By JEROMY SULLIVAN

The Port Gamble S’Klallam Tribe has joined with groups including Kitsap Citizens for Responsible Planning Futurewise and the Hood Canal Environmental Council to oppose the development component of the North Kitsap Legacy Project.

To understand why we oppose the NKLP, you must first know that fishing is in the blood of our community. Grandparents, parents, and aunts and uncles pass down this legacy. Tribal members depend on the fish and shellfish from Port Gamble Bay for sustenance—whether that means a paycheck or simply putting food on the dinner table.

We stand with other groups who object to the NKLP development, but our interests are far more personal. While we support public trails and open space, in this case, Port Gamble Bay is being asked to shoulder an unreasonable burden of targeted development. Without a healthy bay, our people won’t be able to practice our traditions or harvest and eat the food that helps define who we are.

Our connection to Port Gamble Bay and our need to protect it drives nearly every decision we make. Because of this, there are several points we cannot compromise on:

• We must restore Port Gamble Bay. There is an ongoing effort to assemble a cleanup plan for Port Gamble Bay. This is being done under a state process called the Model Toxics Control Act and the focus is on cleaning up the contamination from the Pope & Talbot sawmill, which operated from 1853 to 1995. We have been working in conjunction with the state and private companies on this endeavor and can’t jeopardize our progress. Our efforts include the recovery of habitats and species—such as Hood Canal summer chum, Puget Sound Chinook salmon, and marbled murrelet— protected under the Endangered Species Act.

• We must protect Port Gamble Bay from shellfish closure zones. The state’s department of Health regularly tests for toxins in Port Gamble Bay waters and within its shellfish. When levels spike, areas of the Bay are closed to shellfish harvesting, causing serious challenges for our people. Commercial harvest shuts down and tribal families lose income as well as a source of daily nutrition. Closure zones and further pollution put our people in the untenable position of eating what they know could harm them or not eating at all. Over the years, there have been several shellfish closure zones throughout Port Gamble Bay. Some have reopened after conditions stabilized; others—like the western shoreline of the Bay (closed since 2003)—may never be safe again without restoration efforts.

• We must preserve the S’Klallam legacy at Port Gamble. Our village once stood where the town of Port Gamble is today. We were moved to Point Julia to make room for industry and development. We want to recover the pieces of our past that are buried at Port Gamble. Developing a city on top of our history and ancestors is unacceptable.

• We must preserve Port Gamble Bay for future generations. The Tribe takes the long view and will continue to work towards preserving the Bay and its resources for all future generations.We agree that public trails and open space are important for Kitsap County. We believe they are possible without environmental sacrifice and we’re committed to working with the Kitsap community on a solution.
Port Gamble Bay isn’t just our home. It’s a part of who we are. It has given us sustenance and protection. We want to return the favor.

Jeromy Sullivan is chairman of the Port Gamble S’Klallam Tribe.