Letters to the editor for Aug. 15
We must restore the Deschutes Estuary
Puget Sound is dying and we must take immediate action to save our salmon, other fish, oysters, clams, seaweed, etc. Restoring the Deschutes River estuary as a salmon and other species recovery area is the best way to do this.
Restoring the Deschutes estuary also stores blue carbon which helps reverse fossil fuel global warming. The Nisqually estuary was restored back to health, now we must do that for the Deschutes estuary.
If we let nature restore the estuary we will start reversing the death of Puget Sound, increase tourism and recreation, and enjoy the increased beauty of Olympia. We must restore the Deschutes estuary now!
Joel Carlson, Lacey
DELI is on life-support
The Dual Estuary/Lake Idea for fixing Capitol Lake (DELI) is almost dead. The Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) has replaced a freshwater pool in the Hybrid Alternative with a saltwater pool. The reasons for doing this were massively flawed, and there is still a chance to rescind this decision, but it is slim.
DELI is not a difficult concept (YouTube: Do The DELI): 15% of Capitol Lake gets restored to a new, clean, artesian-fed lake, while the remaining 85% gets restored to an estuary. It is a compromise solution where we get the best of both worlds.
A Measured Evaluation Process (MEP) was performed early in the EIS process where a saltwater pool was compared against a freshwater pool in the Hybrid Alternative. Quite simply, every reason given for rejecting the freshwater pool has now been proven false. Even more, there have been several pros for the freshwater pool and cons for the saltwater one presented that were apparently not even considered during MEP review.
That said, the saltwater pool has not yet been switched out for a freshwater pool in the EIS. It’s as though there is some unknown force of dark matter out there that prevents this from happening. And this is where you can become a bright light of reality.
DELI supporters need to comment by Aug. 29 at info@capitollakedeschutesestuaryeis.org. Most useful would be supporting the Decision Durability of DELI over any other alternative (p. 25/Executive Summary/DEIS). And if you want swimming, say so too (p. 18/Executive Summary/DEIS).
Steve Shanewise, Olympia
Reconsider an estuary and keep the lake
I am 88 years old and well remember the time before we had this wonderful Capitol Lake — especially the SMELL! Please reconsider your thinking!
Charlotte G. Wright, Olympia
There’s no vaccine for fear
Here comes the delta variant to remind us once again that we know so little, are often mistaken, and what we do not know can be more important than what we know. The eternal gulf between this moment and the next leaves us afraid at every turn. There is so much fear I am hearing, fear that what may look like a solution today will become tomorrow’s plague. Many paralyzed by fear in this scary delta variant world.
I turn within and observe my own fears and ask, will I have what these times call for? Will my fear become anger and short circuit my own solutions?
Turning toward the world, I fear our leaders will be too afraid to put in place the solutions at hand. Surely this is a time when bold acts are called for. We have some great vaccines for COVID, but there is no vaccine for fear.
Richard Brandt-Kreutz, Olympia