Conservation district seeks $5 assessment

PHOTO BY RICK WOOD STANWOOD/CAMANO NEWS The Snohomish Conservation District serves landowners county wide and on Camano Island. When Lyn Gross, of Stanwood, was planning her five-acre farm for her eight horses, she knew who to call.

Gross was starting from scratch when she purchased her property seven years ago. She had to build the barn, fencing and figure out drainage. When she contacted the Snohomish Conservation District, she said they talked to her about rotational pastures and helped her figure out ways to manage mud around the barn.

The Snohomish Conservation District is a non-regulatory sub-unit of the state government that works with landowners to provide them with information and technical expertise. It serves landowners county wide and on Camano Island, said Bobbi Lindemulder, Snohomish Conservation District acting district manager.

"Conservation districts are really the entities to help get projects implemented on private land," she said.

Currently, the conservation district is asking the Snohomish County Council to pass a property tax assessment.

The district has requested a $5 assessment per parcel plus .05 cents per acre annually. The fee would start in 2010, and exist for five years. It would not apply to the land within the Stillaguamish Clean Water District.

The district is in need of a stable funding source, Lindemulder said. Right now, the program is funded through grants, which are increasingly difficult to get, and come with limitations on how they can be used. A lot of the available grants are salmonrelated.

The district also contracts with Snohomish County, and receives some funding through that.

Having an assessment would mean a funding source that doesn't come with strings attached, Lindemulder said. It would free the district up to help more of the landowners in the area.

The present funding system is a mess, said Max Albert, project coordinator for the Stillaguamish Flood Control District. Some people pay, and some don't. A percentage of the Stillaguamish Clean Water District's fees go to the conservation district.

Money comes from the county, even though the conservation district isn't a county agency, he said. In addition, funding hasn't kept up with growth within the county.

As a result, the district has a difficult time trying to provide services to everyone in the district, he said.

This is the district's third attempt to get the county council to pass an assessment. Although the district recognizes the difficulty of the current economy, everyone benefits from cleaner water and air, Lindemulder said.

"I think the benefits outweigh the cost," she said.

When the district started in 1941, its focus was agriculture. Now, Lindemulder said they provide assistance to landowners in the rural/suburban fringe and urban areas as well.

The district helps farmers meet their goals and provides farm planning services, she said. It works to improve water quality, and helps landowners connect with other organizations that can help them.

The district partners with the Washington State University extension on livestock and water quality issues, she said.

There are a lot of hobby farms in the county where landowners are unfamiliar with farming, Albert said. Through ignorance, they can create damage.

However, the conservation district does a lot of outreach and helps those hobby farmers who ask for assistance, he said.

The conservation district is an award-winning organization that delivers services directly to citizens, Albert said. Whether someone has an issue with soil, surface water or stream management, the district can provide assistance.

Locally, those who drive on Marine Drive between Stanwood and Warm Beach can see the impact of a conservation district assisted project. In 2000, the Stillaguamish Flood Control District and the conservation district planted 17,000 trees along the Old Channel of the Stillaguamish River, Albert said.

Gross said she supports the district's request for an assessment on property taxes.

"I think it's nothing compared to the services that they offer," she said.

Talking to the conservation district prior to designing a farm can save someone both time and money, Gross said.

"They really are an asset to the county," she said.

The district provides help with pasture design, manure management and water runoff, Gross said.

"It's really the only resource out there," she said.

The Snohomish County Council will hold a public hearing on the assessment request at 10:30 a.m. Wed., July 1 in the Henry M. Jackson Board Room on the eighth floor of the Robert J. Drewel Building at 3000 Rockefeller Avenue in Everett. To confirm location, or for more information, call 425-388-3494.