These beautiful trees are part of a symmetrical planting that greatly beautifies the neighborhood. Our tax dollars should not be wasted on cutting down or moving healthy, beautiful trees and then re-planting new ones! An appeal of the tree removal will be heard at Miami City Hall in Coconut Grove on Thursday, January 28, 2016, exact time unknown but certainly after 3 pm; it is agenda item number 19.

For months, a gas leak at SoCalGas’s Aliso Canyon storage facility has been spewing 1,200 TONS of methane gas into the air in Los Angeles’ Porter Ranch neighborhood every day. The gas leak is emitting as much global-warming pollution as six coal-burning power plants and seven million cars.(1) Local residents are suffering from nosebleeds, migraines, and dizziness.(2) Pet dogs, cats, and fish are dropping dead.(3) Now so much gas has leaked that the authorities are warning that one small spark could cause a massive explosion.(4) And SoCalGas just got caught lying to the public about the amount of cancer-causing benzene that's leaking into the environment.(5) This is being called the worst environmental disaster since the BP oil spill, yet SoCalGas just abandoned their plans to stop the leak, and local officials are still scrambling to figure out what to do.(6) Our national authorities must step in now before it’s too late! 1. http://www.marketplace.org/2015/12/14/world/gas-leak-0 2. http://www.nytimes.com/2016/01/07/us/california-governor-declares-emergency-over-los-angeles-gas-leak.html?_r=0 3. http://www.dailynews.com/social-affairs/20160116/pet-deaths-illnesses-evoke-concern-amid-porter-ranch-gas-leak 4. http://www.readingeagle.com/ap/article/explosion-risk-stalls-plan-to-capture-and-burn-gas-from-porter-ranch-leak 5. https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2016/01/15/an-oversight-calif-utility-understated-levels-of-cancer-causing-chemical-in-l-a-gas-leak/ 6. http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-porter-ranch-leak-stopped-late-february-20160118-story.html

Please help get wood stoves and furnaces banned. Stop the burning of wood. Wood smoke pollutes the air. The particulates from wood smoke and soot get trapped deep in the lungs. The smoke can make asthma, bronchitis, emphysema, and other lung issues worse. It can also raise the risk of heart diseases, stroke, and death. Wood smoke is 12 times more toxic than second hand cigarette smoke. We should not be forced to breath in wood smoke. There are at least 10 to 12 homes in my neighborhood that burn wood in the winter. The whole area is covered with this smoke. I am a prisoner in my own home all winter long. No one can go out side without being forced to breath in this smoke. I do not want to be forced to breath in some one else's pollution. We need to start helping the environment on both the small and large scales. This toxic health hazard has to stop. We need to get burning wood for heat banned. Montreal and another city already have made it illegal and New York City and San Fransisco have banned new wood burners and are phasing out the old ones. Please stop the wood smoke pollution and poisoning.

Courthouse Annex Building, Room #B102, 1 N.E. 6th St. Coupeville, WA SAVE THE WONN ROAD PUBLIC BEACH ACCESS Why you should be concerned: Wonn Road has been a public access to the water for over 100 years. In 1944, when Greenbank Beach was plotted, the road was dedicated to the public forever. In 2008, the Montgomerys, owners of the lots on either side of the road, built a stone wall across the road, claiming the land at the end of the road was theirs. In 2013, the County sued the Montgomerys to remove the wall. Island Beach Access (IBA), an all volunteer, grassroots organization, joined the lawsuit soon after. In response to the lawsuit, the Montgomerys have provided no evidence, documents or surveys that show they own the land between the wall and the tidelands. On Friday, January 8, the County revealed that they are considering a settlement with the Montgomerys. The settlement was negotiated between the County and the Montgomerys, without the knowledge or participation of IBA. The settlement would close the Wonn Road access at the wall for the rest of the Montgomerys' lives. Those in favor of settling say that the access will return to the County after both Montgomerys are dead, perhaps 30 or more years from now. The County Commissioners will be deciding whether or not to accept this settlement at their meeting on Tuesday, January 26. THERE IS STILL TIME TO MAKE YOUR VOICE HEARD: Sign the Request to the Commissioners. Write or call your Commissioner. Let your friends and neighbors know about this egregious taking of public lands. From Commissioner Helen Price-Johnson: PROPOSAL DOCUMENTS CHANGED This message is to give you the latest information on the important public beach access issue before the Commissioners on Tuesday. There have been changes made to a settlement offer. Here is a link to the new document being considered. Public beach access is a high priority for me. My position has been consistent since 2008. I promised to fight to preserve Wonn Road for all citizens. I don't support this proposal because I think it conflicts with state law, sets a terrible precedent, and more. Montgomerys' settlement offer drops alternative properties At Tuesday's Board of County Commissioners' meeting at 11 am, Prosecutor Greg Banks will be back to present his edited version of a settlement agreement on the beach access at Wonn Road. In exchange for $50,000 for beach park improvements, a beachfront lot at Ledgewood Beach and a release of public records requests, the Montgomerys gain title to the 40 foot strip of uplands and tidelands next to their vacation home for the rest of their lives, or if sometime during the next 10 years a majority of the Island County Commissioners accept an alternative property in exchange. Also in the agreement is a "gag order" of sorts restricting any employee or elected official from "directly or indirectly" assisting in a future legal action. The four listed properties in the previous version of the proposal have been deleted. There are criteria suggested in an attached resolution, but it is important to note that the document is not legally binding to a future decision. This all began in 2008 when the Montgomerys built a stone wall across the end of Wonn Rd. cutting off historic public access to the beach near Greenbank Farm, claiming it was their private property. In 2009 the (then) Board of Commissioners voted to defend the public's right to beach access at a county road end terminating at the shoreline as per state law (RCW 36.87.130). A group of local citizens organized as Island County Beach Access (IBA) joined the County in the effort and began doing extensive research in support of the County's action. The Prosecutor's office finally filed the lawsuit in 2013, adding tidelands access to the suit, and IBA was given permission by the court to join in the action. IBA also argued that historic prescriptive easement should preserve public use at this beach property, even if the quiet title action is unsuccessful. In August 2014, Montgomery, IBA, the Prosecutor and Commissioner Jill Johnson met with a mediator to seek a resolution to the dispute. The Prosecutor negotiated a settlement agreement without IBA's involvement, and against my objection. When it was revealed, IBA urged the Commissioners to delay action until a thorough legal analysis can be done on the offer. The Prosecutor refused this request and so a restraining order has been requested from the Court. That hearing is scheduled for Friday, January 29, 2016. It is my belief that this proposed settlement conflicts with the state law noted above, does not resolve the issue of prescriptive easement, restricts First Amendment rights of those covered by the "No Assistance" section (2.g) and exposes the County to future litigation. The proposal is on the Tuesday, January 26 agenda, scheduled for 11 am public comment. Many constituents have already expressed concern about the proposal. Emails and phone calls, even an online petition of over 500 signatures opposing the settlement show the overwhelming public support for having the court decide this issue. Your input is welcome too. Island County Commissioner Helen Price Johnson (360) 679-7353 [email protected] www.islandcounty.net

