Letters to the editor for April 24

Thank you, Dick Pust

Thank you Dick Pust and the tiny radio station perched on the tidelands of Budd Inlet. You are part of the history we will remember. We have often stared wistfully at your office space with such a view of the Olympics, the kayakers, the families on the shores to the north. Those kayakers are gliding through the waters just as previous native peoples did thousands of years before. What a telescope into history you have had!

From your seat we can so much more easily imagine tribal members fishing out of their canoes. Gathering shellfish on the beach and healing greens from the shores and forests. Gathering food for their very sustenance. And, yes, native children playing in the very sand as our grandchildren do now.

The view into history is a gift. We acknowledge the history too of how white man claimed land out from under its original inhabitants. Yes, the French Missionaries were here on a holy mission. They were good people in service to God and had their own difficult course.

I love that you ARE sentimental, Dick Pust. Your own history in that space warrants that pride. I invite you and those who look out restaurant windows, walk their dogs, take their grandchildren to Swantown or walk their dogs in the park, to have their gaze see further. Look out over that glorious inlet, take note of the weather and what it does to the tide, the otters, the mist, and if we are lucky, see the startling white of the Olympics. This breathtaking coastal land belonged to the Squaxin peoples thousands of years before us.

You are so lucky, Dick. I invite you to see more, imagine further back, dig deeper.

Kathy Baros Friedt, Olympia

‘Great American Defense Community’ says the sign

Navy Seals, the cutting edge of our country’s sword, are not interested in Bigfoot tales around the campfire. In my opinion, by not allowing our Special Forces access to our public lands, Judge James Dixon has failed his duty as an American.

“It is creepy,” he stated and worried how training could deter visitors. His decision has brought discredit upon himself, Thurston County Superior Court, and the state of Washington.

Ryan Troy, Olympia

How much does it cost to save a tree?

I am relatively new to Olympia, but am already involved in my community, advocating for climate issues and focusing on preserving forests and urban trees in our county. I focus on the benefits of trees to our climate goals, not because they are the most important components of the climate equation, but because we need all the pieces of this puzzle in place in time to prevent the worst-case effects of climate change.

I was a forest data analyst and planner for the US Department of Interior for 30 years, so this fits my particular area of expertise. I have commented numerous times in public meetings of the Olympia City Council, Port of Olympia, Tumwater City Council, Thurston Regional Planning Council, and to state legislators about the potential increase in CO2 emissions from cutting large urban trees and clearing forest for urban development.

We must reduce emissions from all sources: transportation, buildings, electricity generation. These essential reductions come at high initial cost for solar panels, wind generators, heat pumps, electric vehicles, but we must make these investments. We must also keep carbon sequestered in trees, soil, wetland, or we will be increasing emissions at the same time we are trying to reduce them to zero.

One question: How much does it cost to NOT cut a tree or clear a forest? My answer, very little. We can design our urban infrastructure around existing trees and forests instead of wiping them out. We can redevelop underused, already urbanized property.

Timothy Leadingham, Olympia

This story was originally published April 24, 2022 at 5:00 AM.