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Lake Whatcom Cooperative Management Program Joint Meeting (Whatcom County Council, City of Bellingham Council, Lake Whatcom Water & Sewer District)

WHA-CON-SPC-2025-06-04 June 04, 2025 Committee of the Whole Whatcom County 117 min
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The Lake Whatcom Cooperative Management Program held its second annual joint meeting, bringing together representatives from three governing bodies responsible for protecting the region's primary drinking water source. The 117-minute session focused heavily on policy coordination, regulatory alignment, and emerging threats to water quality. Council Member Lisa Anderson drove much of the discussion with detailed questions about implementation gaps, wildfire preparedness, and enforcement mechanisms for existing watershed protections. The meeting revealed significant regulatory disparities between city and county development standards, with the county allowing 25% more phosphorus loading than city requirements. Staff presented a comprehensive comparison of land use regulations, highlighting the city's stricter 0.15 pounds per acre phosphorus limit versus the county's 0.1875 standard. Discussion also centered on the vulnerability of commercial forestry operations to state-only regulation, creating potential gaps in watershed protection. Climate resilience emerged as a major concern, particularly wildfire preparedness and the need for coordinated emergency response planning. Staff confirmed that while DNR has agreed not to use flame retardant in the Lake Whatcom watershed, much work remains on cross-training fire departments and stockpiling emergency response materials. The Lake Whatcom Policy Group's role and effectiveness came under scrutiny, with some members calling for it to become more of an active working group rather than an information-sharing forum. Several major projects received updates, including the aquatic invasive species rapid response plan, which revealed the significant resources needed for containment should zebra or quagga mussels be detected. The forest management planning process continues across 13,000 acres of publicly-owned watershed land, with public tours scheduled for June and July.

No formal votes were taken during this discussion-focused meeting. However, several key commitments and next steps emerged: **Whatcom County committed to assessing resources** needed for enhanced code analysis comparing city and county development regulations, with potential presentation during mid-biennial budget review. **Staff agreed to continue** monthly environmental DNA and plankton sampling for invasive species monitoring as part of the rapid response planning effort. **Lake Whatcom Policy Group** will consider comprehensive plan dis…

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**Regulatory Alignment Between Jurisdictions** dominated much of the policy discussion. Staff presented detailed comparisons showing the county allows 0.1875 pounds per acre of phosphorus loading versus the city's 0.15 limit—a 25% difference that stemmed from 2013 county council deliberations responding to building industry concerns about costs. Council members questioned whether this disparity undermines coordinated watershed protection and called for analysis of what cost increases would result from aligning standards. **State Forestry Regulation Gaps** emerged as a significant concern. While county and city development faces strict phosphorus limits and seasonal restrictions, commercial forestry operations on private land follow only statewide regulations with minimal watershed-specific protections. DNR lands have somewhat stronger protections through a landscape plan, but this doesn't extend to private forestry. Multiple council members suggested this creates an inequitable two-tier system and called for potential legislative action. **Senate Bill 5471 and Middle Housing** introduced new complexities. This recently-passed legislation could allow up to four units per lot in…
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**Council Member Lisa Anderson** (Bellingham) emerged as the primary questioner, focusing on implementation gaps in existing programs. She expressed concerns about long-term follow-up on private stormwater systems, inadequate inspection of private boat launch areas, and wildfire preparedness. Anderson advocated for cross-training fire departments with DNR and pre-stockpiling emergency response materials, drawing on her previous forest service experience. **Council Member Kaylee Galloway** (Whatcom County) served as meeting chair and pushed for the Lake Whatcom Policy Group to become more of an active working group rather than an information-sharing forum. She advocated for comprehensive plan discussions through a watershed lens and suggested the group could drive actual policy development. **Council Member Todd Donovan** (Whatcom County) focused on cost-benefit analysis of regulatory differences…
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**Council Member Lisa Anderson, on wildfire preparedness:** "I just kind of feel like we might be on our heels a little bit and not on our toes over the next few years... What happens if, you know, Eastern Washington is burning down and we don't have DNR to come and deal with it and we lose, you know, the bowl and then, you know, again, all of that runoff is going to hit the lake and everything we've done is going to be for not in the in the long term." **Council Member Anderson, on cross-trai…
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**Forest Management Tours** are scheduled for June 18th and July 16th, with public registration available through the Engage Bellingham website. A recreation stakeholder meeting is planned for the day after this meeting. **Draft Forest Management Plan** is expected in August 2026, covering 13,000 acres of city and county-owned land in the watershed. **Lake Whatcom Policy Group meeting** scheduled for December will potentially include comprehensive plan discussions through a watershed protection lens, focusing on land use and housing chapters expected before county council in October. **Aquatic Invasive Species Rapid Respons…

