At Whatcom Environmental Council, we are dedicated to advocating for the protection of our environment in Whatcom County.
We believe that by raising awareness about environmental issues and providing resources for individuals and organizations to take action, we can make a meaningful impact on the health and well being of our environment.
Whatcom Environmental Council Board Members
Carl Weimer
John Blethen
Oliver Grah
Barry Wenger
Stan Snapp
Laurie Caskey-Schreiber
Jean Melious
Rick Dubrow
Rick Eggerth
David Stalheim
John Blethen
John was born in Manhattan and attended Antioch College in Ohio, a college that was then a center for social action. John moved to Bellingham in 1969, opened a socially responsible pizza parlor and helped start the Food Co-op. John later started a cabinet shop which he recently retired from. John had a long-term commitment to serving on Bellingham Parks and Greenways Boards, as well as the Waterfront Master Plan. John learned early in life the saying to “not die without winning some battle for humanity”. John believes there are many dedicated people in this community working towards monumental change while seeking social equity.
Laurie Caskey-Schreiber
Laurie is a 4th generation native of Whatcom County. She served on the Whatcom County Council for eight years, and also worked at Western Washington University for 19 years as an Academic Department Manager in the Sociology Department. Laurie recently retired from the Northwest Clean Air Agency (NWCAA) after working there for 12 years. Over the years Laurie has been a board member for the NWCAA, the Opportunity Council, and a committee member for the Marine Resources Committee. She is also a recipient of the RE Sources Environmental Hero award. Laurie holds a BA in Communications from WWU, and spends a ridiculous amount of time taking care of and enjoying her horse, and hiking with her dog.
Rick Eggerth
During his career as a litigator in the San Francisco Bay Area, Rick Eggerth represented a diverse array of clients in civil litigation matters. His environmental litigation experience includes cases to determine liability for pollution cleanup of Silicon Valley companies, dry cleaners, leaky underground storage tanks at gas stations, and thousands of oil industry sites. The oil industry sites were part of lawsuits by the oil industry against the insurance industry (including several of Rick’s clients) demanding coverage for the extraordinary cleanup costs of thousands of North American Superfund and toxic waste sites created by the oil industry since its beginnings.
Rick has developed a PowerPoint presentation on the history of the oil industry’s manipulation and deceit regarding the plastics industry (which the oil industry controls). In addition, he is co-chair of the Executive Committee of the Mt. Baker Group/Sierra Club; sits on the Conservation and Water & Salmon Committees of the Washington State Chapter/Sierra Club, and the Water Resource Inventory Area (WRIA) 1 Environmental Caucus; and was part of a “Citizens Group” that worked for three years to convince the City of Bellingham not to dispose of contaminated sewage sludge from planned anaerobic digesters by spreading the sludge on farmland. Rick also frequently collaborates with environmental organizations such as RE Sources, Center for Responsible Forestry, Washington Conservation Action, the Audubon Society, Evergreen Islands, and Friends of the San Juans. Most recently, he is a charter appointee of the Water Resources Advisory Board, the City of Bellingham’s new citizens board intended to advise on all aspects of the City’s water system, from Lake Whatcom to the sewer system to stormwater drainage to wastewater disposal at the Post Point sewage plant.
Rick Dubrow, Treasurer
Rick retired after 43 years at the helm of A-1 Builders, Inc., a local, design/build, Sub-S, green-leaning, residential contracting firm, departing after transforming the company into a worker-owned cooperative in 2017: A1DesignBuild. During this time he was a leader in many local environmental groups: RE Sources; Sustainable Connections; Transition Whatcom; Pro-Whatcom; Futurewise Whatcom; Coal-Free Bellingham. Wilderness travel – day hiking and backpacking -- remains his strongest passion in retirement, as he continues to promote employee ownership, economic & population contraction, a safe environment, and increased wild lands.
