In Washington State, the Northwest Weather and Avalanche Center (NWAC) will be part of the groups affected by the $43 million that is being cut from the state parks. Of those cuts, $79,000 will be passed on to NWAC.
The NWAC is an important agency here in Washington, providing important information on snowpack structure and avalanche danger, as well as forecasting changes in snow/avalanche conditions. In addition to these duties, they also help with snow safety and maintenance programs, providing weather, snow, and avalanche data.
Currently, NWAC gets its funding from a variety of federal, state, and private agencies. They are working hard to secure this lost funding, but if you live in Washington, there is still time to tell your legislator how important NWAC is in our community. They save lives every year and provide valuable services to snow sports enthusiasts.
To contact your legislator, find them on this page and send them a quick email telling them how important NWAC is to you. NWAC has provided a few bullet points you can include:
- The number of winter recreationists in Washington is growing rapidly and NWAC’s avalanche forecasts are critical to ensuring the safety of anyone recreating in the mountains in the winter. Winter recreation is one amenity that makes Washington a great place to live!
- Hundreds of businesses that operate in the Cascades and Olympics rely on NWAC’s mountain weather and avalanche forecasts. These include ski areas, snowmobile outfitters, guide services and many others.
- The Department of Transportation relies heavily on NWAC’s forecasting to keep the mountain passes open in the winter.
NWAC is cooperatively funded by a variety of state, federal and private entities. It is an incredibly efficient operation and each cooperating entity receives a benefit that far outweighs it’s individual contribution. - Your personal story! What does NWAC mean to you?!
Via AAI’s Climbing Blog and NWAC.
