West Hayden Island Audubon Conservation Presentation
West Hayden Island Presentation
7:00 PM
March 10, 2009
At Audubon Society of Portland
with Audubon Conservation Director, Bob Sallinger
West Hayden Island is one of Portland’s most important and most at-risk Greenspaces. This 826 acre-parcel includes critical habitat form listed salmon and steelhead, one of the largest, intact cottonwood gallery forests left on the Lower Columbia, and 39-acres of wetlands. It is an amazing place that most people don’t even know exists.
The Port of Portland is attempting to annex and rezone West Hayden Island to pave the way forward for marine industrial development tat would turn much of this natural area into parking lots. This is not the first time that they have tried to develop West Hayden Island. In 1999-2000 Audubon successfully fought a prior annexation/ rezoning attempt by the Port in which the Port was ultimately forced to admit that its economic and environmental analyses were flawed and it has not adequately explored alternative development sites. At the time the Business Journal Of Portland wrote:
“We are relieved to learn that the Port of Portland has decided to re-examine its West Hayden Island project. The Port wants to rend the island’s fragile environmental fabric so that marine cargo facilities…can be built there…We are not convinced it’s a good trade-off.”
Portland Business Journal Editorial—September 25th, 2000
Now the Port is back and their case for Marine Industrial Development on West Hayden Island is no stronger today than it was 9-years ago when they first withdrew their application.
Audubon Conservation Director has been actively involved in efforts to protect West Hayden Island since the 1990′s. His first major policy work for Portland Audubon was the successful 1999-2000 campaign to “Save West Hayden Island.”
We will need your help to turn the Port back again!
Come learn about West Hayden Island and how you can help save this critical wildlife area!