HomeMy WebLinkAboutClimate Action Jul 8 2025Whatcom County
Council Climate Action and Natural Resources Committee
COUNTY COURTHOUSE
311 Grand Avenue, Ste #105
Bellingham, WA 98225-4038
(360)778-5010
Committee Minutes - Final
Tuesday, July 8, 2025
12:05 PM
Hybrid Meeting - Council Chambers
HYBRID MEETING - MAY BEGIN EARLY - ADJOURNS BY 12:30 P.M.
(PARTICIPATE IN -PERSON, SEE REMOTE JOIN INSTRUCTIONS AT
www.whatcomcounty.us/joinvirtualcouncil, OR CALL 360.778.5010); AGENDA
REVISED 7.7.2025
COUNCILMEMBERS
Todd Donovan
Kaylee Galloway
Mark Stremler
CLERK OF THE COUNCIL
Cathy Halka, AICP, CMC
Council Climate Action and Natural Committee Minutes - Final July 8, 2025
Resources Committee
Call To Order
Roll Call
Committee Chair Kaylee Galloway called the meeting to order at 12:00
p.m. in a hybrid meeting.
Present: 3 - Todd Donovan, Kaylee Galloway, and Mark Stremler
Also Present: Barry Buchanan, Ben Elenbaas, and Jon Scanlon
Announcements
Special Presentation
1. AB2025-496 Presentation from Public Works staff regarding an overview of flood mitigation
projects completed since the 1999 Comprehensive Flood Hazard Management Plan
(CFHMP) was adopted and an update on the progress of the current CFHMP
Paula Harris, Public Works Department, read from a presentation (on file)
on several projects, including the Bertrand Creek levees, Lower Canyon
Creek restoration, Deming levee, DeBoer levee, Neevel levee, High Creek
sediment traps, Lynden levee, and the Jones Creek / Turkington Road
acquisitions and setback berm. She stated there will also be more projects
to come. She answered whether these projects and the Nooksack River
Sediment Management Plan from 2005 came out of or were recognized in
the 1999 study or whether they just evolved over time, and she spoke about
how each of them came to be and areas that were included in the study. She
answered whether there is any collaboration they can do to help ditch
districts with their sediment removal and deal with the water after it leaves
the river.
Elenbaas spoke about some of the issues the ditch districts are facing and
that ditches that were dug solely to drain the river have now been made into
habitat because of political will.
Scanlon spoke to Deputy Executive Pennucci and stated these are the
connections he would like to make as they are doing the Comprehensive
Plan update, and he would like to look at mitigation costs. He stated he
would like to see conversation between the experts in Public Works who do
this work and make these models and the Planning Department with their
work on the Comprehensive Plan.
Aly Pennucci, Executive's Office, stated she thinks that is what they are
trying to do. It is also the job of policymakers to hear all the different
"afcom County Page 1
Council Climate Action and Natural Committee Minutes - Final
Resources Committee
July 8, 2025
pieces and pull them all together to inform their decision about where to
place growth. She stated they are endeavoring to compile the information to
make it easier to see all the moving pieces and how that informs the
recommendations, where and how we grow, and what we need to do to
mitigate.
This agenda item was PRESENTED.
Items Added by Revision
Other Business
Adiournment
There were no agenda items added by revision.
There was no other business.
The meeting adjourned at 12:35 p.m.
ATTEST:
J .•�yHATc
• a'• 'r
9
Cathy Halka, Counal Clerk ;
STATE 0F.; .
WHATCOM COUNTY COUNCIL
WHATCOM COUNTY, WA
Kaylee Galloway -via email 7/24/2025
Kaylee Galloway, Committee Chair
Meeting Minutes prepared by Kristi Felbinger
Whalcom County Page 2