Support Thurston Conservation District funding

Thurston Conservation District needs your help. The CD works with farmers and landowners to educate and improve conservation practices and protect water quality, salmon, and shellfish. Every day their technical staff improve our quality of life in Thurston County.

Last year the CD lost its annual assessment. As a result, the CD has reduced services and staff during 2018. We now face a critical opportunity to turn the CD around and restore it as a vibrant and trusted local organization.

The CD needs two key elements: restoring the CD’s funding, and restoring the community’s confidence that the CD is well run and using its funds efficiently and effectively.

This year, Thurston CD voted to adopt a Rates and Charges assessment to support District activities, which will annually collect $5 per parcel and $0.10 per acre, beginning in 2019. For the cost of a fast-food meal we can fund vital services to our county.

The Thurston County Commissioners must now decide whether to approve this request. To help restore confidence in the CD, I have offered the County Commissioners a proposal to help them approve the CD’s request: the first use of R&C funding will be for a study of ways to improve the CD’s governance. This would be a top priority for use of these funds, to begin as soon as possible in 2019.

Please let the County Commissioners know you support the CD and want them to approve the R&C funding proposal.