RE Sources Names Local Environmental Heroes for 2009

Megan Artz is the outreach and membership coordinator for RE Sources for Sustainable Communities and has been working at RE Sources for four years. For more information, contact Megan at RE Sources at 733-8307 or MeganA@re-sources.org or visit http://www.re-sources.org.

For the seventh year, local environmental education and advocacy organization, RE Sources for Sustainable Communities celebrates local people, working for the environment by naming their 2009 Environmental Heroes. These heroes are members of the community who have dedicated their careers and often their lives to protecting the environment. Heroes are nominated through an open community nomination process, and then selected by a group that includes prior heroes along with members of RE Sources’ board and staff.

The 2009 Heroes will be honored at the seventh annual Environmental Heroes Award celebration on Saturday, April 25, at 7 p.m. at the Leopold Crystal Ballroom. The event is also a fundraiser for RE Sources’ environmental education programs. Sponsors for the 2009 Environmental Heroes event are Kulshan Cycles, The Markets LLC, Rice Insurance LLC and Village Books.

The event will also feature live music by the Scot Ranney Jazz Trio and elegant appetizers by Market Street Catering. There will be a cash bar with beers from Chuckanut Brewery as well as wine and nonalcoholic drinks for guests. Tickets cost $25 which can be purchased in advance at Kulshan Cycles, The RE Store, Village Books, or by calling RE Sources at (360) 733-8307.

Mike and Elaine McRory have dedicated more than 25 years to stream restoration and salmon recovery activities in Bellingham and Whatcom County, with a particular focus on Whatcom Creek.

As founding members of the Nooksack Salmon Enhancement Association, Mike and Elaine have tirelessly led the effort to systematically turn Whatcom Creek, a degraded stream in the middle of Bellingham, into a living outdoor classroom for stream restoration, environmental education and fish recovery.

Thanks to their efforts, artistic sculptures and viewing locations designed or coordinated by Mike, interpretive signs created by Elaine, and the hundreds of native trees and shrubs now line the stream banks that wind through the heart of Bellingham. Their continuing work to restore wild salmon throughout Whatcom County have not only improved habitat for fish and wildlife, but also has inspired thousands of volunteers and students of all ages to take part in improving our environment.

Gordon Scott has lived his passion for conservation through the Whatcom Land Trust (WLT) since 1993, serving as a board member, board president, conservation director, and most recently the senior conservationist. During his tenure at WLT, Gordon’s work has resulted in the purchase and permanent stewardship for over 9,000 acres of Whatcom County lands.

Many of these properties included the best and largest remaining salmon and natural habitats in the Nooksack River watershed outside of the Mount Baker National Forest. Three of his recent and most important achievements include the 230-acre Warnick Bridge parcel along the North Fork Nooksack River, the Lily Point Nature Reserve, likely the most culturally and ecologically endowed property on the Puget Sound shoreline, and the Stimpson Family Nature Preserve in the Whatcom Watershed.

Thanks to Gordon’s work, Whatcom Land Trust has protected 9,390 acres which include 22.5 miles of riverfront and 7.5 miles of saltwater shoreline.

Kyle Morris has been Bellingham’s model of simple living for many years. He was an early volunteer with a free bicycle program call the Pedal Project. This program rebuilt donated bikes, painted them bright yellow and placed them on the streets for anyone to use.

After an unfortunate increase in vandalism toward the yellow bikes, the yellow bikes no longer rolled, but Kyle morphed the Pedal Project into the Hub Community Bike Shop in 2002. Located along Bellingham’s Interurban Trail, “the Hub” has evolved into a successful community bike shop and bicycle advocacy program by empowering children and adults to learn the basics of bike maintenance and offering affordable shop space for individuals to apply their knowledge.

As the Hub also provides free bicycles to low-income families and individuals, it encourages a wide spectrum of people to pursue a lighter footprint, and have fun doing so. By aspiring to reuse bike parts whenever possible and encouraging alternative transportation to others, both Kyle and the Hub have made a widespread positive impact in our community.

Barry Wenger has worked for the Department of Ecology for over 20 years, during which time he has consistently defended environmental laws. The Growth Management Act, the Shoreline Management Act and Whatcom County’s Critical Areas Ordinance are upheld by Barry’s persistence, and he is considered by his peers to be a local leader in protecting our marine waters and shorelines.

Removal of creosote logs from Bellingham Bay was a project conceived by Barry. He found the support, volunteers and funding needed to remove tons of creosote logs from area beaches. This project has now been replicated throughout the region. He has played an instrumental leadership role in the Bellingham Bay cleanup process and in formalizing protections for Cherry Point.

Barry’s work has not been confined to his daytime job but has included countless public meetings and volunteer time. Barry defends state and local laws in the face of sometimes stiff opposition from interest groups and even those within his own agency; he is not afraid to go up against higher-ups in his own agency in defense of what he thinks is right. Barry is a shining example of a state employee who is committed to going above and beyond the call of duty in defense of the environment.

David is a quiet force for change. He has been a key organizer behind the community education organization, Sustainable Bellingham, helping to organize numerous excellent films and discussions about sustainability topics. David was an early leader pushing for a community conversation about peak oil and energy descent, and has brought well-known speakers to Bellingham to meet with ecumenical and academic audiences, as well as the general public.

He compiles and widely disseminates summaries of local events and endeavors, and puts these out as the “Sustainable Bellingham Community Newsletter.” David also finds time to help produce workshops for Cascadia Training & Mediation, which provides leading edge sustainable living, personal empowerment and organizational effectiveness tools.

He was instrumental in the creation of the city of Bellingham/Whatcom County Energy Resource Scarcity/Peak Oil Task Force, and is currently involved in birthing Transition Whatcom, an initiative to help our community plan for a post-carbon future. David strongly values collaboration and always works to bring diverse organizations into cooperative efforts. He shuns the limelight, instead putting his energies into collaborative education and activism, opening his heart to others who also seek a better world. §