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During the past few weeks, residents of Burien, Des Moines, SeaTac, Normandy Park, and Tukwila, have been introducing the newly expanded and rebranded "Defenders of Highline Forest," formerly known as "Defenders of North SeaTac Park" to their city councils and school boards.The following public comment from Kate Richardson was presented to the Burien Council at their May 6, 2024 council meeting:
I'm Kate Richardson, a Burien resident. Tonight, I've come with my colleagues to introduce Defenders of Highline Forest, formerly known as Defenders of North SeaTac Park.
For thousands of years, this very spot used to support contiguous forest. What a difference a few generations can make.
According to the Urban Tree Canopy Assessment that Forterra developed for Burien in 2017, the accepted tree canopy standard for urban areas in this region is 40-60%. At the time when that assessment was done, the city's tree canopy was measured at 30%. We're very pleased that Burien's Urban Forest Plan is undertaking a campaign to restore local forest health and rebuild tree canopy to 40% by 2038.
In the face of climate change, and with data showing that communities around SeaTac Airport are especially hard-hit by environmental health impacts, TREES are a natural and obvious antidote to these problems. Burien is already putting significant effort into tree-friendly projects. But let's be clear: Last year the campaign planted 800 trees, that is less than half of the stated goal of 1900 trees annually. And all the while, development and fragmentation pressures are INCREASING.
Defenders of Highline Forest urge this Council to put even more support behind the city's campaign to preserve the existing tree canopy, and to invest in planting more trees.
It is vital to connect all of our efforts to preserve and restore the Highline Forest. To learn more about our work, please visit our website, www.defendersofhighlineforest.org/. If you sign the Forest Consensus that you'll find there, you'll receive our monthly newsletter. Thank you.
HERE is the Defenders' May 2024 Newsletter. If you wish to sign up for the email, write them at info@defendersofhighlineforest.org
Standing up for North SeaTac Park & all health-protecting forestwithin ten miles of SeaTac Airport
May 2024View this email in your browserWrite us at info@defendersofhighlineforest.org
Port of Seattle Commission Vice President Toshiko Hasegawa oversaw the formulation of the Port’s newly-adopted Land Stewardship Plan
On April 16, Port of Seattle Commissioners Hamdi Mohammed, Fred Felleman and Toshiko Hasegawa approved a Land Stewardship Plan (LSP) for the Port-owned properties associated with SeaTac Airport. Despite promising “stewardship” in its title, and despite Port officials’ self-congratulatory rhetoric about social justice and environmental sensitivity when voting to accept the plan, the finalized LSP fails to protect many tree-covered acres that are essential to our airport-adjacent, environmentally-impacted communities.
Port-owned forested land parcels to the north, south and west of the airport still are targeted for destruction in two other Port documents, the Real Estate Strategic Plan and the Sustainable Airport Master Plan (SAMP), that will be coming up for consideration later this year. These are expected to introduce massive development proposals and accompanying deforestation in neighborhoods including Riverton Heights (see accompanying article on Riverton Heights, below), southwest SeaTac, and North SeaTac Park.
As Defenders of Highline Forest, we are concerned that the Port of Seattle is likely to use the LSP for greenwashing – touting the airport’s “environmental leadership” with this new document (while using our community members’ sweat equity for their photo ops).
Despite robust public input - including dozens of individuals and organizations giving testimony in person and online, nearly 100 letters sent to the Port during the comment period on the LSP (see the letter our organization submitted), and the 3,700 community members who signed the Defenders’ Community Forest Consensus (which calls for proactive protection or local forests) - Port Commissioners seemed to give little credence to those calls for putting more teeth into the LSP.
Acknowledging that some people had hoped for a “sweeping” LSP, Port of Seattle Commissioner Toshiko Hasegawa said, “We do what we can, in pieces.”
We’ll be frank: the Port’s disregard for our concerns about the inadequacies of the LSP means that we’re going to need to redouble our efforts if we want Port Commissioners to understand that tree canopy protection is crucial, and must be an actionable consideration in creating a truly “Sustainable” Airport Master Plan. Next month, we’ll tell you more about our plans to impress upon the Port its obligation to repair the damage it has done to our communities. We’ll need your help in combatting the Port’s complacency toward our communities’ urgent health and environmental concerns, so stay tuned for the SAMP advocacy activities we’re planning for “Quarter 4 of ’24.” We’ll have more info in our June newsletter, but in the meantime, here’s an immediate…
Advocacy opportunity: This month, please send a quick e-mail to the Port of Seattle Commission to let them know that the Land Stewardship Plan they approved doesn’t do enough to safeguard the forested lands around the airport. Tell them that preserving mature tree canopy is an essential part of ensuring the health of our airport-impacted communities.
Bye-bye bunnies, bye-bye bees, bye-bye birds, bye-bye trees - the Port of Seattle has plans to build MORE GIANT WAREHOUSES on this green space in Riverton Heights. Photo courtesy of Sandy Hunt.
Bye Bye Trees?!!! In recent weeks, Defenders of Highline Forest members Andrea and Sandy have distributed flyers around Riverton Heights alerting neighbors to the Port of Seattle's plans to drastically remove and replace the tree canopy in their neighborhood with commercial buildings. Thank you to those neighbors who have so graciously opened their doors to our members and signed our petition. As is often the case, the fight for tree justice starts with conversations right on our own doorsteps.
