Skagit News Workers settle for deal

AI usage, pay raises included in new contract Skagit County journalists voted unanimously on Sept. 4 to ratify a new two-year contract, with stipulations for increased pay and AI usage.  The unionized employees from the Skagit Valley Herald, Anacortes American and Stanwood Camano News went on a three-day strike at the end of July. They were prepared to strike again, indefinitely this time, if the new contract did not meet their demands.  The latest bargaining session on Aug. 24 took place with a lawyer representing Adams MultiMedia, the Minnesota-based company that owns the three local newspapers. Contract negotiations between the

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Understanding and respect to pave the path forward

After burial disturbances at Point Roberts, community member points to collaboration and discussion to tackle region’s biggest issues Ed.: The essays, analyses and opinions presented as Community Voices express the perspectives of their authors on topics of interest and importance to the community and are not intended to reflect perspectives on behalf of Salish Current. What a shock to read about the desecration of the Lummi’s ancestor’s ashes and even more shocking to read that the firm knew exactly what they were doing.  Not only that, I am disgusted the county let the information just sit on a desk while

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Despite audit, Fish and Wildlife not budging on spring bear hunt

Petition filed to reinstate spring bear hunt after commission audit  The fall black bear hunting season is well underway in Skagit and Whatcom counties, and a hunter filed two petitions recently with the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife to bring back the spring bear hunt, a controversial season that ended in 2022 and resulted in a Fish and Wildlife commission audit for disregarding government transparency laws, conflict of interest rules and internal clashes among staff. In 2022, the commission voted 5-4 against the spring bear hunt. Opponents of the hunt called it inhumane, as it’s when black bears emerge

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Environmental Stewardship among extensive San Juan County cuts 

San Juan County council prepares for 2027 budget approval  At a meeting last week, Councilmember Kari McVeigh said San Juan County is tasked with “making gold out of corn.” In the wake of a failed property tax measure in April and projections of a $3.7 million budget deficit — 12% of the county’s operating revenue — for 2027, the county council spent this summer going department-by-department looking for cuts.   “Almost $4 million is not small pennies in a county the size of San Juan,” County Manager Jessica Hudson said in an interview, “so it impacts a lot of things. There

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The battle of Sudden Valley’s invasive waterlilies

Sudden Valley plans herbicide treatment for invasive waterlilies at Lake Louise They are back and spreading! The invasive fragrant waterlilies at Lake Louise in Sudden Valley cover much of the shoreline this time of the year. A bird sanctuary on the southeast end of the lake is so dense with lily pads that waterfowl commonly seen there in the cooler months are now absent. The few that are there struggle through the large leaves to reach the water. Access to the water from two beaver lodges at the north end of the lake is also covered by the waterlilies.  The

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Drier summers push Bellingham to rethink Padden Creek water use 

City of Bellingham works to bolster Padden Creek habitat Drier, hotter summers are prompting new ideas for how to balance recreation and wildlife in the Padden Creek watershed.  The City of Bellingham is working on a water budget that investigates the feasibility and impacts of using more water from Lake Padden to boost streamflows in the creek, Jason Porter, public works surface water manager, wrote in an email. The water study is set to be completed in November.  Padden Creek is home to chum, coho and Chinook salmon; steelhead and cutthroat trout.  Salmon need consistent water quantity and excellent water

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Bellingham residents cut Flock cameras, part of a growing trend

Citizens have taken a ‘vigilante justice’ approach to what many call a growing surveillance threat as automatic license plate cameras continue to appear across Washington Shoppers at Home Depot in Bellingham have recently been greeted with an unexpected sight: Two of four automatic license plate recognition cameras installed on the business’s property were cut down, rendering them inoperable. This act of apparent vandalism is only the latest in a growing trend online — citizens cover their faces to hide their identity, then record themselves using power tools to cut the metal poles that support the cameras. Videos posted to social

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On International Day of the Dissapeared

To the Editor: International Day of the Disappeared is observed on August 30 each year to bring awareness and advocate for rights of those who’ve been subjected to enforced disappearance.  Amnesty International marks this day by bringing attention to a number of cases, including that of 2 Palestinian journalists, Dr. Abu Safiya, a Tibetan religious leader and educator, and several activists from Pakistan and China.  We invite you to explore more about the significance of this day, and speak up to protect human rights, the need for accountability and respect for rule of law.  It matters to us all. —Colleen

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Dolly Parton’s country legacy sings on in Northwest Washington

