SEQUIM — Pressured by rapid development, city leaders have decided to fly solo on an assessment of potential habitat for the Dungeness elk herd and other wildlife — a move some fear would wreck efforts toward a larger, regional plan for dealing with the elk.
The decision drew some criticism at a meeting about Sequim’s signature elk herd Thursday morning.
A representative of the state Department of Fish and Wildlife worried that an uncoordinated approach could have drastic results for a city that’s adopted the elk as a municipal mascot.
“I think it’s predisposed to fail because there is no link,” said wildlife biologist Jack Smith. “What you end up with is a disjunct plan that doesn’t serve the needs of the elk.
“It will force the state and the [Jamestown S’Klallam] tribe to develop another option, as co-managers of the herd, that eliminates elk from the city of Sequim.”
City officials, however, said they have little choice.
Development in the elk’s traditional range — inside and outside the Sequim city limit — is proceeding full-tilt. If the city is going to identify habitat and environmentally sensitive areas in time to use the information, it must be done sooner rather than later.
An update of the city’s comprehensive plan, which includes the environmental assessment, is also due by the end of the year.
“We just have to speed up the process for us because of the development issues,” said City Council member Patricia Kasovia-Schmitt.
Herd could grow by 25%
The herd of Roosevelt elk currently numbers around 70 animals, although that number is expected to grow by as much as 25 percent this year.
A map of their movements shows that the animals wander widely — from the Port Williams Road area and Sequim’s east side, to Happy Valley south of U.S. Highway 101 and west to the Dungeness River.
Fish and Wildlife, Sequim, Clallam County and the Jamestown tribe have been trying for some time to figure out what to do as more and more people build houses where the elk like to roam.
Ideas range from building a fence to keep the elk on nearby state lands, buying land and keeping it as open space, or relocating all or part of the herd.
Sequim plans to hire a consultant to identify environmentally important land within the city limit.