Oliver Grah
Oliver retired as the Water Resources Program Manager for the Nooksack Indian Tribe in 2022. He holds a BS in geology and botany and an MS in watershed science. Oliver has 50 years of professional experience in the fields of water resources, fluviogeomorphology, soils, physical habitat, forestry, wetlands, restoration, environmental project management, IDT leader and coordination on over 600 projects including SEPA, NEPA, CWA, FSA, Shorelines/CAO, and ESA. Oliver has conducted over 400 projects involving wetland delineations, wetlands mitigation and native habitat restoration plans, and has monitored the implementation of many such plans for attainment of performance standards. He developed the Tribe’s climate change adaptation project that included monitoring the glaciers on Mount Baker, hydrologic modeling of streamflow and water quality in response to climate change and forest management, developed adaptation plans, including the South Fork Nooksack River Watershed Plan, and was a founding member of the Stewart Mountain Community Forest. Prior to working for the Nooksack Indian Tribe, he served as Director of the Habitat Restoration Program at Institute for Applied Ecology in Corvallis, Oregon, an NGO. Oliver also served as the Natural Resources Division Manager for Whatcom County, Washington.
Jean Melious
Jean is Professor Emeritus (retired) of the College of the Environment at Western Washington University. A land use and environmental attorney, she taught classes in land use law, environmental law and policy, and environmental impact assessment. She is Of Counsel to Nossaman LLP, where she represents public agencies and private sector clients in land use and environmental issues. She is on the board of the Center for Environmental Law and Policy, a statewide nonprofit organization that works to ensure that Washington state will have clean and abundant waters to support healthy communities, thriving ecosystems, and resilience in the face of climate change.
Stan Snapp, Vice President
Stan joined the Bellingham Fire Dept in mid-1974, rising to Chief of Services including training, facilities, and computers (a new way of record keeping). While with BFD he volunteered at United Way, Red Cross, Make a Difference Day and the Silver Beach neighborhood association. Stan retired in 1997 after 25 years.
Once retired, Stan began a new career volunteering on the Bellingham Parks Board where he helped write the Parks and Recreation Open Space Plan. Stan also joined the United Way Board, Mt. Baker Red Cross, and North Coast Credit Union. In 2007, Stan ran for the Bellingham City Council (Ward 4) and served for six years. As a council member, Stan served on numerous committees within the City and in the community, including the Library Board, Tourism Board, Sustainable Connections Board and Opportunity Council Board. In his spare time, Stan enjoys hiking, wood working (boat building) and dog agility.
David Stalheim, Secretary
David retired in 2020 after a long career in public service. David served as the planning director for multiple cities and counties, including Whatcom, Everett, Wenatchee, Ashland (OR), and Clallam County. David also managed Bellingham's affordable housing program. In retirement, David volunteers on the Bellingham Greenways Advisory Committee and occasionally provides consulting assistance to local governments on affordable housing. Most often, he can be found on his boat on the Salish Sea or walking his dog on Galbraith Mountain.
Carl Weimer, President
Carl Weimer has worked for the Pipeline Safety Trust for 20 years, spending 16 years as the Executive Director. In that capacity he served as a member of the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Technical Hazardous Liquid Pipeline Safety Standards Committee, the Canadian Energy Pipeline Association’s External Advisory Panel, and the governor appointed Washington Citizen Committee on Pipeline Safety. Carl has been called upon to testify to the U.S. House and Senate multiple times, as a witness by the National Transportation Safety Board, and was honored in 2015 as a Champion of Change by the White House for his pipeline safety efforts. Carl was elected and served on the Whatcom County Council for twelve years, where he served as chairman of the Council for four of those years, was chairman of the natural resources committee all twelve years, served as the Council’s liaison on 13 advisory committees, and also as the chairman of the County’s Board of Health and Flood Control District Board of Supervisors. Carl previously spent 13 years as Executive Director of RE Sources, and during that time started The RE Store, and the North Sound Baykeeper program. He has a degree in Natural Resources and Environmental Education from the University of Michigan, as well a degree in Industrial Electronics Technology from Peninsula College.
Barry Wenger
Barry retired after 26 years as a Senior Environmental planner for the Wa.State Dept of Ecology culminating a career of over 50 years working as an environmental advocate in the private and public sectors. Having worked in local and state government and having run several successful businesses as well as being an active member of a number of non-profit organizations, Barry has extensive experience in working closely with communities and citizens to provide efficient and effective solutions to challenging environmental challenges such as flooding, shoreline erosion, sea level rise, water quality issues, toxics prevention and cleanup, wetlands mitigation, salmon and wildlife restoration,land use conflicts, etc. He is currently serving on several local and regional boards including the Rose Foundation's Orca Recovery Grant Fund, Whatcom County's Wildlife Advisory Bd and Forest Resilience Task Force.
