy will lead you through an exploration of the improbable partnerships between the three kingdoms: fungi, bacteria and algae, that make up lichens. You’ll hear how lichens are ecosystem pioneers, soil builders, water reservoirs, nitrogen fixers, sources of dyes and interesting chemical compounds, and just plain weird.

FRI, JAN 9 MEETING: Lopez Village Planning Review Committee regular meeting, 10:15 a.m. - 12:30 p.m., Lopez Island Library - meeting room. The LVPRC is using community input from planning workshops to develop draft plans for community review. They are working to develop an Urban Growth Area Subarea Plan. Barbara Thomas is the chairperson.

Other members include Annie Albritton, Sandy Bishop, Dan Drahn, Nancy Greene, Madrona Murphy and Dennis Ryan. They invite everyone to participate in the development of the subarea plan and

regulations. These regular meetings are open to the public.

SAT, JAN 17 CLASS: Creating a Business Marketing Plan, 9:30 a.m.

- 12:30 p.m., at the Lopez Library. Breakout Session time TBA. Learn how to create an effective marketing plan! Ages 18 and up. Registration closes Dec. 15. Workshop only: $35 if paid by Dec. 5, $45 thereafter. Workshop and breakout session: $65 if paid by Dec. 5, $75 thereafter. Preregistration required; visitwww.lifrc.org.

ONGOING EVENT: Thursday Tech Time, 6 - 7 p.m., at the Lopez

Library Community Room.

Led by Lopez Library Director Lou Pray. Lou will be on hand to help you learn how to use your Kindle, tablet or iPad more effectively. She will assist our patrons in learning how to download free electronic movies, music and books on to their devices and computers.

Lou will tutor patrons in setting up email, operating a smartphone, dropping apps on their devices or designing a presentation.

Patrons will be assisted in accessing software at their own speed with Microsoft IT Academy and Lynda.com. Another interesting feature is that the opportunity is mobile!

The library is available on demand to come to local groups or businesses, Thursday Tech Time is just one of the offerings coming Lopez’s way December 2014 through May 2015 during the library’s Digital Outreach programming, which will also feature a roster of Digital Skills Classes all designed with patrons in mind. Pick up a brochure locally or visit lopezlibrary.org for additional information.

Digital Skills Development is being made possible by funding provided to the Washington State Library by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

Advocates call for Orca protection

By Emily Greenberg Journal reporter

Lopez Island AA Meetings: Mondays - 7:30 p.m. at the Children’s Center Wednesdays - 4 p.m. Women’s meeting at the fellowship hall at Grace Episcopal Church Saturdays - noon at the Children’s Center Call 468-2809

In the wake of the death of J32, a pregnant female of the southern resident orca whale community, a call to action has resurfaced for a whale protection no-go zone off the

Al-Anon: Saturdays - 9:30 a.m. at the Children’s Center, Lopez.

Call 468-4703.

west side of San Juan Island.

Orca Relief Citizens Alliance is urging the National Marine Fisheries Service to adopt its outline and begin the formal public process of establishing a no-go zone.

“This is only an immediate solution to a dire situation,” said Orca Relief Executive Director Bruce Stedman.

“When salmon levels are so low, the whales are very stressed when searching for food. Pursuit from whalewatching boats causes more stress.”

Declared endangered in 2005, the southern resident’s population is at a 30-year low, with only 77 remaining

whales.

Orca Relief’s proposed no-go zone comes on the heels of four orca deaths in 2014, including the death of the first new calf born to the southern residents in nearly two years, L-120.

The boundaries of the suggested zone would extend south to either Eagle or Cattle Point from the northern tip of Mitchell Point, and stretch three quarters of a mile offshore. It would be in effect April through October.

Boats that need to transit through the area would be expected to adhere to no-wake rules, for example those coming in to and out of Snug Harbor.

Lopez Business Hours Galley Restaurant Open at 8 a.m.

Full menu until 8:30 p.m. every night Short-list menu after 8:30 p.m.

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Southend Restaurant Thursday-Saturday 12-8 Brunch 10-2

Saturday Sunday 8:30 Beer-Wine-Great Food Lunch daily 11 - 4:30 p.m.

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Publisher

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The Islands’ Weekly • www.islandsweekly.com • December 30, 2014 – Page 2

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The main purpose of the protection zone would be to minimize noise and disturbance from vessels while whales are hunting for their main food source, chinook salmon, which has become increasingly scarce. The particular noise being singled out

by Orca Relief is that of commercial whale-watch boats.

At a Dec. 16 public meeting on the whale protection zone at the Grange Hall in Friday Harbor, organized by Orca Relief, the organization’s Mark Anderson said that while the protected area could impact whale-watch businesses negatively, if it could help with orca recovery it would be well worth the effort.

“If we turn this around you’ll be in business forever,” Anderson said in response to criticism from whale-watch boat advocates.

Stedman and Anderson also pointed out that the proposed zone on the west side is but a tiny fraction of the orcas’ entire critical habitat, 0.5 percent of it to be exact.

The entire critical habitat, as determined by the Fisheries Service when the southern residents became listed as endangered, is approximately 2,650 square miles in inland Washington waters.

