Diking District 1 officials add insult to injury | LETTER TO THE EDITOR

Published 10:10 am Saturday, August 27, 2011

To the editor:

It’s not just the geese at Honeymoon Lake that are being killed.

At the Diking District 1 meeting Aug. 2, Commissioners Ray Gabelein and Steve Arnold, over the objections of Commissioner John Shepard, passed a motion to kill the beavers that have built a dam on top of the weir that regulates the water level in the wetlands.  This has raised the water level 4 inches above the minimum level permitted by the Army Corps of Engineers. This water level is already lower than that recommended by the Department of Ecology to properly maintain the wetlands and poses no danger of causing flooding.

The beavers are going to be caught in either “humane” traps and shot, or in a trap which crushes them instantly when tripped.

I recognize that beavers are not a protected species, but I am appalled that these harmless animals are going to be eradicated so the wetlands can continue to be drained, most of which are owned by commissioners Gabelein and Arnold. The use of taxpayer money to do so only adds insult to injury. Shame on you Ray and Steve.

SHARON VANDERSLICE

Clinton