Washington Conservation Voters Endorse Peter Goldmark for Commissioner of Public Lands

SEATTLE—The campaign of Okanogan rancher Peter Goldmark for Commissioner of Public Lands gained more momentum yesterday with the endorsement of the Washington Conservation Voters, the political voice for the environment.

While the endorsement comes as no surprise to some political watchers, it resulted from a rigorous endorsement process that included interviews of both candidates and a lengthy, detailed questionnaire process.

“We take our responsibility in making these decisions very seriously,” said Kurt Fritts, Executive Director of Washington Conservation Voters. “The Commissioner of Public Lands has oversight of millions of acres of public forest, rangeland, shorelines and aquatic resources. It is important to elect a candidate who has a strong commitment to the environment and a vision for how this post can best sustain our natural resources for future generations. Facing monumental issues such as global warming, Puget Sound clean-up, and forest management, Peter Goldmark stood out as the leader that we need in this critical time.”

Goldmark, who has earned support from a broad coalition of labor, fellow agricultural leaders, community leaders and educators who rely on state timber trust monies for school construction welcomed the support from Washington Conservation Voters.

“The incumbent has lost touch with the values of Washington state” said Goldmark. What costs us jobs and environmental progress is selling our lands for development, rubber stamping clear cuts that denude the land, and locking up access to public land”.

“I’ve always said that the best conservationists are people who know and make their living on the land,” said Goldmark, who in addition to working 35 years on his family’s wheat and cattle ranch has served as a WSU Regent, state agriculture director and rural school board member. “The Commissioner of Public Lands touches all of our lives, from timber jobs and school construction to recreation and habitat protection. I’ll bring a balanced perspective to an office that has tilted too far toward the needs of well heeled special interests.”

Goldmark, in his first campaign for statewide office, has already raised more cash than the incumbent, two term Republican Doug Sutherland, the chair of Bush’s 2004 re-election effort and open skeptic of climate change, telling industry representatives as recently as December that the evidence of change—including a dramatic increase in drought, forest fire, insect damage and disease in millions of acres of public lands—isn’t compelling enough to take action.

Goldmark believes the support of organizations like Washington Conservation Voters will be key in convincing over three million voters of the urgent need for change in this November’s election.

“We have a real challenge to educate voters about how this critical job and the incumbent’s mismanagement affects their lives,” said Goldmark. “With allies like Washington Conservation Voters and education and labor leaders, we’ll make sure our message of restoring public trust in the management of our public lands is heard across the state. I’m grateful for their confidence and support.”