Future of NWAC???

Just received this email today...<br><br>Forwarded to us by Mary Vesper:<br>This posting is from Benj Wadsworth, President<br> Friends of the Northwest Weather and Avalanche Center<br> www.avalanchenw.org

The WA state legislature is finalizing the 2006 supplemental budget, and the future of the Northwest Weather and Avalanche Center (NWAC) is at stake.

Without the additional funding that the legislature could provide, NWAC will be short $35,000 and have to close its doors at the end of March. The shortage next year stands at $70,000.

To those of you who have contributed this year, thank you!! To those who have not, please read the attached letter and consider a contribution to the Friends at this time.
We are working hard to keep NWAC functioning, and we need your help!
Contact us on the website above,

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Btw there was no attached letter to this email.

Here is a cut and paste of the attached letter:<br><br>Dear Fellow Winter Adventurer,<br><br>The winter is off to a stellar start, with over 200 inches of snowfall in parts of the Cascades. But all is not right in the mountains. Each year, you and I depend upon the tireless work of the weather and avalanche forecasters of the NW Weather and Avalanche Center (NWAC) to provide accurate, consistent and on-time reports for our backcountry adventures. Alarmingly, the funding and the future operation of NWAC are in jeopardy. <br><br>NWAC is funded by government agencies, the Friends of the Northwest Weather and Avalanche Center, and by individuals like you and me. In recent years, government funds have either remained flat or declined. Combined with slowly increasing salary and equipment costs, this has placed the Center in a $35,000 budget hole this year. If this hole is not filled, NWAC will cease operating a month early. Center Director, Mark Moore, is estimating a $70,000 budget shortfall next year. If that budget gap is not plugged, the Center will cease operating next season. <br><br>No NWAC means no avalanche forecasts, no snowpack evaluation, no mountain weather forecasts, no hourly data, no educational efforts and no accident information. In short, without NWAC there will be no web site or recordings, and in all likelihood we will witness a significant increase in backcountry deaths. <br><br>You can help! The Washington State legislature is currently developing its supplemental budget for 2006, and the Friends of NWAC are working overtime in Olympia to pressure our legislators to include $35,000 in the budget to cover this year&#8217;s shortfall. You can make a donation to the Friends of NWAC to support our increased lobbying efforts on behalf of the Center. Every little bit will help us preserve this critical resource. Your gift can keep the phones on, keep the website current with updates, keep our volunteers in Olympia, and ultimately keep the avalanche forecasters in the field!<br><br>Please make a donation today to keep this critical resource center open.<br><br>Sincerely,<br> <br><br>Benj Wadsworth<br>President, Board of Directors<br>

Yah...Benj speaks the truth - the funding situation is pretty dire. <br><br>Would you guys be interested in calling the governor and a few targeted legislators about this? Ill post list of talking points and some phone numbers in a little bit.<br><br>In the interest of full disclosure I sent the emails on behalf of the Friends - I wonder what happened to the letter attachment in your email snoslut...if you wouldnt mind PMing me with your email address I would like to check on a hunch. If anyone else didnt get the letter attachment I would love to know too.<br><br>For those of you who would like to be on the mailing list for appeals like this in the future PM me. I can promise we won't spam you <br><br>Michael

The following address will allow you to quickly identify each of your State Representatives and your Senator in Washington State simply by inputing your address.<br><br> apps.leg.wa.gov/DistrictFinder/Default.aspx

If you follow the links provided, sending an e-mail to each of them is quick and easy to do.

In a year where our major cross-state passes have been closed on multiple occasions, this may be a good time to remind our lawmakers that there is a significant economic cost to the freight economy of our region when catastrophic slides occur. This avalanche forecast information is important for others than just us recreationalists.

The amount of money required to adequately fund the NWAC per the information provided above is insignificant when compared to the cost of a simple environmental analysis of a small transportation improvement in our State.

If you take the time to read the NWAC forecast each day, please take 5 minutes right now to let your lawmakers know that this is important to you. I personally cannot imagine NOT having access to the information provided to us by Mark, Garth and others in forecasts like the one posted today, and each day during avalanche season.

J.P.

Trying to spur a little discussion here <br><br>How will touring change for you if the NWAC goes away?<br><br>Do you think it will make tour planning harder? How will it affect your decision-making when going into the mountains (in a car or on skis)?<br><br>Speaking for myself: <br>I get up almost every morning and check the telemetry,using it to help guide my decisions of where and when to ski and helping me get my tour plans done before I head out. I also read the NWAC forecasts and always try to keep a running record of whats going on in the snow in my head. I also rely on the NWAC to help the DOT and the ski areas keep the roads and the slopes safe.<br><br>While all this could be done without NWAC - I think it would be a lot more work, a lot less efficient, and less safe.<br><br>What do you think?<br><br>One of the respondants to the email alert mentioned that the liability costs to the state of one car getting swept off the road by an avalanche would probably fund the center for years to come...As I understand it (and this is more rumor than anything else) the NWAC came to being after several avy related deaths on the road - not sure if thats true.<br><br>Michael<br>

Following are copies of two replies that I received today from Senator Pam Roach and Representative Jan Shabro, two of the three legislators in my District. I would encourage those of you inspired to write to take Rep. Shabro's advice and also copy the members of the House Appropriations Committee and the Senate Ways and Means Committee. I will try to follow this post with a post including the names of those members.<br><br>FROM SENATOR PAM ROACH:<br><br>Dear Jason,<br><br>Thank you for your email urging funding for the National Weather and<br>Avalanche Center. <br><br>The National Weather and Avalanche Center (NWAC) is a great resource for<br>everyone who likes to get outdoors and enjoy the snow, and I know it<br>helps keep people safe. The Senate budget I voted for included a $79,000<br>grant for the NWAC. The House of Representatives has approved this<br>funding as well, so it will most likely be found in the final version of<br>the budget next week.<br><br>Best wishes,<br><br>Pam Roach<br>State Senator <br>

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<br>FROM REP. JAN SHABRO:<br><br>Thank you for your email. Your comments tell me that you are informed<br>and interested in what is happening in Washington State. <br><br>The Northwest Weather and Avalanche Center is an important issue. It<br>will be an interesting legislative session and undoubtedly, we will have<br>to make some difficult choices. As much as I would like to predict and<br>know what the final budget is going to look like this session, I cannot.<br>I strongly suggest you let the legislators on the Appropriations<br>Committees in the House and the Senate Ways and Means Committee know<br>what you think.<br><br>Thank you again for contacting me. I always appreciate hearing your<br>thoughts and concerns on issues that are important to you. <br><br>-Jan<br>