Tiger Mountain Part of 2000 Acres of Forest Set Aside For Conservation in Washington
By Nastassia Barber
At Tiger Mountain in December, Hilary Franz announced a proposal that would protect an additional 2000 acres of forestland in Clallam, Jefferson, King, Snohomish and Whatcom counties from logging and other commercial use. An especially exciting piece of the proposal is a section of 69 acres near the Elwha river, which is a critical salmon habitat. Some of the forests also provide habitat for other animals, like birds and big cats. Other parts, like ~290 acres of Tiger Mountain shown in the map below, are near beloved hiking trails and other recreation opportunities.
This proposal allots replacement lands, mostly in Wahkiakum County, for harvest to provide an economically viable strategy for reducing logging in more ecologically important forests. This funding comes from the Climate Commitment Act, a market-based climate change mitigation program that involves auctioning off carbon allowances to companies looking to reduce their “net emissions.” This program aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in Washington by 95% by 2050. Based on learnings from California's famously unsuccessful cap-and-trade legislation, it includes provisions to prevent offsets from being used in place of actual emissions reductions.
Proceeds from the auctions must be used to fund projects that improve air quality. The program has been popular, including among businesses, environmentalists, and rural voters, because it has been used to invest in important projects. These include transportation infrastructure, investment in the clean energy industry, and reductions in dangerous air pollutants other than carbon dioxide.
Carbon stored in forests is a natural way to reduce the quantity of carbon in the atmosphere. Along with other emissions reductions and sequestration options, forests represent a cheap and reliable source of carbon storage. They are also a beautiful solution, and they provide us with mental health benefits, along with other ecosystem services such as biodiversity and clean water.
The press conference was attended by our own IATC president, Kelly Jiang, and IATC co-founder David Kappler. In order to complete the land transfers, the DNR still needs to reach an agreement with county leadership and the Board of Natural Resources.
2000 acres conserved by DNR! Including 290 acres on Tiger. Seattle Times article
https://www.niskanencenter.org/what-washington-d-c-can-learn-from-the-other-washington-about-climate-policy/