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February 22nd, 2005
SKAGIT COUNTY TAKES LEGAL ACTION TO PROTECT SALMON AND WILDLIFE IN SWINOMISH CHANNEL AND PADILLA BAY
230 acres of prime farmland to be lost
SKAGIT COUNTY – The Skagit County Board of Commissioners took legal action to challenge the planned construction of a massive marina development in a sensitive ecological area adjacent Swinomish Channel and the Padilla Bay National Estuary.
The suit was filed in United States District Court, Western District of Washington on February 15, 2005. Skagit County filed a complaint for declaratory and injunctive relief against the Swinomish Tribal Community, the Environmental Protection Agency, Army Corps of Engineers, Bureau of Indian Affairs, and NOAA Fisheries.
“Our contention is that this large development in a sensitive estuary requires the proper scrutiny from our federal agencies,” said Commissioner Don Munks. “
According to the County’s complaint, the officials named in the action have failed to ensure that this project receives the environmental review required by law.
The action arises from the Swinomish Indian Tribal Community’s plan to build a massive 240 acre, 1,200-slip marina, and other associated development in a sensitive ecological area along the Swinomish Channel, near and adjacent to Padilla Bay. The planned development also calls for a 600-acre resort community with retail stores, a 150-room hotel and convention center, and medium-size amphittheatre.
The proposed project will require the dredging and excavation of 1,800,000 cubic yards of material, altering more than 50 acres of existing wetlands, construct 120-acres of industrial and commercial development surrounding the marina, including a fuel dock, restaurant and nearly a dozen acres of parking, plus an RV park, and various offices and other commercial buildings.
The project also calls for the immediate destruction of 230 acres of prime farmland.
A report commissioned by Skagit County concludes that the project did not face the kind of scrutiny that the Endangered Species Act requires and the analysis of the project falls well short of what the ESA and agency practice requires.
The complaint is available online at www.skagitcounty.net
For further information,
contact: Dan Berentson
Skagit County Communications Director
360-419-3461