Letterbox - Misc Letters

To the editor:

There was great question asked in the movie, “The End of the Line”: “Where have all the fish gone?” It was answered by a compelling assertion, “We’ve eaten them!” The truth is we are fishing our oceans to death. And in doing so, we’re destroying the livelihoods and human rights of millions of coastal peoples. The Coastal Salish peoples of the Northwest have relied on inshore ocean stocks before the beginnings of colonial history. This has always been their right.

Now, fish farms line our coasts. Unregulated factory farming and overfishing of our oceans has reduced fish stocks beyond their carrying capacity, according to the UN. We all know the outcome of the fishing industry of the Atlantic Ocean. But are you aware of the fact that on our own west coast more than 10 thousand square miles has been closed to fishing for rockfish? Rockfish mature very slowly and it will take decades to restock the population.

In the United States, Trader Joe’s currently sells a list of seafood species that is either short stocked, fish farmed, or caught by illegal means. Such species as Atlantic sea scallops from New England, orange roughy from Thailand, swordfish from Singapore waters, along with bluefin Tuna can be found in their seafood section. Trader Joe’s has been irresponsible in the way they source their seafood. Supporters of a local economy in Bellingham need to ask Joe’s the question, “How was this caught?”

It’s important to us that our seafood comes from a socially responsible, sustainable source. Let’s ask Joe’s to respect the indigenous rights of all peoples of this earth and stop selling endangered and vulnerable fish species and to encourage sustainable fishing practices before we reach the end of the line.

To the editor:

Having recently attended a showing at the Pickford of the movie “Objectivity” with a Western Washington University professor both in attendance and showing a short film of his students, your front page article “Lightcatcher Building is LEED Certified” caught my eye. I was particularly delighted that it mentioned people, as so often we’re neglected and even though we’ve the biggest brains, we do not dominate nature nor is this the meaning of stewardship.

Many will tire of my incessant expression of our country’s and particularly the Pacific Northwest’s wonderful opportunity to set an example for the rest of the world for what the Buddhists call right livelihood, but folk really need to get that those who are the most happy are not those who use the most resources. Since so many blame us and we’ve made so many mistakes, it seems only right for this task to be ours.

Also (and few are aware of this), there’s a lot of money to be made making this world a better place; my own business Lightworks with its focus on energy efficiency is a good example.

I was glad to read of the efficiency of our old City Hall and the Mount Baker Theatre and Olson’s rainwater harvesting design reminded me of the rain gardens I learned of in last summer’s “Beachwatchers” training. Art’s functionality comes across well, as does your membership suggestion in the last section: “free is not costless” seem truly bipartisan (elitism?).

Also, while the 1/3 of 1 percent of sales tax for the library seems coercive, I recognize it’s effectiveness. Finally, most of us value earth’s beauty and as a Christian conservationist, I do too.

To the editor:

At the Whatcom County Council candidate’s forum on Oct. 8, the candidates spoke in generalities, not specifics.

The first candidate proposed the construction of a community center on the Bellingham waterfront formerly occupied by the Georgia-Pacific Paper Company. Almost all candidates that followed were copycats who recommended that community center.

I emphatically oppose that community center at present and never unless we have a great deal more information. In the first place, we are in a recession and have love for better use for what funds we have. For example, funds are short that WTA is considering cutting jobs and bus service. The city of Bellingham is part of Whatcom County and has already cut hours that the public library is open. Both the library and bus contribute to the quality of life in Bellingham.

We need to know in more detail how it is proposed that the community center would be used and how it would contribute to quality of life.

We need to know about things like transportation, parking and cost of construction, and whether the present senior center would be marketed or replaced. We need to realize that the cost of construction could be high. Much of the waterfront is covered in fill where building should be rested on steel pilings driven down to bedrock.