“What this looks like is a whale protection zone for J pod in July,” Pacific Whale

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The Islands’ Weekly was founded in 1982 and is based on Lopez Island. The Islands’ Weekly is published every Tuesday and is mailed to homes and businesses in the San

Watch Association President Brian Goodremont said at the meeting. “I would hate to see our community divided over this again.”

According to Goodremont, in 2013 the whales were only seen on the west side 23 days of the year.

NMFS proposed a similar no-go zone in 2009, extending half a mile offshore. Met by substantial opposition from whale-watch companies, kayakers and others, the Fisheries Service abandoned the effort in 2011 in favor of speed limits, increased buffers and public education efforts.

In 2012, the topic surfaced again on NMFS’s accord and was once again met with opposition.

“We didn’t fully evaluate the economic impacts,” said Lynne Barre, Fisheries Service’s branch chief.

If a no-go zone is adopted under Orca Relief’s guidelines, commercial fishing boats would be allowed to operate in the protection zone, and continue to fish the area, under the presumption that those types of vessels have less affect on orca recovery.

According to Stedman, special provisions on how to operate in the zone would be worked out in the public process for those vessels SEE ORCA, PAGE 8

Juan Islands.

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Guest Column

How are we doing? Much better and still falling behind

By F. Milene Henley, SJC auditor Special to the Weekly

This is a very late third quarter financial report.

It’s been a tough one to write, in part because I’ve been busy with the 2015 budget. But more than that, this report has been tough because it conveys a mixed message.

The good news is that the local economy has continued to perform well this year, and as a result, county revenues have outperformed projections. Sales tax revenue will come in around 5 percent above budget.

The Land Bank’s real estate excise tax has topped $2.1 million, and will likely finish the year 50 percent above budget – though still barely more than half its historic high of $3.9 million.

Lodging taxes have hit a record $1 million, running about 15 percent above budget. Planning and permitting activities did not experience the drop-off expected earlier this year, and will also finish 12 to 15 per-

cent above budget.

The bad news is that revenues to the county’s general fund are still not keeping up with needs. In such a good year, one has to ask why.

Part of the answer has to do with the nature of county funding. Many sources of funding are restricted in use; that is, they can be used only for specific purposes.

Land Bank funds, most obviously, can be used only to purchase and maintain Land Bank proper ties. Capital Improvement real estate excise taxes (0.5 percent of real estate sales) can be used only for capital expenditures, such as buildings, roads, park facilities and stormwater projects. Lodging taxes can be used only for tourism promotion, activities, or facilities. Planning and building permit revenue, by design, pays only for the people who issue the planning and building permits.

Most of the county’s sales tax revenue

can be used for any purpose, but part of it is restricted to expenditure on criminal justice activities. Since criminal justice expenditures all come out of the general fund, those activities consume a lot of the general fund revenue.

That leaves the bulk of general fund expenditures—for administration, finance, legal, courts, policing, cooperative extension, health, senior services, planning, etc.—largely dependent on property taxes, unrestricted sales taxes and grants.

Yet grants are shrinking and property taxes are growing slowly, more slowly even than the consumer price index (CPI).

And all of our expenses, including payroll, services, utilities and supplies, are growing more rapidly than either CPI or property taxes.

So while it’s true, and wonderful news, that the local economy is recovering, local governments still find themselves in a place where revenues are growing more slowly than expenditures. This

structural imbalance made the preparation of the 2015 budget particularly challenging.

To resolve it, the council had to elect to use about $650,000 of cash to plug the gap between revenue and expenditures.

Projections for 2016 and 2017, based on current growth rates, show that the gap will increase in future years.

Ultimately, the state will have to address the problem by allowing property taxes to grow more than 1 percent (plus new construction) each year, or the county will have to make some tough choices about service reductions.

Not much of a holiday message, I know.

But knowing what lies ahead prepares us better for dealing with it. Enjoy your holidays, and I’ll check in with you again next year.

— Editor’s note: Quarterly financial reports by the San Juan County auditor are published periodically, as submitted, by the Journal.

$307K in salmon recovery The Recreation and Conser vation Of fice Salmon Recovery Board awarded various organizations in 29 counties across Washington state $18 million in grants to restore salmon habitat and conserve pristine areas.

San Juan County was not excluded, netting $307,000 for two restoration projects.

Friends of the San Juans was awarded $43,654 to restore a pocket beach along Orcas Island’s West Sound, so it can better function as spawning and rearing habitat for the fish that salmon eat.

In partnership with the landowner and Coastal

est Voted B t en m Retire nity u Comm tes r o c in Ana

Geologic Services, Friends will remove a large creosote and rock bulkhead, fill and re-grade the bank and plant the slope with native plants. Removing the extensive toxic materials, as well as more than 530 tons of bank and beach rock and fill, will allow for sediment to flow and unbury spawning habitat for the fish that salmon eat.

Skagit Fisheries Enhancement Group was granted $263,616 and will use the funds to replace an undersized trough where West Beach Road crosses West Beach Creek on Orcas Island. The new culvert will be 14 feet in

diameter and allow fish to enter the lower West Beach Creek system.

West Beach Creek once supported sea-run cutthroat trout that were fished recreationally, and the lower part of the creek contains rearing habitat suitable for juvenile Chinook salmon.

