The board of the Southwest Hills Neighborhood Association, SHiNA, voted (7-0) July 6 to oppose EWEB’s proposed 40th and Patterson water project until and only if EWEB can better demonstrate need: need to build two massive reservoirs rather than one, need to clear cut more than two acres mature Eugene forest.
But the front page Register-Guard story 7/18 and an EW letter 7/22 have disparaged close-by neighbors as “NIMBYs” who oppose the larger public good. Our SHiNA neighborhood, I point out, is more than a mile from the proposed project. The site is not in our visual backyard, traffic backyard, etc.
The emerald city Eugene, however, is suffering death from a thousand cuts to backyard forests.
The grove of large conifer trees in question, about 60 percent water by weight, sequesters carbon and counters climate change. The grove helps cool all of Eugene on hot days, helps clean the air of pollutants, retards the fast spread of wildfire, as well as contributing other civic values including aesthetic value and wildlife habitat, notably for Monarch butterflies.
The Eugene Climate Ordinance and Climate Action Plan — CAP2.0 — calls for 30 percent minimum forest canopy. But Eugene is less than 21 percent, going backward as one small woodlot after another is cut for housing, roads, utilities, better living room views.
Councilor Emily Semple and Councilor Matt Keating have proposed a stronger Eugene tree protection ordinance, an important step to protect our trees.
Ralph McDonald
SHiNA Co-Chair
Eugene
A Note From the Publisher
Dear Readers,
The last two years have been some of the hardest in Eugene Weekly’s 43 years. There were moments when keeping the paper alive felt uncertain. And yet, here we are — still publishing, still investigating, still showing up every week.
That’s because of you!
Not just because of financial support (though that matters enormously), but because of the emails, notes, conversations, encouragement and ideas you shared along the way. You reminded us why this paper exists and who it’s for.
Listening to readers has always been at the heart of Eugene Weekly. This year, that meant launching our popular weekly Activist Alert column, after many of you told us there was no single, reliable place to find information about rallies, meetings and ways to get involved. You asked. We responded.
We’ve also continued to deepen the coverage that sets Eugene Weekly apart, including our in-depth reporting on local real estate development through Bricks & Mortar — digging into what’s being built, who’s behind it and how those decisions shape our community.
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None of this happens by accident. It happens because readers step up and say: this matters.
As we head into a new year, please consider supporting Eugene Weekly if you’re able. Every dollar helps keep us digging, questioning, celebrating — and yes, occasionally annoying exactly the right people. We consider that a public service.
Thank you for standing with us!
Publisher
Eugene Weekly
P.S. If you’d like to talk about supporting EW, I’d love to hear from you!
jody@eugeneweekly.com
(541) 484-0519
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