Public lands commissioner: It's time to change land stewards

It's a tough call when two quality candidates are vying for the same job, and that's the position we're in with Republican Doug Sutherland and Democratic challenger Peter Goldmark in the race for state commissioner of public lands.

After careful consideration, this is a race in which we're going to call for new blood and direction. The lands commissioner heads up the important state Department of Natural Resources and we'll back Goldmark, who we would like to see take the agency into a new era.

The agency protects and manages 5.6 million acres of state-owned land and 2.5 million acres of riverbanks, lake shores and tide flats. About 3 million acres of that is state trust land that produces revenue to help pay for construction of public schools, universities and other state institutions, and funds services in many counties. Income is generated by selling timber or leasing it to private agriculture businesses.

Other key responsibilities are protecting fish and wildlife habitat, regulation of timber harvests and wildfire suppression.

The job pays $121,618 a year.

Backing Goldmark should not be seen as a rejection of the job Sutherland has done. But the future calls for a careful balance of revenue production and environmental considerations, and we would like to see Goldmark have a crack at achieving it. Goldmark has solid environmental credentials, which can be a good balance to his business and management skills in being a steward of public lands.

One serious markdown for Sutherland in our deliberations was that we feel DNR did not provide the needed oversight over the years that might have eased the massive damage of last year's major floods in Lewis County. A Seattle Times analysis in July found that the Weyerhaeuser timber company clear-cut some slopes in the county with scant oversight from DNR.

Beyond that, we don't feel DNR played the aggressive leadership role that was needed in Lewis County to strike a balance between the historical excesses of property rights when squared off against necessary environmental concerns and the greater public good in that area.

Another major concern of this particular campaign is the sources of money in the candidates' well-heeled campaign coffers.

As of our latest check, Goldmark led the money chase with nearly $788,000, with chunks of cash coming from Democrats, environmentalists, unions and Indian tribes, including a $1,600 contribution from the Yakama Nation.

Sutherland isn't far behind, at nearly $564,000, but the fact that he is heavily backed by timber-related interests is some cause for concern. When asked about that in our editorial board interview, he dismissed the tie as an industry looking for "predictability ... honesty ... how they are treated."

Goldmark sees the potential for conflict of interest between regulated and regulator, and we have to agree he has a point.

We also like Goldmark's Eastern Washington credentials, which would bring a new perspective to the department. While he now has a residence in Seattle, his roots are in Okanogan County and at a ranch that has been in the family for generations and to which he returned to run in 1972.

A graduate of Okanogan High School, he later served on the district's school board. He has a Ph.D in molecular biology, is a wheat breeder, former director of the state Department of Agriculture, wildland firefighter and for 10 years was a member of the Washington State University Board of Regents.

"Change" is the buzzword in many political campaigns this year. This is one change we'd like to see happen: Give Goldmark a chance to try his ideas and initiatives to be the steward of public lands.

* Members of the Yakima Herald-Republic editorial board are Michael Shepard, Sarah Jenkins, Bill Lee and Karen Troianello.

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