Chinook salmon are listed as threatened with extinction under the federal Endangered Species Act and are known to enter tributaries to feed and escape predators when they are rearing in saltwater.

San Juan County’s Public Works Department will contribute $380,000 to West Beach Creek project.

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1111 32nd St., Anacortes • (360) 293-8088 The Islands’ Weekly • www.islandsweekly.com • December 30, 2014 – Page 3

AWARD CONTINUED FROM 1

Carol created Lopez Community Theatre in the early 80s with the production of “The Crucible.” She has since directed 15 productions, including “The Wizard of Oz” and “The Grapes of Wrath.”

Carol served on the

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school board and was very active in the starting of the ARC Program (Alternative Classroom Program) at the elementary school.

She served as a founding member and chairperson of the board of Lopez Community Land Trust, and continues to serve on the county’s housing advisory board. Carol has housed dozens of interns for Lopez Community Land Trust over the years. She was the prime mover in the establishment of KLOI, and produced the radio show “Kitchen Table Wisdom.”

She served as chairwoman of its board for several years. Currently, she serves as volunteer coordinator at the Lopez Dump.

Carol and Al host the annual Juggle Fest in their home that has inspired many a young person, and

taught them new skills.

They have taken single mothers, new widows and difficult teenagers into their home, giving them a safe, nurturing environment.

Al often is head cook of the household, including fresh bread baked weekly and tasty granola. Because Carol has limited mobility, she is particularly grateful for the steadfast support of her partner Al Lorenzen to do the work that inspires her. They are a team. Al and Carol have created a place where people, young and old, sit and discuss their lives. They have made their home a sanctuary for those who need it. The motto that hangs over the woodstove at their Hummel House states: Bien Faire et Laisser Dire—Good Work Speaks for Itself. Nothing could be truer of their own lives.

Changes coming to the dump

By Nikyta Palmisani Special to the Weekly

Changes in global market prices affect our dump business on Lopez. Beginning Jan. 3, plastics will be sorted in a new (actually old) way.

We’ll go back to sorting by number. Don’t worry if you can’t see the numbers, we’ll have plenty of visual samples for you to see as well as a cadre of volunteers to help the first few times around.

Why the change? We can sell certain plastics for 15 to 21 cents a pound instead of only half a penny or less.

Lopez is in a unique position. We are one of the only community-operated drop box facilities in the state that have an engaged, highly educated and motivated

Crossword Puzzle Across 1. Marienbad, for one 4. Door clasps 9. Pipsqueak 14. Priestly garb 15. Cognizant 16. Blacksmith's block 17. Room alcove 19. "Silly" birds 20. Stage item 21. "Dig in!"

23. Game with matchsticks 24. Unchanging essences in Hinduism 26. Off the mark 28. Reconstruct 32. Hairdo 35. ___ apso (dog) 36. "___ Maria" 37. Great time 40. Sylvester, to Tweety 41. Terminal sections of intestines 44. Reprimanders 47. Small toiletry bag 50. Coin 51. Decline 55. Infomercials, e.g.

57. ___ green 58. Like composition paper 59. Formal orders 61. Work together 65. Heavy stick 66. Ear bone 67. "Polythene ___" (Beatles song) 68. Eye sores 69. Some tides

population who are willing to self-separate. Plastics that will give us higher value are mainly liquid containers (like water bottles). They are manufactured by blow molding and therefore the resins can be recycled and reformed into other usable containers.

This new sorting procedure will help us keep the dump’s rates reasonable.

Gary Lawrence, Lopez Solid Wast Disposal District employee says, “The changes we are making in the sort simplifies the process of self-separating both at home and at the recycle plaza. The revenue returned by the new sort will help defray the costs of transportation to the mainland and maybe a little more. I see it as a win-win.”

And there is further good news. All lead-acid auto batteries will now be accepted for no fee.

But wait, there’s more!

Items that contain 50 percent or more steel (except appliances such as washing machines, refrigerators or gas/diesel-powered) will

now be free.

Because there is no current market for glass (in fact, it is costly to recycle or dispose of glass), there has been discussion about whether to charge a fee for glass as other recycling facilities have started to do. Don’t worry, glass will remain a free-of-charge recyclable for the foreseeable future. It is being deposited locally as a part of a permitted land reclamation project.

Histor y has shown Lopezians can keep up with change, and are able to self-sort their own recycling. The dump staff and volunteers thank you for your resiliency and ability to make these changes.

If you are interested in the details of the science and chemistry involved, please read the full article “Sorting for Value” on our website: www.lopezsolidwaste.org.

As always there will also be helpful volunteers on-site to assist you in doing your new sorting dance.

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Sudoku

13. Initial substance of the universe 18. Beat Down 22. "A jealous 1. Mideast native mistress": 2. Braid Emerson 3. Deep cavity 4. Required at some 25. Fink 26. Blow up restaurants 27. ___ power 5. Barley bristle 29. Black gold 6. Blue 30. Boris Godunov, 7. Ace for one 8. Waste water 31. Beanery sign conduits 9. Small Old World 32. Leopard 33. "Your turn" bird 34. Water, e.g.

