TVW Weekly Interview Programs - Week of February 3-7, 2025
TVW Washington's Public Affairs Network
Public Affairs Made Public
"What I like to say is oftentimes we just expect infrastructure to work. We just expect to be able to turn on the tap and we get water or flush the toilet and it goes away, and the only time we notice it is when it doesn't work." -- Kathryn Gardow, Chair, Public Works Board.
Washington’s Public Works Board celebrates its 40th birthday this year. For nearly four decades the little known state agency has quietly shaped the foundation of communities across the state, providing low-interest loans that help make sure water flows, roads connect, and essential infrastructure keeps pace with growth.
“The need never goes away,” Gardow said. Infrastructure ages, populations grow, and climate challenges intensify. "Infrastructure is aging. You know, just as people age, so does infrastructure.”?
The board has adapted accordingly, shifting beyond traditional public works to meet emerging demands. In recent years, it has expanded its focus to broadband access, climate-resilient infrastructure, and even tackling the housing crisis by ensuring that essential utilities can support new development.
“It's about the housing, but it's also about living in the housing, and it's the total cost of that living, and so making sure that the funds are available to jurisdictions for their infrastructure keeps those infrastructure costs down,” said board member Kelly Snyder. “So affordable housing requires affordable infrastructure, and that's the role that we play right now.”
Water and sewer capacity, often overlooked in housing policy discussions, can be the deciding factor in whether new developments move forward.
Additionally, the board has begun addressing the challenge of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), working with communities to mitigate contamination in water systems and protect public health.?
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Timber sales involving older trees on state trust lands that haven’t reached old-growth status have become a high profile point of contention in recent years. Big tree preservation was a major campaign issue in the race for State Commissioner of Public Lands during the last election cycle.
In his first major act in office, Commissioner of Public Lands Dave Upthegrove declared a 6-month pause on trust land timber sales involving mature, structurally complex forests.
The move was celebrated by environmental conservation advocates, but has raised concerns among a number of timber industry organizations and trust beneficiaries, like rural counties and school districts.
This week on The Impact, host Mike McClanahan interviews with Rachel Baker, Forest Program Manager for Washington Conservation Action, and Paul Jewell, Government Relations Director for the Washington State Association of Counties.
Baker: “They're really beautiful. I think when you step into one of these stands, it kind of changes your mindset. You really feel like you're transported to a different place. And, what's interesting about these stands is they. They are these kind of remnant stands from the past. So, they've been there a long time. They've seen a lot of things. I think what we've seen in the last 3 or 4 years is, there's been a real grassroots mobilization and movement around these forests and different expectations for what comes out of our forestland and maybe a loss of trust or kind of social license on the part of DNR.”
Jewell: “There's all kinds of county services where this revenue goes. It goes to the county general fund that pays for all kinds of things like public health, human services. The majority of that money goes to law enforcement and justice services. There's the county road fund that pays roads. But this revenue in most counties is also split with other service providers like fire districts, schools, libraries, hospital districts, emergency services and others so it has a pretty wide range of things that it supports. It's pretty important in rural communities.”