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**Retirement of Renee LeClair** was announced, with Jason Porter becoming the primary point of contact for the Lake Whatcom Management Program, supported by Mike Pirscalin and Morgan Ruff. **Monthly invasive species monitoring** will begin, including environmental DNA and plankton sampling, as part of enhanced surveillance efforts. **Gates at Blue Canyon boat launch** will be installed in coming weeks, though full implementation will wait until fall when seasonal inspectors are …
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## Meeting Overview On a warm June afternoon, elected officials from across Whatcom County gathered for the second part of the Lake Whatcom Cooperative Management Program's annual joint meeting. The hybrid session, held at the Pacific Street Operations Center, brought together five Whatcom County Council members, three City of Bellingham Council members, and two Lake Whatcom Water and Sewer District commissioners for nearly two hours of detailed discussion about protecting the region's primary drinking water source. Council Member Kaylee Galloway of Whatcom County chaired the meeting, which was designed as a follow-up to an April presentation that had left many officials with unanswered questions. This time, they came prepared with submitted questions and a desire for deeper dialogue about coordination between jurisdictions, regulatory gaps, and emerging challenges like wildfire response and invasive species management. The meeting represented a unique convergence of policy makers who rarely sit together in one room, yet collectively oversee the management of Lake Whatcom's 21,600-acre watershed - the source of drinking water for more than 85,000 people in Bellingham and surrounding areas. ## Lake Whatcom Management Program Implementation Discussion Council Member Lisa Anderson of Bellingham opened the substantive discussion by acknowledging a fundamental imbalance: while the city has shouldered much of the lake protection work over the past decade, including property acquisition funded by dedicated revenue sources, the city's jurisdiction covers only a small fraction of the watershed. "One of my concerns though is that the amount of area that really is in the city's jurisdiction is a very small part overall of the lake," Anderson noted, pressing county partners about their plans for increased land acquisition or enhanced resident engagement programs. The conversation quickly turned to enforcement gaps that had emerged in recent reports. Anderson raised concerns about long-term follow-up on stormwater systems installed as part of development permits. "It seems by looking at the report that there might not necessarily be long-term follow-up where if people are now parking on those drain fields or you know perhaps moved a small shed or something that might impede the good work that's supposed to be happening with those on-site facilities," she said. Staff acknowledged that inspections occur primarily through field observations by staff already fam…
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### Meeting Overview The Whatcom County Council held a special meeting on Wednesday, June 4, 2025, as part of the Lake Whatcom Cooperative Management Program's joint councils and commissioners meeting. The meeting brought together representatives from Whatcom County, City of Bellingham, and Lake Whatcom Water and Sewer District to discuss the five-year Lake Whatcom Management Plan and coordinate land use regulations across jurisdictions to protect the region's drinking water supply. ### Key Terms and Concepts **Lake Whatcom Management Program:** A cooperative effort between Whatcom County, City of Bellingham, and Lake Whatcom Water and Sewer District to protect water quality in Lake Whatcom, which serves as the primary drinking water source for the region. **TMDL (Total Maximum Daily Load):** An EPA-required calculation of the maximum amount of pollutants, particularly phosphorus, that Lake Whatcom can receive while maintaining water quality standards. **Phosphorus Loading Limitations:** Development regulations that limit how much phosphorus runoff can come from new development, with the city requiring 0.15 pounds per acre per year (forested condition) and the county allowing 0.1875 pounds per acre per year. **Aquatic Invasive Species (AIS):** Non-native species like zebra mussels and quagga mussels that could devastate Lake Whatcom's ecosystem and clog water intake pipes, requiring inspection programs for boats entering the lake. **R5A Zoning:** Rural zoning that allows one dwelling unit per five acres, implemented by Whatcom County in 2002 as a downzoning effort to reduce development density in the Lake Whatcom watershed. **Homeowner Incentive Program (HIP):** Voluntary programs that provide funding to property owners to remove lawns and replace them with native vegetation and stormwater management systems. **Forest Practice Applications:** State-regulated logging permits that apply to commercial forestry in the watershed, with limited local government oversight despite potential water quality impacts. **Seasonal Clearing Restrictions:** Prohibition on land disturbance from October 1 to May 31 to protect water quality during the rainy season. ### Key People at This Meeting | Name | Role / Affiliation | |---|---| | Kaylee Galloway | Whatcom County Council Member, Meeting Chair | | Lisa Anderson | Bellingham City…
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Environmental Government Operations SB 5471 Bellingham City Council Building Industry Association Department Emergency Management Department Natural Resources Lake Whatcom Policy Group Lake Whatcom Water Sewer District Northwest Natural Resource Group Sudden Valley Community Association Whatcom County Council Ali Penucci Ben Knox Gary Smith Jason Porter Kathy Caraver Kaylee Galloway Lisa Anderson Michael Lilloquist Mike Pirscalin Morgan Ruff Renee Leclair Steve Sundy Todd Donovan Aquatic Invasive Species Climate Vulnerability Commercial Forestry Comprehensive Plan Development Regulations Emergency Planning Forest Management Intergovernmental Coordination Lake Whatcom Watershed Land Use Policy Middle Housing Phosphorus Loading Stormwater Management Water Quality Protection Wildfire Preparedness