The Dabob Bay Natural Resource Conservation Area will grow by 3,393 acres under an executive order from commissioner of public lands Peter Goldmark. (Peninsula Daily News)

The Dabob Bay Natural Resource Conservation Area will grow by 3,393 acres under an executive order from commissioner of public lands Peter Goldmark. (Peninsula Daily News)

State order protects nearly 4,000 more acres of Dabob Bay

OLYMPIA – The outgoing commissioner of public lands has added nearly 4,000 acres to the Dabob Bay Natural Resource Conservation Area.

Peter Goldmark signed on Thursday an executive order to expand the Dabob area by 3,393 acres.

The order conserves mature coastal forests, streams, fish-spawning areas, eelgrass beds, native Olympia oyster beds and nearshore tidelands.

“The site helps protect open marine waters essential to the survival of salmon, marine birds, harbor seals and orcas,” the state Department of Natural Resources said in a news release.

Outstanding values

“Dabob Bay is part of Hood Canal and the greater Puget Sound ecosystem, and has been evaluated as possessing outstanding ecological and scenic values, which is a requirement for NRCA designation.”

Goldmark, who has served as commissioner of public lands since 2009, opted not to seek another term in the Nov. 8 general election. Fellow Democrat Hilary Franz won the post and will take office in January.

Goldmark also signed an order to expand the West Tiger Mountain Natural Resource Conservation Area in the central Cascades by 97 acres.

The two orders add about 3,500 acres to the state’s 118,700 acres of natural resource conservation areas.

Years of research

“These decisions are the culmination of years of research and consultation,” said Goldmark, who directs DNR.

“With the strong support of local communities, conservation groups, tribes, the U.S. Navy and other partners, we can now preserve these unique natural areas for present and future generations of Washingtonians.”

Earlier in the month, Goldmark also authorized the expansion from 80 to 495 acres of the Devils Lake conservation area, which protects additional forest shoreline habitat near Quilcene Bay on Hood Canal.

Expansions are done through trust land transfers, which help fund public schools and improve returns to trust beneficiaries, according to the DNR.

DNR uses the land value of the transferred property to acquire new land that can be managed for greater returns, agency officials said.

Peter Goldmark

Peter Goldmark

More in News

Matthew Nash / Olympic Peninsula News Group
Rick Godfrey stands with his Boy Scouts of America achievements on his office’s wall, including his merit badges and Troop 490 photos. In 1950, he was the youngest scout in the state to earn his Eagle Scout, the highest rank in scouting. The troop celebrated 100 years at a special dinner on Saturday at the Sequim Masonic Lodge.
Sequim troop celebrates centennial with dinner

Scout organization began in 1925 in a Sunday school class

Jefferson County board takes on transportation benefit district

Tax, license fee expected to bring in $1 million

Clallam County commissioners discuss reservoir design

Consensus reached on two-cell option

Firefighters respond to a house fire at West Sixth Street and Cherry Street on Friday in Port Angeles. (Port Angeles Fire Department)
Home destroyed in Port Angeles house fire

Residents escaped a house fire at West Sixth Street… Continue reading

Five workshops to repair broken items set this spring

JeffCo Repair will sponsor five workshops where fixers will… Continue reading

Kathy Cruz/Olympic Peninsula News Group
Mary Montgomery-Crumley dishes up helpings of salad at “Soup’s On.” Lunch also included a biscuit, two versions of minestrone soup, one vegetarian, one with chicken, and chocolate chip butterscotch bars.
‘Soup’s On’ free lunch at St. Luke’s draws varied crowd of helpers, diners

Melissa, a member of Sequim’s Friends Together, a group that… Continue reading

At a recent site visit, North Olympic Library System Facilities Manager Brian Phillips and SHKS Architect Pia Westen examine construction progress at the Sequim Library as it’s being renovated and expanded. NOLS leaders anticipate reopening the facility in June. (North Olympic Library System)
Sequim library may open in June

Fall campaign brings in more than $500K in donations

Mike Speer of Bonney Lake, the brother of Sherry Nagel, a former board member of the YMCA of the Olympic Peninsula, cuts a ceremonial ribbon on Jan. 28 courtesy of the Sequim-Dungeness Valley Chamber of Commerce to commemorate a new bus that Nagel’s estate helped fund. The bus is dedicated in Nagel’s honor. (Matthew Nash/Olympic Peninsula News Group)
YMCA honors late board member with new bus

Sherry Nagel’s estate, Forest Foundation provide funds

Immigration fears hit Olympic Peninsula

Law enforcement agencies won’t deport individuals

Local immigrants worry about federal orders

As President Donald Trump steps into office and reports… Continue reading

Jefferson commissioners to discuss sheriff appointment

Three candidates named by Jefferson County Democrats

Eric Spencer, a landscaping and janitorial worker for New Life Open Bible Church, clears snow from a sidewalk next to the church at Sixth and Peabody streets in Port Angeles on Thursday morning. (Keith Thorpe/Peninsula Daily News)
After snowfall, cold temperatures expected today

Morning commutes could continue to be icy, weather service says