For the second year, South Sound Estuary Association will offer the Beach Naturalists Program.  Beach Naturalists have the opportunity to work with people who have come to area beaches seeking a personal connection with the water. Volunteers work to create a greater understanding of the South Puget Sound and its estuaries. They talk about how everyday choices can have a positive impact on our water quality.

Our own Frye Cove is among those beaches included in this program.

Beach Naturalist volunteers are asked to commit 12 training hours followed by at least 4 days on the beach during the months of June, July, and August.

The Beach Naturalist Program is offering more training opportunities than last year for a modest fee of $40. All program fees are due by the first training session on April 7th, 2011.

Would you like to become a Beach Naturalist, but cannot afford the $40 tuition? The Griffin Neighborhood Association is underwriting the tuition for two participants in the program. You must live within the Griffin School District to qualify for this tuition assistance.

Click here for more information regarding the Beach Naturalist Program. Contact Leihla, Program Coordinator, at 360-888-0565 or leihla@sseacenter.org to sign up or to receive information about one the tuition support offered by the Griffin Neighborhood Association.
 
 

Wednesday, March 16
Capitol Theater Downtown Olympia
Doors Open 6:00 pm - Event begins at 6:30 pm

Captain Charles Moore will talk about the effects of plastics on marine life in Puget Sound as well as the Washington and Oregon coast. We will also show several videos on South Puget Sound and the effects of corporate farming on our tidelands. Donny Westfall, a local musician will also perform. Plan on buying a Sierra cup and having something to drink and eat while looking at the tables of other environmental groups.

Charles Moore founded Algalita Marine Research Foundation (AMRF) in 1994 to focus on the "coastal ocean." In 1997, his focus dramatically changed. While returning to California from Hawaii aboard his 50-foot catamaran, the Alguita, he chose to chart a course though the North Pacific Subtropical Gyre, where he encountered enormous amounts of trash, mostly plastic, scattered across the area now commonly referred to as the Great Pacific Garbage Patch.

Proposed changes to the County's ordinance regarding the discharge of firearms may at last put to rest a two-year effort by local residents to limit where firearms can be used over the waters surrounding our peninsula. A community meeting regarding the proposed ordinance will be held Tuesday, March 1, 7 to 9pm, in the Thurston County Courthouse Bldg 1, Room 152.

Note the date has been rescheduled to March 1st, due to inclement weather in the forecast.

The entire ordinance is available on the County's web site (click here to download the PDF file). The portion of the ordinance which is probably most pertinent, to local residents, makes it unlawful for any person to discharge a firearm in these areas:

All those areas zoned Residential LAMIRD One Dwelling Unit Per Two Acres; and

All those areas zoned Residential LAMIRD One Dwelling Unit Per Acre; and

All those areas zoned Residential LAMIRD Two Dwelling Units Per Acre (all LAMIRD areas are marked in green, on the County's map); and

All that portion of land and marine waters of Puget Sound lying 300 yards, waterward, from the ordinary high water line (marked in blue, on the map); and

That portion of Eld Inlet south of an east-west line starting from a Point 300 feet North of the Meander Line as it crosses the East Line of Section 31, Township 19, North Range 2 West, thence due Westerly across Eld Inlet to the Western Shoreline (marked in orange, on the map);

Click here to download a copy of the full-sized map of current and proposed limited shooting zones[PDF].

Local residents that wish to do so may send comments regarding the ordinance to smithr@co.thurston.wa.us

Enforcement of the no shooting and limited shooting zones will fall the the County Sheriff's Department.

For many residents, this issue didn't revolve around a desire to ban hunting outright; many of our neighbors enjoy hunting. However, as densities have increased along shorelines, the issue of safety prevailed. Waterfront homes have been struck by shot and most hunters would likely agree that it's good to separate hunting parties by several hundred yards. The changes proposed in the ordinance reflect a commonsense approach to safety, applied to zoning densities and the size of bodies of water in the area.

The need to reassess the County's shooting ordinances was brought to the attention of Commissioner Karen Valenzuela by Griffin area homeowners. We have written about this issue in the past (click here to read those prior articles) and we encourage interested residents to review the proposed ordinance and to either attend the community meeting or email comments to the County.

A free, public lecture on Brazil will take place at the Olympia Center, 222 Columbia St. at 7:30pm on Thursday February17th.

Brazil is one of the fastest developing countries in the world. It is expected to be the fifth-largest economy in the world by the time it hosts the 2016 Summer Olympics. How has Brazil moved so far, so fast and what are the opportunities to do business in such a dynamic economy? Where is the country headed after the election of its first woman President, Dilma Rousseff?

Pedro Costa, Brazil’s Consul in Seattle and founder and CEO of The Information Company, will answer these questions and share with us his knowledge and understanding of his native country. Señor Costa may be accompanied to the lecture by the Brazilian Ambassador, as well.

The event is sponsored by the Olympia World Affairs Council.  For more information call 360-867-0919.  http://www.olympiawac.org/

Griffin neighbors converged on the Griffin Fire Department Headquarters Wednesday night to participate in the annual Community Meeting of the Griffin Neighborhood Association. The packed agenda included reports from the President and Treasurer of the Association, the election of half the Board, and an opportunity to hear from and question a variety of local leaders. A presentation by Thurston Energy rounded out the evening.

