Response letter from Chairman of the Board of Cowlitz County Commissioners, Kathleen A. Johnson, regarding Mt. St. Helens Volcanic Monument becoming a National Park

Dear Dave,

Thank you for writing again. There were an amazing number of emails and comments made before and after the meeting.

You are correct the meeting held Tuesday evening was merely for fact finding, not decision making. As representatives of our county’s three districts, we like to gather opinions in an open forum atmosphere. We also feel we may have prematurely addressed this issue in July and were seeking more public input.

At this time, our Federal Senators and Congressman are asking our collective opinion. However, last night after listening to a variety of input and information, a motion was passed to rescind our original letter of support to develop/transfer the Monument to National Park status. The purpose of rescinding our original stance was to remain neutral until more fact finding could occur.

Some good suggestions were made, during and after the meeting, and we are now considering other avenues of success including seeking a hybrid between the Parks Service and the USFS. The issue apparently is that in 1982 a quick Congressional motion created the National Monument, but we find that 25 years later the citizens and visitors are not being treated as well as we could anticipate, for a variety of reasons, including poor communication.  We will continue to seek solutions.

Thank you for your input.

Kathleen A. Johnson

Chairman of the Board of Cowlitz County Commissioners