We encourage you to share the Defenders website with your neighbors, relatives and friends and ask them to sign the Consensus they find there (link at the top of that page) and stay informed by signing up for this monthly newsletter. Thank you!
Tukwila community member Chris Fuentes testified in favor of guaranteeing more protection for existing tree canopy on private properties in his city. Photo courtesy of Christopher E. Fuentes.
In celebration of Arbor Day AND Earth Day, the Defenders of Highline Forest made the rounds to local City Council meetings in April to introduce our organization and let our local elected officials know that we are advocating for trees and tree canopy issues throughout the Highline area. We want to see our local cities support and expand tree-friendly policies and programs, from having a full-time urban forester on the city payroll, to developing plans to increase local tree canopy, to establishing incentives to encourage homeowners and developers to preserve and plant trees on their properties, and more!
We invited fellow tree-lovers to wear green and join us in Council Chambers -and folks of all ages came! Thanks so much to the folks in Des Moines who showed up! And thanks also to the folks in SeaTac! We’ve heard back from City Councilmembers in both of those cities – they’re paying attention to our tree-friendly advocacy!
And in Tukwila, special thanks to Chris Fuentes, who supplemented our plea for trees with a presentation of his own, on his efforts to preserve the forested lands in his neighborhood. As part of his studies toward a Master’s degree, Chris has already created a research report on the Gilliam Creek Tree Canopy. That creek’s tributaries originate in the Riverton Heights neighborhood west of International Boulevard/Highway 99, then join together and flow east through Tukwila into the Green River Valley, past Southcenter, and discharge into the Green River.
Advocacy opportunity for Burien residents: Coming up, the Defenders of Highline Forest will be introducing ourselves to the Burien City Council during the public comment period on May 6, 7 PM. It would be great to have supporters attend this meeting, wearing green, and giving a friendly wave to the City Council as our Defenders give public testimony introducing our group and describing our mission.
Big news! The Defenders of Highline Forest now have a Treasurer (thank you, Stephen Lamphear), a fiscal sponsor (thank you, Democracy Works), a bank account, and a donation button on our home page!
Already over the last year, we’ve received over $1,800 in donations. This allows us to get the word out and organize to keep the pressure on electeds. But costs are ongoing. Website, newsletter, zoom account, and printing, alone, are over $2,000 annually.
Our work is making a difference. Can you help?
You can donate online here: https://defendersofhighlineforest.org
Or donate by check: Make donations payable to Defenders of Highline Forest and mail to:
Defenders of Highline Forestc/o Stephen Lamphear, Treasurer12011 - 18th Ave. SWBurien, WA 98146-2529
Thank you for considering!
Volunteer activities in Burien: 5/7, 10 AM-Noon – Forest Steward Work in Salmon Creek Ravine
5/11, 10 AM-Noon – May-hem Weed Clean-up in the Salmon Creek Ravine
5/18, 9:30 AM-Noon – Miller Creek Trail Restoration
5/21, 10 AM-Noon – Forest Steward Work in Salmon Creek Ravine.
Family-friendly activity for ages 13 and up:5/31, 7:30-9 PM – Owl Prowl at Seahurst Park
Volunteer activity at Saltwater State Park: 5/4, 10 AM-Noon – Invasive plant removal at Saltwater State Park.
Advocacy opportunity:5/9, 6 PM – “Pack the Chamber” event at Des Moines City Hall, 21630 11th Avenue S, Des Moines. This one’s easy! At the Des Moines City Council meeting on Thursday, May 9, at 6 PM, advocates will be testifying in favor of preservation of the historic Des Moines Masonic Home and surrounding grounds and forest. We don’t really need more people to testify at this point, but we DO need to have a large crowd of supporters sitting in the audience, wearing green, and ready to smile and wave from their seats when cued by the folks who will be at the microphone giving public comment. We’re asking for about a half-hour time commitment for you to come, wear green, sit, smile and wave – (and then feel free to take off if you don’t want to stay for the rest of the meeting). Questions? – e-mail BarbaraLMcM@gmail.com
Volunteer activity in Normandy Park: 5/4, 9:30 AM-Noon – Forest restoration at Walker Preserve.
Family-friendly activities for everyone:5/3, 7-9 PM – Owl Prowl at Marine View Park5/4, 8:30-10:30 AM – Bird Walk at Marine View Park5/18, 7:30-9:30 PM – Owl Prowl at Walker Preserve5/25, 10 AM-Noon – A Walk with Plants at Nature Trails Park5/25, 7:30-9:30 PM – Owl Prowl at Walker Preserve
Volunteer activities in Tukwila:5/14, 11:30 AM–1:30 PM – Riverton Park Restoration5/17, 10-11:30 AM - Walk & Talk Litter Clean-up at Duwamish Hill Preserve5/18, 10 AM-1 PM – Restore Duwamish Hill
Family-friendly activities for everyone:5/1, 6-8 PM – Urban Bird-watching Workshop at Tukwila Community Center
Content for this edition of your Defenders of Highline Forest newsletter was provided by Chris Fuentes, Sandy Hunt, Stephen Lamphear, Barbara McMichael, Anne Miller, and Noemie Maxwell Vassilakis. We do this work because we care about the health of our communities!
Copyright © 2024 Friends of North SeaTac Park Forest, All rights reserved.
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