December marked a victory for our Southern Resident Orca whales under the Endangered Species Act, a state commitment of emergency funds from Governor Locke to identify and reduce human contributions of pollution to the Hood Canal, the departure of an untiring advocate for the environment in Poulsbo City Council, and local representation on the state Puget Sound Council.

Jackie Aitchison’s multifarious contributions to the region were celebrated by the many people who rose to speak on her behalf, placed flowers before her, and presented a plaque commemorating her service from 1992-2003 during the Dec. 17 council meeting… her last. It read, “In appreciation of your outstanding leadership and service to the citizens of Poulsbo...To leave the world a bit better, whether by a healthy child, a garden patch... this is to have succeeded. – Emerson.”

In addition, an outdoor sign will be erected at Poulsbo’s Nelson Park within a grove of trees that reads, “These Trees Were Donated to Honor Jackie Aitchison, City Council Member 1992-2003” as a living tribute.

Many constituents, community members, fellow council member Kathryn Quade, long-time friends, previous council mates — Chris Endresen and Sherry Appleton, sister and fellow master gardener Peg Tillery, environmental groups such as the Kitsap Trees, Liberty Bay Foundation and Bight of Poulsbo contributed to the awards and accolades.

Having been labeled everything from the “conscience of the council” to the voice of reason on smart growth or low impact development strategies embraced by local developers, Aitchison was instrumental in both the economic success and environmental protection of the region.

“I believe that for many years there has been a disconnect between the value of our urban forests and the condition of our water. They are each integral to our quality of life and enhance a property’s value, progress can be measured by how we achieve this,” Aitchison said.

Now, in its seventh year, the “Poulsbo Tree Board” had its beginnings when Aitchison garnered support from stakeholders and others who cared about urban forests to investigate ways the city could plan and preserve our trees as the city grew.

She was instrumental in the expansion and development of park systems when she convinced the city to take over the North Kitsap Parks & Recreation District nine years ago and create a department to fulfill the need.

Aitchison supported the Marine Science Society in earlier years and was on the project development team for the DOE-EPA funded “Nearshore Habitat Evaluation & Enhancement Project” by the Liberty Bay Foundation/Lemolo Citizens Club where she continues to be involved in project management, educational outreach and volunteer coordination.

The governor appointed Aitchison to the Puget Sound Council in 2000. There she has served as the state’s sole representation for cities collaborating with and overseeing the actions of the Puget Sound Action Team. There she had the opportunity to work side-by-side with scientists, stakeholders, and legislators in matters affecting the Puget Sound environment, protection of water quality, marine life, salmon and our resident Orca whale population.

On Dec. 17, U.S. District Court Judge Robert H. Lasnik, overturned the National Marine Fisheries Service’s (NMFS) decision that the Southern Resident Killer Whales are “not significant,” vindicating a legal challenge filed last summer by a coalition of environmental groups. Not surprisingly, Orca advocates applauded the ruling.

“We always knew we were doing the right thing, but being on the right side of a legal argument doesn’t always mean you win the day. But today we did,” said former five-term Secretary of State Ralph Munro, and one of the plaintiffs in this action. “And now we know that we can truly give these Orcas every possible chance to survive, and to work these waters as they have for thousands of years.”

“In the end, history will judge us by what we did to preserve the diversity and sanctity of life throughout our corner of the world. We took this stand to ensure that this unique population of killer whales will still inhabit Puget Sound into the future,” said Earthjustice attorney Patti Goldman.

On Dec. 8, Gov. Gary Locke directed the Puget Sound Action Team to take immediate steps to address the significant low dissolved oxygen problems plaguing Hood Canal.

“To hear the words ‘dead sea’ associated with any of our state’s marine waters is shocking,” Locke said. “We must work to understand the Canal’s dynamics, identify the human contribution to the problem, and develop an action plan to address the issue. The fish are in no position to wait for these answers.”

The governor announced a grant of $25,000 from his emergency funds to the Action Team to better identify the human contributions to the Canal and to develop an action plan to reduce nutrient pollution. The Action Team will work on this assignment with the many federal, tribal, state and local groups already involved with the Hood Canal low-oxygen problems.

This will further complement the federally funded $350,000 USGS Study of Dissolved Oxygen through the support of Congressman Norm Dicks and Senator Patty Murray last month.

These funds will fuel efforts to determine causes, launch a public campaign to educate property owners on the effects of nutrients from lawns, leaking septic systems, sewers, seek more funding and begin to implement corrective actions.

The now 21 entities will partner across jurisdictions, tribal governments, partisan politics, and property lines in the interests of recovery… this in itself is the most promising end to an eventful year.