10. Charlotte-to38. "Hold on a ___!"

Raleigh dir.

39. Alpine transport 11. Come about 12. Not yet final, at 42. Cooking meas.

43. Sterile surgical law 70. Oolong, for one

The Islands’ Weekly • www.islandsweekly.com • December 30, 2014 – Page 4

techniques, e.g.

45. Futile 46. Tart drink 48. "Rocks" 49. Pellagra preventer 52. Not fitting 53. Bristles 54. Swelling 55. Cobblers' tools 56. "Dang!"

60. Not just "a" 62. "___ moment" 63. Mozart's "L'___ del Cairo" 64. Nipper

Answers to today's puzzle on page 8

Fill in the blank cells using numbers 1 to 9. Each number can appear only once in each row, column, and 3x3 block. Use logic and process of elimination to solve the puzzle. The difficulty ranges from 1-5 (easy) 6-10 (moderate) and 11-15 (hard). Today’s puzzle is level 13.

Sudoku and Crossword answers on page 8

SUBMARINE CABLES & REVENUE SHORTFALL DRIVE RATES UP TYPICAL RESIDENTIAL MEMBER WILL SEE AN AVERAGE 9% INCREASE IN 2015 WHY DO SUBMARINE CABLES COST SO MUCH? Lopez - San Juan Crossing #1 (2015-2017) projected at $15M: •

14,000 feet of cable built to order with three 69 kV conductors and fiber optics

•

Cable wrapped in fortified armor to meet current seismic code

•

Remove and dispose of old, degrading mineral-oil-filled cable

•

Boring a 24” diameter tunnel under the sea floor for 350’ to avoid eel grass and areas of archeological importance on the shoreline

•

Specialty 9000 square-foot barge to transport and install the 380 metric tons of submarine cable

•

Installed at depths of up to 290’ with assistance from a ROV (remotely operated vehicle)

OPALCO leadership has approved a new rate structure and 2015 budget The wholly-owned subsidiary is expected to break even and start that include rate increases for all members. There is no getting around it: generating a positive cash flow in 2017—just in time to help offset the we are facing expensive submarine cable replacements beginning in 2015 loan expenses (interest and depreciation) of the first submarine cable and continuing for the next 20 years. In addition, we have to make up replacement. for a $1.4M revenue shortfall in 2014 due to warmer “We are either installing a submarine cable or temperatures and we expect the warming trend to continue.

The typical member will see an average 9% increase in their bill beginning with the February billing cycle. The 2015 budget targets an increase in revenue of 12% overall, but actual impacts to average residential member bills are less due to the redistribution of costs in the new rate structure, designed for greater member parity.

Seasonal members and those who put the highest demand on the system will see greater increases as the new structure ensures each rate class pays its fair share of their actual cost of service. The budget also forecasts a 6% revenue increase for each year between 2016-19. See the full budget for greater detail at: www.opalco.com/about/finances.

The cost of replacing our submarine cables has gone up tremendously, mostly due to increased environmental mitigation. The last time we replaced a cable in this crossing (1994), it cost about $5M; the current project is estimated to cost at least $15M. We must build equity and revenue through rates to manage this significant debt service.

A small piece of the rate increase will fund the start-up of our new Internet services entity. The start-up cost is $7.5M over the next three years. The impact of this debt service on our membership will average $3 per member per month for 24 months, included in the facilities charge (approximately 19% of the total rate increase for 2015 and 2016).

financially preparing to install submarine cables for the forseeable future.”

—Foster Hildreth

“I realize this increase is a tough pill to swallow,” said Foster Hildreth, General Manager. “Serving 20 remote islands is no small task: with 27 submarine cables, 1,328 miles of power lines (95% underground), 11 substations and 3 line crews, we are the most complicated and expensive utility in the nation. I commend our Board for taking decisive action to protect the co-op and lay the groundwork for the major capital projects that we know are coming. We are committed to increasing the Co-op’s financial stability to get us through this challenging period of warming temperatures and cable replacements.”

To ensure reliable electric service into the future, we will continue to make the necessary investments in our system, including replacement of aging infrastructure, the grid control backbone and the submarine cables that connect us to the mainland and to each other.

We have a unique utility to sustain us in a beautiful and sensitive environment. We all value our natural resources and quality of life in the islands, and it comes at a cost.

“ I very much appreciate Foster’s leadership, both in the day-to-day operations, as well as in dealing with longer The good news is, we still have some of the lowest cost term issues of crucial importance to our Co-op.”

—Vince Dauciunas, Board Member

learn more: www.opalco.com

and cleanest electricity in the nation.

REVENUES GO DOWN AS TEMPERATURES RISE

Average temperature over land and ocean surfaces for October 2014 was the highest on record for the month since record keeping began in 1880.

—NOAA National Climate Data Center

our member-owned cooperative The Islands’ Weekly • www.islandsweekly.com • December 30, 2014 – Page 5

CHANGE

Obituary:

CONTINUED FROM 1

says. “It’s not just a matter of size, but also what’s available.”

This summer, Kwiáht teams also began collecting zooplankton near sites where salmon are feasting on sandlance and herring, to “see what feeds the fish that feeds the Chinook.” Samples are analyzed at the University of Washington in Seattle.

