Re: Your editorial “Farmers right to be skeptical of being made whole.”

Thousands of small family forest owners have “been there — done that” so we agree our brothers and sisters in the farm community have every right, in fact an obligation to themselves and their heirs, to be extremely “skeptical” of any promises of “making them whole.”

In 1999 we were lulled into supporting a doubling and tripling of our streamside buffers on the promise of being made at least 50% whole — we are still waiting!

There was a finding of “disproportionate impact” in the required Small Business Economic Impact Statement that resulted in several legislatively mandated mitigations that we were reluctantly OK with — some of which actually happened for a short while before disappearing due to: budget cuts, lost institutional memory and general lack of respect and appreciation for what we contribute to public and critter good — and respect for the deal that got our legislative support.

In hindsight we were simply too naive and trusting of verbal and vaguely written statutes.

We now have additional “disproportionate impacts” because we must return to the Legislature and the regulators to lobby each year for what they committed to but haven’t been able to deliver — totally crazy!

We also suffer from an intractable bureaucracy that seems to want ever more “free” environmental benefits — our “give” in 1999 simply seems to have become the new starting point for more “take.”

We’ve provided multiple, peer-reviewed science proposals that would return some of our 50-year crops without reducing the stream functions for the critters we all care about. But once the regulatory bell has rung it’s near impossible to un-ring that bell — even when it’s to the environment’s long-term benefit.

I’m not doubting the sincerity of those making bold promises to keep you whole — most folks do mean well. The devil is in the detail, and unless supported by significant irrevocable financial bonds most promises won’t/can’t be kept over the lifetime of your farms.

I’d be eager to share more of our story with those of you tempted to give even more of your property rights, if only to help you avoid some of the pitfalls overly trusting small family forest owners have suffered the last 21 years.

Ken Miller

Past President, Washington Farm Forestry Association

kenbonniemiller@gmail.com

Olympia, Wash.