by ASHA LELA

Did you know that the Bureau of Land Management owns and manages more than 1000 acres in San Juan County?

BLM properties include historic lighthouses, small islands, forests and coastal prairies. They are among the most scenic and special places in the islands.

Though the BLM has been an excellent steward of these properties, managing them for conservation and preservation, over 600 of these acres do not have official conservation designation and could be used far more intensively. With increased use and pressure on these public lands their future is in question and we could lose important pieces of island history and some of the places that make our community so unique.

For example, Patos Island and its lighthouse is steeped in history, home to rare species, and has some of the most spectacular sunsets you’ve ever seen. Early Native Americans used the island as a shellfish harvesting and gardening site. Spanish explorers gave the island its present name in the late 1700s. After becoming part of the U.S., a fog signal building with a post light was constructed in 1893. A 38-foot tower, housing a fourth order Fresnel lens, was added in 1908. BLM undertook a total renovation of the structure in 2008. The light is still in operation today, aiding ships traveling through Boundary Pass.

Springtime visitors to Patos are treated to a glorious display of wildflowers, including abundant fawn lilies and orange Columbia lilies. Beyond the meadows, fern-filled wooded wetlands are only a few steps from dry forests and rocky outcrops. All throughout, the island abounds with songbirds, hummingbirds and nesting eagles. 

In 2007, Keepers of the Patos Light was formed with the goals of protecting and preserving the island and the lighthouse. In partnership with the BLM, Washington State Parks and Orcas Island Fire Department do beach cleanup, brush back the trails, maintain campsites, and help host special events and lighthouse tours.

As one can see, there has been a lot of local involvement in preserving this lighthouse. This local activity is welcomed by the BLM, but is only a small part of the picture. Currently the BLM deals with more than 60 entities in managing its various properties in the San Juans. To better coordinate its efforts, the BLM will be preparing a Resource Management Plan and looking at how to incorporate both Patos and Turn Point lighthouses as well as all of the 1,000 acres into a cohesive management system. This process will begin in May with public scoping meetings on several islands. The goal of these meetings is to familiarize islanders with these special places and ask for local perspective on appropriate management activities.

If islanders want these properties to remain as they are and to be managed for their natural and historical values, one option is to ask Congress to designate them as a National Conservation Area (NCA). A NCA designation would protect these areas in perpetuity, and help direct more funds toward restoring and maintaining them.

This is the first of a series of articles that will give a background of the significant landscapes owned by the BLM. Further discussion of the process and possibilities of NCA designation will also be explored.

Lopez resident Asha Lela is involved in the Shark Reef Sanctuary and Friends of Chadwick (Watmough, Pt. Colville, Iceberg Point, Chadwick Hill and wetlands).