A climate disaster is unfolding in Aliso Canyon near Los Angeles. A monstrous methane leak from a SoCal Gas Co. facility that was first detected in October has now spilled more than 84,000 metric tons of methane into our atmosphere, the equivalent of burning 800 million gallons of gasoline. Methane is more than 80 times more potent as a greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide over two decades. It is the largest methane leak in U.S. history. More than 2,500 residents of the adjacent Porter Ranch community have been forced from their homes, and two schools have shut down. Children and other residents were exposed to high levels of benzene, and have suffered headaches, nausea, and nosebleeds. While Governor Brown has declared a state of emergency, and crews are working to stop the outpouring, stronger action is needed now to make sure this disaster is never repeated. Please sign the petition to ask Governor Brown to use his authority to shut down and decommission the Aliso Canyon Natural Gas Storage Facility.

A behind-­‐the-­‐scenes effort to terminate Dr. Charles Lester, Executive Director of the California Coastal Commission has just come to light. The attack on Executive Director Lester is an attack on the Coastal Act itself. This power grab is an attempt to undermine the Coastal Program, gain control over an independent staff, and make the Commission more developer-friendly without any public accountability or transparency. Ironically, this comes at a time when Director Lester has gained major accomplishments for the protection of the CA coast.

I work in Yellowstone National Park, where we had over 4 million visitors in 2015 and expect the numbers to rise in 2016 with the park's 100th anniversary. The majority of these visitors come to view the geysers and the wildlife - particularly to witness a grey wolf and/or a grizzly bear. WY needs to protect its wildlife - it is one of the main industries in this state, and it is part of what makes WY spectacular to visit. Local law enforcement is crucial for this protection. It would be wildly irresponsible for the legislature to put arguments with the federal government ahead of its responsibility to protect invaluable state resources.

Wildlife is part of what makes Wyoming great. If the bill introduced last week passes, it will take away a necessary layer of wildlife protection by stripping the state's Game and Fish and law enforcement's involvement in the investigation or prosecution of poaching. Without this level of protection, the hunting rights and abilities of all Wyomingites would be negatively affected.

One of our crucial wild pollinators -- the rusty-patch bumblebee -- is on the brink of extinction. This is yet another example of our overuse of bee-killing neonicotinoid pesticides wiping out pollinators essential for our food and broader ecosystems. The rusty-patch bumblebee needs our help before it’s too late! Sign the petition to protect the rusty-patch bumblebee under the Endangered Species Act!

Dr. Jonathan Lundgren, a senior scientist at the USDA, produced research that questioned the safety of bee-killing neonicotinoid pesticides -- a leading driver of global bee declines. But the USDA is trying to bury those findings. We need your help to send the message that this is unacceptable! Tell the USDA to stop putting pesticide industry profits ahead of bees and butterflies!

No bees means no food. One in three forkfuls of food has been pollinated by bees. With bee colonies dying off, our food system is threatened.

What's happening in Flint, Michigan, is disastrous—and it's personal for me: Flint is my hometown and the community at the forefront of my first major documentary film "Roger & Me." Gov. Synder violated the Environmental Protection Agency’s regulations by cutting off clean drinking water to the city of Flint—impacting more than 100,000 people. Instead of safe, clean drinking water, the people of Flint had polluted water piped into their homes from the Flint River—water that was then contaminated with lead. He said he did this to "cut costs". He knew he could get away with it because Flint is one of the poorest towns in the country. There is no way to totally reverse the effects of lead in a child’s blood stream. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there is no safe blood level of lead for children. The children of Flint, already among the poorest in the U.S., will now have to endure a life of pain, irreversible brain damage, and lower IQs because of Gov. Snyder’s actions and the ensuing cover up. Justice must be served—and other elected officials must be put on notice that people’s lives are more important than balancing a budget.