You can learn more about the changing ecology of salmon and forage fish in the islands at SalmonAtion, Woodmen Hall, Jan. 17 beginning at 5:30 p.m. Admission is free, and young people interested in the environment are especially encouraged to attend. Write to kwiaht@gmail.com for more information.

L OPEZ ISLAND

Robert Congdon

Robert Congdon, known to all as Bob, slipped peacefully away from us on Dec. 3, 2014 in Anacortes, Wash. at the age of 87.

A resident of Lopez Island, Bob was born in 1927 to Guerdon and Esther Congdon in Sandpoint, Idaho.

An optimistic and cheerful person by nature, he was tempered by growing up in

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the Depression years, learning the value of hard work and looking outward to his community with a kind and gregarious outlook toward service.

Bob earned the Eagle Scouting honor and lived by scouting codes for the rest of his life. A varsity athlete and honors student, gifted in mathematics, Bob was the valedictorian of his 1945 graduating class at Sandpoint High.

He joined the Navy immediately upon graduation and had passed the training for radio tech school when the war ended.

Declining other opportunities, Bob enrolled at Washington State University on the GI Bill.

It was a lucky choice for a man who was fortunate all his life, for he met his soulmate on campus there, the beautiful Joan MacLeod.

After completing ROTC officers training in the Army Corp of Engineers and attaining his B.S degree in Civil Engineering, he and Joan married in 1951 and began a life of adventure and devotion to each other.

Bob’s executive marketing career with Chevron took Bob and Joan from Vancouver, WA to Baltimore, MD and finally

to San Francisco, CA where he retired in 1985 as the General Manager of the Asphalt Division, Chevron USA. In retirement, and being avid golfers, they enjoyed a ‘sunbird’ lifestyle, maintaining a home in Tucson, AZ for the winter and a home on beautiful Lopez Island in the summer.

Bob and Joan enjoyed many travels both in Europe and the United States, especially visiting the many friends they had made during the Chevron years.

Bob participated in many service organizations throughout his life wherever he lived. He was a member of Phi Kappa Tau fraternity in college, attained the 32nd degree of the Scottish Rite of Freemasonry, was a Shriner and served as a Presbyterian deacon and member of the session at the many churches they attended.

Most recently, Bob was instrumental in the renovation of Woodmen Hall on Lopez and as a member of the Lopez Senior Advisory Board.

A life-long prankster and member of Toastmasters International, Bob had a ready wit and was a collector of jokes and anecdotes

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The Islands’ Weekly • www.islandsweekly.com • December 30, 2014 – Page 6

LOPEZ ISLAND CHRIST THE KING COMMUNITY CHURCH, There’s Always a Place for You! CTK gathers at 10:00 a.m. in the school multi-purpose room at 86 School Road. Come as you are! More info at www.ctkonline.com/lopez. Email: lopez@ctkonline.com Phone: 888-421-4CTK ext. 819.

GRACE EPISCOPAL CHURCH, welcomes you to worship with us on Sundays at 10:00 a.m. Fisherman Bay Road at Sunset Lane.

468-3477. Everyone welcome!

COMMUNITY CHURCH, Please join us Sun. mornings.

Adult Bible study, 9:30. Worship Service, 10:30. Nursery (birth3 yrs) and Jr. Church (4-12 yrs) provided during worship service.

Small groups meet throughout the week. 91 Lopez Rd., in the village. Pastor Jeff Smith 468-3877. www.ourlicc.org.

LUTHERAN CHURCH IN THE SAN JUANS (ELCA) Please join us for worship and children’s Sunday School at 9:00 a.m. in Center Church on Davis Bay Road. Also in Friday Harbor at 11:00 a.m. in St. David’s and in Eastsound at 1:15 p.m. in Emmanuel. Pastor Beth Purdum, 370-0023.

QUAKER WORSHIP GROUP Meetings will be Sundays at 10:00 a.m. at the home of Ron Metcalf, 6363 Fisherman Bay Road. Children’s program. Everyone welcome. Phone 468-2129. Email: lopezfriends@gmail.com.

ST. FRANCIS CATHOLIC CHURCH Come worship with us at Center Church on Davis Bay Rd. We welcome you to join us for Mass at 1:15 p.m. on Saturday starting January 3. Call 378-2910 for Mass times on San Juan and Orcas Islands.

which he could break out at any moment.

In his free time, Bob enjoyed books, being an amateur ham radio operator and was a car enthusiast.

Bob was particularly fond of his prized El Camino, which was a highly recognizable vehicle on Lopez in Bob’s distinctive WSU colors. Chocolate, peanut butter and good scotch were always savored!

Bob is survived by his beloved wife of 63 years, Joan, and their two children, Craig Congdon (Pleasant Hill, CA) and Lynn Randelman (Paul) of Orinda, CA, along with two grandchildren, Jonathan and Matthew Randelman, a brother, Darrell Congdon (Verle) of University Place, WA, sisters-in-law Mary Harris (Howard) and Gwen Lamb, wonderful nieces and nephews and countless friends.

Bob will be remembered by all who loved him for the inspirational courage he displayed during his five-year grapple with Parkinson’s Disease and for his reliably optimistic and cheerful approach to life.