Board President Dave Schuett-Hames reported on the activities of the Board over the prior year. Highlights of the year included a successful fundraiser for the Steamboat Conservation Partnership; the celtic band Gaelica packed the Prosperity Grange last March. Our summer picnic, at Frye Cove, featured seafood dishes prepared by local chef Xinh.

Dave introduced the outgoing members of the Board. After many, many years of service, Kathleen O'Shaunessy is retiring from the Board. Jim Lynch and Randi Johnson are also retiring from the Board. All of them will be missed, but were sure to see them at future neighborhood events.

Treasurer Gary Goodwin reported the Association ended the year with a bigger balance in its accounts than at the beginning of the year. Although fundraising focused on the Steamboat Conservation Partnership, the GNA made donations of $200 each to the food bank at St. Christopher's Church and the South Puget Sound Salmon Enhancement Group.

Association Bylaws provide for a Board of between 10 and 17 members. Each year, roughly half the Board positions are up for election. Members present at the Community Meeting were presented with a slate of nominees. In addition to local residents already on the slate, one more nominee stepped forward. A total of seven positions were filled on the Board.

Many thanks to returning Board members Donna Hursh. Dave Peeler, Peter Reid, Dave Schuett-Hames, and Bob Whitener. New Board members are Marty Beagle and Diane Wiley.

Two positions remain open. Local residents who may be interested in serving on the Board are encouraged to speak with a Board member and to read the Association's "Board Member FAQ". Click here for the entire list of current Board members and find a link to the FAQ.

A veritable cavalcade of local leaders spoke with area residents. Remarkably, all those who were asked to come and speak were able to do so.

Greg Woods, Griffin School Principal, described recycling efforts at the Griffin School and other steps being taken to reduce the school's energy footprint.

Fire Chief John Wood and Commissioner Jim McGarva provided an update on Griffin Fire Department activities, including the purchase of the Department's new fire truck.
 
Lindy Vincent and Linda Bradford spoke about activities at St. Christopher's Church. These include ongoing plans to expand the church and Lindy's work providing support for local families in need.
 
State Representative Fred Finn briefly described steps being taken to meet the state's budget shortfall.
 
Karen Valenzuela, Thurston County Commissioner, spoke of the12% staff cuts made last year, to reduce the County's budget. But she also told us that long-term budget projections continue to be troubling.

Valenzuela reminded residents that progressive environmental policies cannot move forward, without active community support.

John Snaza, Thurston County Sheriff, told those present that 85% of Sheriff Department's budget is wages. Putting deputies in the field is a chief priority of his.

Jon Tunheim, Thurston County Prosecutor, also spoke at the Community Meeting. He spoke about steps he is taking to improve the functioning of the Prosecutor's Office. Tunheim is a local resident, too, and he became a member of the Griffin Neighborhood Association at the meeting.

Ramsey Zimmerman, Program Director for Thurston Energy (and a local resident), described the HomePLUS Energy Evaluation Package. With HomePlus, homeowners can receive a comprehensive energy assessment of their home, including recommendations to improve its energy efficiency, referrals to qualified energy contractors, and access to a wealth of other resources designed to reduce energy costs.

Several of those who turned out for this meeting also became new members of the Association or renewed their membership. For more information on how to join the Griffin Neighborhood Association, or to renew your membership, click here.

Coffee service was donated to the event by the Starbucks store at 315 Cooper Point Road NW (Cooper Point and Harrison). Hot water, for tea service, was donated by the Starbucks store at the Capital Mall. Many thanks to Starbucks for this generous donation. The refreshments provided an opportunity to socialize, before the meeting, and kept us going throughout the evening.

When: 7:00 pm, Tuesday, February 8, 2011
Where: Batdorf & Bronson Coffee House, 516 Capitol Way South, Olympia, Washington. Phone 360.786.6717

Batdorf & Bronson has three locations in Olympia. Science Café meets in the downtown coffee house on Capitol Way. On-street parking is available on Legion, Capitol Way, Columbia Street, and Water Street. After 6 p.m., there is parking available at Heritage Bank on Columbia Street between 5th and Legion.

Our topic in February is "The longer day: How rocks can tell us about changes in the Earth's spin and the Moon's orbit."

Our planet is currently experiencing a long-term increase in the length of a day of 20 microseconds per year, meaning each day is, on average, nearly 55 nanoseconds longer than the last. Even our familiar moon is not static in its orbit around Earth, increasing its average distance from us by 3.8 centimeters per year.

Chris Coughenour, Ph.D. (The Evergreen State College) will discuss how these phenomena are intimately related, why our corner of the solar system is undergoing such changes, and why these changes have not been constant in the distant past. He will also tell us how, through the geologic record of preserved tidal cycles, this long-standing problem first recognized by Edmund Halley may be solved throughout Earth's long history.

March Topic: Tuberculosis in the 21st Century, presented by Diana Yu, M.D., Health Officer, Thurston and Mason Counties.