From classic country standards to old-school revivals, musicians across the North Sound region carry Parton’s sound to a new generation of listeners  Ed.: The essays, analyses and opinions presented as Community Voices express the perspectives of their authors on topics of interest and importance to the community and are not intended to reflect perspectives on behalf of Salish Current. Dolly Parton died Aug. 25 at age 80, but the country music she helped define has long reached listeners outside her traditional audience. Parton was intentionally pursuing that crossover nearly 50 years ago. In Tom Zito’s 1978 Washington Post profile, “Dolly

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Dolly Parton and school libraries

To the Editor: Jessica Gigot makes a compelling case for protecting school libraries and the librarians who bring them to life. At a time when budgets are tight, library services should not be treated as expendable. The timeliness of Gigot’s essay is especially striking in the wake of Dolly Parton’s death. Parton understood the power of introducing children to books early. Through her Imagination Library, more than 300 million books have been mailed directly to young children, from birth to age 5, opening the door to the mind-expanding world of reading long before they enter a classroom. But that journey cannot

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New shark research launches decade-long data crusade

Increasing sixgill and sevengill sightings provide new research opportunities in the Salish Sea Researchers with the Seattle Aquarium, Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, Oregon State University Big Fish Lab and Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium have tagged eight bluntnose sixgill sharks this summer with a budget for 12-15 total through September.  Growing up to 14 feet if not bigger, sixgill sharks are some of the largest sharks in the world. They tend to live in deep waters, nearly two miles below the surface, which makes them difficult to study. However, the Salish Sea provides a unique opportunity — they’ve

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We must save our school libraries at all costs

School libraries must be prioritized among budget cuts Ed.: The essays, analyses and opinions presented as Community Voices express the perspectives of their authors on topics of interest and importance to the community and are not intended to reflect perspectives on behalf of Salish Current. For our family, elementary school started online in the fall of 2020. If you lived in the Pacific Northwest at the time, it also happened to be a September covered in orange smoke from nearby forest fires. As a newer parent, I was inside and overwhelmed trying to keep everyone healthy and navigate this new

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New technology tracks bumblebees across the Nooksack and Bellingham

Researchers use miniature tags to study bee behavior Trail walkers may have noticed new devices lining the Nooksack trails in Bellingham. The devices, which stand on poles and feature solar panels connected to gray power-boxes, are radio nodes that make up a grid system of receivers that obtain data from bumblebees tagged with newly innovated radio tracking technology. The Washington State Department of Agriculture and Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife are collaborating to test minuscule solar-powered radio tags on bumblebees in the Nooksack area and around the Western Washington University campus. The tags, developed by Cellular Tracking Technologies, are

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Creating treasure on Lummi Island

How a local artist creates treasure from scraps Born in the 1950s, a middle child in a middle‐class family, I was taught to “make do with what you have.” Everyday items themselves were made to last in those days, plus the art of repair was a necessary skillset when only a few coins were given for a weekly allowance. I sewed my own clothing, tended a vegetable garden alongside my mom, fished for bullhead and trout with my dad and played outside with dogs, kids, ponies and bugs. With the soul of a crow, I constantly scanned around me for

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Bellingham woman whips up confidence

Brittani VanDyken uses the skill of whip handling to challenge herself and lead team-building workshops During warm summer evenings in front of Bellingham’s El Sueñito Brewing Company, it’s common to hear the crispness of a sonic boom. The source of the noise isn’t from a gunshot or jet breaking the sound barrier, however: It’s from the crack of a 10-foot whip held by Brittani VanDyken. The 39-year-old Bellingham resident can be seen often on Humboldt Street, in front of the Sunnyland neighborhood brewery, riding an adult-sized big wheel tricycle and wrangling a cowhide bull whip. VanDyken, who has lived in

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Ditching the Blue Line: Whatcom Transit launches simpler routes for WWU commuters

WTA service changes have started ahead of September fare increase  This summer, Whatcom Transportation Authority implemented its 2026 service changes, aiming to simplify routes, improve reliability and better match service to actual demand.  The most significant changes center on routes serving Western Washington University. Previously, the Blue Line consisted of six overlapping routes that funneled through campus, often creating confusion and inefficiency. Now, Route 190 serves as the main backbone, running every 15 minutes through campus, with reduced frequency during low-demand summer months.  New routes 97 and 98, dubbed the Campus Circulator, will help handle peak demand during the school

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