A memorial ser vice was held at the Lopez Community Church on December 13.

The family wishes to thank the wonderful Lopez and Chandler’s Square communities for their kind support throughout Bob’s illness.

In lieu of flowers, the family suggests a donation to Lopez Senior Services (Attn: Bob Congdon Fund, P.O. Box 154, Lopez, WA 98261) or Shriners Hospitals for Children.

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Employment General

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Dogs

Dogs

Hot Stick Apprentice Lineman – Lopez

real estate for sale - WA Real Estate for Sale San Juan County

WILL TRADE 70 Acre Oregon Historic Farm and Vineyard with Home for Lopez or San Juan Home/ Property (Waterfront Preferred) with Fair Market Value ($800,000 - $1,000,000). Call Tom 541-335-9725 Find your perfect pet in the ClassiďŹ eds. www.nw-ads.com

OPALCO is seeking a Hot Stick Apprentice Lineman for the Lopez District. Must hold a valid apprentice lineman certificate for hot stick work. Responsible for construction, maintenance and operation of the overhead and underground transmission and distribution system. This is an Lopez Island based, full-time bargaining unit position.

Download a detailed job description at www.opalco.com to learn more. To apply, please submit an OPALCO employment application, your professional resume, cover letter and references to Russell Guerry 183 Mt Baker Road Eastsound WA 98245 or rguerry@opalco.com Position is open until filled. OPALCO is an equal opportunity employer.

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announcements Found

FOUND BICYCLE, near the Port of Friday Harbor on December 23, 2014.

Call Chuck at 360-3784151 ref 14-007360 to describe and claim. &INDĂĽ)T ĂĽ"UYĂĽ)T ĂĽ3ELLĂĽ)T ,OOKINGĂĽFORĂĽTHEĂĽRIDE OFĂĽYOURĂĽLIFE WWW NW ADS COM ĂĽHOURSĂĽAĂĽDAY

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Lost

ISLAND PETS lost/ found. On Lopez call Jane 360-468-2591; Joyce, 360-468-2258; Sheriff’s Office 360-3784151. Lopez Animal Protection Society, PO Box 474, Lopez, WA 98261.

On Orcas call 360-3766777. On San Juan call the Animal Shelter 360378-2158 ClassiďŹ eds. We’ve got you covered. 800-388-2527

REPORTER The Grays Harbor Publishing Group on Grays Harbor, Wash., has an opening for a full-time reporter with an emphasis on local sports writing. We’re looking for someone to produce clear, brightly written high school prep sports stories relevant to real people reading us in print, on our website and in social media. Ability to take photos is necessary, as is familiarity with social media.

Grays Harbor is on the Washington Coast, an hour from the Olympic Rain Forest and two hours from Seattle.

Benefits include, but are not limited to paid vacation, sick and holidays, medical, dental and life insurance, and a 401(K) plan with company match. Send a cover letter, resume and writing samples to: hr@soundpublishing.com All qualified applicants will be considered for employment. Qualified applicants selected for interview will be required to complete an application.

The Daily World is an equal opportunity employer.

Find your perfect pet in the ClassiďŹ eds. www.nw-ads.com

jobs

ClassiďŹ eds. We’ve got you covered. 800-388-2527

professional services Professional Services Attorney, Legal Services

Notice to Contractors Washington State Law (RCW 18.27.100) requires that all advertisements for construction related services include the contractor’s current department of Labor and Industries registration number in the advertisement.

Failure to obtain a certificate of registration from L&I or show the registration number in all advertising will result in a fine up to $5000 against the unregistered contractor.

For more information, call Labor and Industries Specialty Compliance Services Division at 1-800-647-0982 or check L&Is internet site at www.lni.wa.gov

stuff Firewood, Fuel & Stoves

NOTICE Washington State law requires wood sellers to provide an invoice (receipt) that shows the seller’s and buyer’s name and address and the date delivered. The invoice should also state the price, the quantity delivered and the quantity upon which the price is based. There should be a statement on the type and quality of the wood.

When you buy firewood write the seller’s phone number and the license plate number of the delivery vehicle.

The legal measure for firewood in Washington is the cord or a fraction of a cord. Estimate a cord by visualizing a four-foot by eight-foot space filled with wood to a height of four feet.

Most long bed pickup trucks have beds that are close to the four-foot by 8-foot dimension.

To make a firewood complaint, call 360-9021857. agr.wa.gov/inspection/ WeightsMeasures/Fire woodinformation.aspx agr.wa.gov/inspection/WeightsMeasures/Firewoodinformation.aspx

WOODSTOVE Vermont Castings Defiant (Black) Completely rebuilt like NEW, Delivery FREE in the San Juans $1550.00 OBO 360-376-5975 or 360-376-7997

flea market Home Furnishings

Dinning Set, 5 piece French Provincial with 4 chairs & leaf, excellent condition. $175. 1930’s White sewing machine in classic cabinet great condition $275 360376-8090

AKC Standard Poodle Puppies. Ready Now for their forever homes.

Black, Brown & Red. Healthy & well socialized. Proud, graceful, noble, good-natured, enjoyable and cheerful.

This highly intelligent dog is one of the most trainable breeds. Micro chipped & housebroken.

