Our mission is to protect the habitat of Puget Sound tidelands from the underregulated expansion of new and intensive shellfish aquaculture methods. These methods were never anticipated when the Shoreline Management Act was passed. They are transforming the natural tideland ecosystems in Puget Sound and are resulting in a fractured shoreline habitat. In South Puget Sound much of this has been done with few if any meaningful shoreline permits and with limited public input. It is exactly what the Shoreline Management Act was intended to prevent.

Get involved and contact your elected officials to let them you do not support aquaculture's industrial transformation of Puget Sound's tidelands.

Governor Inslee:

Saturday, September 23, 2017

Sept 26 Public Hearing: Geoduck Operation Expansion in Thurston County

Good for whose economy?
Impacting residential area how?

What: Hearing for the expansion of Geoduck Unlimited (owned by Greg Reub) on a tideland parcel owned by Deborah and Greg Dibble at 10221 Steamboat Island Rd., NW, Olympia, WA.
When: September 26, 10AM
(Note: Hearing on geoduck farm will be preceded by a separate hearing for a bulkhead.)
Where: Thurston County Courthouse Building No.1, Room 152 Olympia, Washington 985023
Why: To determine whether a shoreline permit should be issued for an industrial level operation within an established residential area.
Agenda here: Agenda
Staff report here: Staff report
Those in opposition here: Opposition emails (Note: There are many opposed, so this is a large file.)

PVC tubes for everyone.
(It's only for a few years.)

Profits for me, taxes for you, and your property impaired.
On September 26 Thurston County will hear reasons why Greg Reub should be issued a shoreline permit to expand his current geoduck operation (on a tideland parcel he paid for $85,000 for) onto the Dibble family's tideland parcel (tidelands which currently, without a shellfish operation, Thurston County appraises at $2,400).  If permitted, the estimated profits to Mr. Reub for geoduck shipped to China would be in the range of $500,000. The Dibble family, creating a "license to use real estate" would be responsible for various taxes to the Washington Department of Revenue, income tax, and based on what Mr. Reub paid for his tideland parcel, a likely significant increase in their property tax. Explaining to financial institutions that the long term lease allowing the ongoing operation impairing the property would be up to the Dibble family. Explaining to Thurston County how that somehow helps the "local economy" would be up to Mr. Reub.
[Note: In what appears to be a financially deft move, Mr. Reub moved his tideland parcel into a self-directed IRA. Doing so likely allowed Mr. Reub to harvest geoduck and shield the income from taxes, until the future, when retirement withdrawals begin. Likely doing so, Mr. Reub then moved title of the tidelands out of the IRA and into his name, perhaps so he could deduct the property tax (as minimal as it is) from his other income earned as an environmental consultant with Eco Analysts.]
Get involved.
Attend the September 26 hearing and listen to why scientists such as Mr. Reub who own and operate geoduck farms believe their science is good enough to justify the plasticizing of Puget Sound's intertidal tidelands in residential areas. Listen to Thurston County explain how aware they are of current and planned commercial operations on both shorelines of Totten Inlet and throughout the county. And perhaps explain why it is okay to ban plastic shopping bags but then allow thousands of PVC tubes to be placed into Puget Sound.

 

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