Drafter
Clerk 06/17/2010
Title
A MOTION requesting the department of natural resources and parks to study the potential of creating a local conservation authority as a tool for preserving open space including working landscapes.
Body
WHEREAS, the people of King County have embraced, as a central regional value, the opportunity for personal connection with the region's unique outdoor resources, open spaces, parks and working lands, through the availability of access to these resources, and
WHEREAS, the region's people also place strong emphasis on the availability of recreational opportunities and facilities that enhance physical and spiritual health, including both active and passive recreation, and
WHEREAS, the people of King County greatly value the special educational and interpretive benefits that parks and open spaces provide through creating habitat for fish and wildlife, and
WHEREAS, the people of the region have benefited greatly through access to locally produced, healthy food, as the result of regional initiatives directed toward the preservation of farmlands and the area's rich base of fertile soils, and
WHEREAS, the retention of working forests and working farms in proximity to urban communities can benefit both the communities and the working landscapes, as well as adding to the diversity and resilience of the regional economy, and
WHEREAS, urban communities with nearby working resource lands are benefited by the presence of local wood and agricultural resources, which can be provided to local markets more quickly following harvest, and with lesser transportation costs and lesser greenhouse gas outputs, and
WHEREAS, working resource lands also serve as "separator" landscapes, which provide functional undeveloped spaces between urban communities, helping to create distinct geographic urban identities, as well as contributing to the quality of the region's waters and to flood control and carbon sequestration needs, and
WHEREAS, local farm o...

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