Parents are health tested. $950. www.ourpoeticpoodles.com or call 509-582-6027 ClassiďŹ eds. We’ve got you covered. 800-388-2527 BORDER Collie pups, ABCA registered. Black & White, Red & White & Tri colored.

Ranch raised, working parents.

Great service, trial, agility dogs & flyball.

Wonderful companion dog. 1st shots & worming. Males $500 Females $600.

509-486-1191 www.canaanguestranch.com

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Miscellaneous

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DIAMOND ENGAGEMENT RING, a gift she will remember forever, 1.634 carat, hearts & arrows, round brilliant, 6 prong white gold setting.

Paid over $8,000 at local high end jewelry store, AGS Report/appraisal.

Sacrifice $6,300. Serious inquiry’s only.

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pets/animals Dogs

AKC GOLDEN Doodle puppies. Wonderful with children. Non shedding males & females. Highly intelligent! Cute!! Parents & grand parents on site.

Wormed & shots. Not just a pet, but one of the family! $1,000. Call Chris 360-652-7148.

With thousands of readers someone is sure to need your service soon!

Your ad will run FOUR full weeks in ALL PAPERS and on the WEB! All for ONE LOW PRICE! Call: 800-388-2527 Fax: 360-598-6800 E-mail: classified@soundpublishing.com or Go online: www.nw-ads.com

wheels Automobiles Classics & Collectibles

RAT TERRIER Puppies.

Unbelievably cute, loving little babies with plenty of Ratitude. We have chocolates, black and tans and brindles and they’re all toys.

Tails docked and dewclaws removes and by the time they go home they’ll have had two shots and been wormed several times. Ready to go to their new homes 1/6/2015. $450 and up.

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AKC REGISTERED Puppies. 4 gorgous little girls. Very Small Father (3 lbs) and Mother Are On Site. Born and Raised In Our Living Room. Worming and First Shots Done. Come and Be Loved By My Little Babies. Call Anytime, 425-330-9903 or 360631-6256 Birds

Newfoundland’s Purebred with champion bloodlines.

Very Healthy & quick learners, beautiful.

These are a large breed. Both Parents on premises 425.239.6331 What better Christmas present than a loving companion

MACAW, beautiful blue/gold, 10 year old male. Recent check up with nail clip. Recent job change forces sale. Includes very large collapsible cage with 2 perches, 3 food/water dishes, also travel cage, food. $1,100 firm to good home.

Large vocabulary! sweet and affectionate disposition.

(425)772-2012 Awesome Christmas Gift!!

Advertise in the ClassiďŹ eds to reach thousands of readers looking to use your service. Call 1-800288-2527 to place your ad in the Service Directory.

2008 MERCEDES Benz C350 Sport Limited Edition. High shine black exterior w/heated leather seats. Features Comand Navigation, Blue Tooth, Harman Kardon Sound, AMG wheels, and more!

73,000 miles. $17,500.

Call Bill before this great deal is gone 206-9205604. Freeland.

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IMMACULATE RARE 1968 Chevy 3/4 Ton 4x4 R20 Truck with fresh 327 V-8. A/C, PS with only 28,000 miles! Garaged 47 years in hidesert. Zero rust, pale Green, original camper shell. Missouri oak bed’s never seen sunshine.

See on Orcas Island Dec. 20th thru Jan. 4th. $35,000 firm.

Rick cell/text: 949-632-5411 Automobiles Mercedes-Benz

SOLD IT? FOUND IT? Let us know by calling 1-800-388-2527 so we can cancel your ad.

OUR BEAUTIFUL AKC English Cream Golden Retriever puppies will be ready to go to their new homes soon. They have been raised around young children and are well socialized. Both parents have excellent health and OFA health clearances. $1250 each.

For more pictures and information about the puppies and our home/kennel please visit us at: www.mountainspringskennel.com or call Verity at 360-5209196

1983 Chrysler LaBaron Town and Country Woodie. Great island car Same owner past 14 years. 4 cylinder FWD Mitsubishi engine - new head, new valves, new carburetor, new water pump, new radiator, new ignition parts. - Doesn’t burn oil - good tires and brakes, new paint, never wrecked, 123,000 miles, airlift rear shocks, trailer hitch, asking $2,500, Call 370-5395 j.f.dunn@hotmail.com

THE ISLANDS’ WEEKLY • WWW.ISLANDSWEEKLY.COM •

web: www.nw-ads.com December 30, 2014 -

PAGE 7

By Gene Helfman Special to the Weekly

PRSRT STD US POSTAGE PAID SOUND PUBLISHING 98204

ECRWSS POSTAL CUSTOMER

A basketball team consists of five players. Any team that lacks a few subs on the bench stands to suffer if and when players foul out or are injured. The Lopez girls showed up at home on Dec. 17 with a total of six players. It could have been bad.

But it wasn’t. Lopez jumped out early and never relinquished their lead against the Tulalip Heritage Hawks.

The score by quarters was 15-5, 24-11, 36-16 and 56-20, as the Lobos dominated on both offense and defense. The total score was two points short of their best output of the year, and was their best performance defensively.

