Politics and Policy in a Watershed*

Our discussion can adapt to class interests and background. Here are some things you may find useful.

Here is a web page of sources of policy-relevant information, everything from population and economics to planning processes and maps. You should familiarize yourself with what is available.

Here is a conceptual outline of the politics of a watershed.

Here are some notes for a discussion about political influence, including some comments added by earlier classes.

We will say about few things about legislatures.

Perhaps it will be useful to study interest groups.

Some interest groups active in Washington are:

· The Washington Environmental Council seeks to educate the state and its leaders about environmental issues. It is an umbrella group for many environmental groups in Washington.

· The Environmental Priorities Coalition, a joint project of almost all the major environmental groups with a presence in our state.

· People for Puget Sound

· Environment Washington is part of a larger group, Environment America. Their January 2009 report, Clean Energy, Bright Future, is an example of a policy argument supported by claims of specific environmental, economic, and other benefits.

· The Clover Creek Council does not, at last report, keep a website. They are not difficult to contact, and their presence are felt in the records of projects completed on Clover Creek. Here is one example of a project they were involved with.

*This page was originally put together for ENVT 350, and draws on material from that course and from POLS 346.

©Sid Olufs, 2012.