PORT ANGELES — Bill Peach has been endorsed by his fellow Clallam County commissioners to represent timber counties on the influential state Board of Natural Resources.
Peach, a retired forester from Forks, and Cowlitz County Commissioner Dennis Weber are vying to fill a seat being vacated by outgoing Clallam Commissioner Jim McEntire.
Commissioners Mike Chapman, Peach and McEntire voted for Peach as part of their consent agenda for Tuesday’s business meeting.
“Thanks very much for the support,” Peach told his colleagues.
McEntire was defeated in last month’s general election by Mark Ozias, who will be sworn in as a Clallam County commissioner Dec. 29.
McEntire had three years left on his term with the state Board of Natural Resources, a six-member panel that sets policies that govern how the state Department of Natural Resources manages its considerable resources.
“I just think it’s noteworthy that Clallam County is once again in the running here,” McEntire said in a Monday work session.
“I’m just glad that Bill has decided to step up, and he’s got my full support.”
93,000 acres
DNR manages about 93,000 acres of forest trust land for Clallam County, which is more than any other county.
“Dennis [Weber] is a great guy, but I do believe Bill has all of the requisite background that would have come in handy for me over the last year,” said McEntire, a retired Coast Guard captain.
“I would have had to do probably a little less homework. There’s not a whole lot of trees that grow at sea.”
Each timber county gets one vote for the county representative on the DNR board. County boards can vote as a unified panel or submit fractionalized votes as individual commissioners.
The unified vote from the Clallam County board was added to the consent agenda at Chapman’s request.
The election will be certified next Tuesday.
The Board of Natural Resources meets on the first Tuesday of the month in Olympia.
If Peach is elected, Chapman asked that he share information from DNR with county commissioners and those who attend their meetings, as McEntire has done regularly.
McEntire predicted that next year would be busy for the Board of Natural Resources.
The board is tasked with developing an update to a habitat conservation plan, considering new protections for the threatened marbled murrelet, setting the next decadal sustainable harvest calculation and working to reduce arrearage — timber that was earmarked for sale but wasn’t sold.
“Thanks for wanting to do it,” McEntire told Peach.
“It’s going to be a busy, busy year.”
Surplus vehicles
In other board action, commissioners Tuesday declared two sheriff’s office vehicles as surplus.
No public testimony was given before a unanimous vote to declare a 2001 Dodge Grand Sport passenger van and 1999 Ford box van as surplus.
The passenger van was seized by the Olympic Peninsula Narcotics Enforcement Team, and the box van was used by animal control and the Humane Society before it was decommissioned in 2008, county undersheriff Ron Cameron said.
The vehicles will be sold at auction on the Clallam County website, www.clallam.net.
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Reporter Rob Ollikainen can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 5072, or at rollikainen@peninsuladailynews.com.