Scoring was led by Jana Gruenwald with 22 points, followed closely by Bree Swanson with 18. Zoe Reinmuth shone on defense with 13 rebounds. Coach Deanna Brant told the girls beforehand to focus on making good passes, taking good shots and having fun;

Islands’ Weekly PO Box 758 Eastsound, WA 98245

Girls win, boys lose versus Tulalip basketball

Contributed photos

they clearly accomplished all three.

The Lobos boys did not fare as well. Things started nicely as Lopez ran off seven quick points and had the lead. But Tulalip came back with stolen balls, fast breaks and accurate shooting from both beyond the paint and under the basket. Four of the Hawks’

players scored in double digits. Tulalip led 35-15 at the half and 63-35 at the end.

With a couple of minutes to go and the game pretty much out of hand, Coach M.R. Buffum replaced his still-hustling starters with subs, giving them valuable game time experience.

Exchange student Louis

Far left: Kevin Dye drives to the basket against Tulalip.

Dye was top scorer for the Lobos with 12 points in the Lobos 35-63 loss to Tulalip.

Left: Jana Gruenwald hits a lay-up against Tulalip in the Lobos’ 56-20 victory at home.

Gruenwald led Lopez with 22 points.

Adriaens hit a 3-pointer with only seconds remaining on the clock. Lopez scoring was led by Kevin Dye with

12 points, followed by TJ Hobi with 8.

Both teams take a break for the holidays

with the next home game on Jan. 7 against Highland Christian.

Contract offer rejected by largest labor union in SJC

By Scott Rasmussen Journal editor

The largest labor union in the state’s smallest county will enter the new year without a binding contract unless 11thhour negotiations unlock a stalemate at the bargaining table of San Juan County.

Employees represented by Local 1849 rejected the coun-

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ty bargaining team’s three-year contract offer sometime over the weekend of Dec. 6-7, according to a Dec. 8 county press release. Labor union and county officials did not return messages seeking comment Monday about the contract and negotiations.

Rejection of a new three-year contract comes on the eve of the anticipated approval of a 2015 budget by the County Council. The contract offer reportedly includes cost-of-living and wage increases, as well as contributions to a health care savings account and adjustments to management of the proposed three-year contract. The council was expected to approve a 2015 county budget Tuesday, Dec. 9.

According to the press release, the county will cease providing cost-of-living adjustments and benefit contributions called for in the current labor contract unless a new contract is signed. The current labor contract expires Dec. 31.

Local 1849 represents 136 county employees, while the Sheriff’s Guild, a separate labor union, represents roughly 29. The county also employees about 20 “seasonal” workers whose positions are not represented by the union. Roughly 50 county positions, including 11 elected officials, are des-

ORCA CONTINUED FROM 2

process for those vessels deemed to have “less of an impact.”

“Whale-watch boats follow all day long. Whales just swim by fishing boats,” he said.

Ken Balcomb, founder of the Center for Whale Research, begs to differ.

“The no-go zone is an absurd waste of concern and a futile effort legally,” Balcomb said. “The whales will go where the Chinook salmon are in abundance,

The Islands’ Weekly • www.islandsweekly.com • December 30, 2014 – Page 8

and it is these fish that should receive our concern.”

According to Balcomb, a paradigm shift needs to occur in order for the orcas to survive – and that shift begins by leaving salmon in the water until the population can recover. He suggests taking down dams and limiting fishing permits as logical first steps, instead of limiting whale-watch boats off the west side.

As far as noise is concerned, even commercial container ships and tankers don’t pose much of a threat to orca livelihood according to Balcomb. Container ships

ignated as managers or supervisors, or so-called “confidential” or “professional,” and are unrepresented by the union and a labor contract as well.

The press release circulated by the county did not indicate whether the tentative 2015 budget affords pay raises or health care contributions for non-represented employees.

Union officials and county management, assisted by a facilitator from the state’s Public Employment Relations Commission, reportedly began negotiations on a new contract in August.

The contract dispute follows an earlier stalemate over pay and labor at San Juan Island School District. Under the shadow of a pending walk-out on the eve of the first day of class, district and the schools’ teacher’s union, which represents about 53 faculty members, hammered out a new 2-year contract to avoid a strike.

The new contract calls for a 5 percent pay raise, as well as modifications to teacher workload, over the duration of the two-year contract. The pay raise helps to offset increased costs and payments for medical expenses provided to faculty members under the contract, according to union officials. and tankers operate at a noise level of about 195 decibels; the average whale watching boat operates at about 165 decibels.

This 30 decibel difference means that whale-watch boats emit “one one-thousandth” of the noise that commercial ships do, Balcomb said.

“I have routinely seen southern resident killer whales within ten yards of big ships, and they pay these ships no attention,” he said.

However, in his many years as a whale scientist, there have been instances where Balcomb has seen orcas retreat from areas

impacted by noise.

Evidence of noise ramifications can also be seen in the tactics used to capture orcas up until the 1970s. Explosives charges were dropped into the waters of the Puget Sound to herd the whales in a particular direction towards a bay.

NMFS has identified the threats to southern resident orcas as lack of food, exposure to toxic pollutants and vessel noise and presence.

Barre said NMFS has received Orca Relief’s conceptual proposal, but would not be addressing it until after the new year.