The U.S. House of Representatives on Tuesday voted to protect a 14.3 mile stretch of Illabot Creek, a key tributary of Washington’s Skagit River, under the federal Wild and Scenic Rivers Act.
“Passing this bill brings us one big step closer to preserving vital wild habitat in Skagit County and keeps us on the path to recover of important salmon spawning water in the Pacific Northwest,” said Rep. Rick Larsen, D-Wash., who sponsored the legislation.
Larsen
Illabot Creek rises deep in the Glacier
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The U.S. House of Representatives on Tuesday voted to protect a 14.3 mile stretch of Illabot Creek, a key tributary of Washington’s Skagit River, under the federal Wild and Scenic Rivers Act.
“Passing this bill brings us one big step closer to preserving vital wild habitat in Skagit County and keeps us on the path to recover of important salmon spawning water in the Pacific Northwest,” said Rep. Rick Larsen, D-Wash., who sponsored the legislation.
Larsen
Illabot Creek rises deep in the Glacier Peak Wilderness Area, and falls from 7,500-foot Snowking Mountain to 500 feet above sea level where it flows into the “Magic Skagit.” Portions of the watershed were heavily logged in years past.
The creek provides spawning habitat for endangered Chinook salmon as well as steelhead and endangered bull trout.
The passage of protection legislation is “greats news for Skagit County,” said Skagit County Commissioner Sharon Dillon.
Companion legislation in the Senate, sponsored by Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., and backed by Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., has cleared the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee and awaits Senate floor passage.
Getting time on the Senate floor is, however, not always easy — even though Murray is part of the majority Democratic leadership.
In 2010, the House passed legislation to add the Pratt River, in eastern King County, to the Alpine Lakes Wilderness Area, and to protect the Middle Fork-Snoqualmie River under the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act.
The bill had bipartisan support — it was championed by Republican Rep. Dave Reichert — but died for lack of action by the Senate.