In many parts of Camas-Washougal, the ongoing federal government shutdown over Donald Trump’s border wall boondoggle — now the longest shutdown in United States history — has been easy to ignore.
This week, however, the shutdown flew straight to the heart of Camas-Washougal when it stymied a tradition for those who love the Steigerwald Lake National Wildlife Refuge outside of Washougal. More than 50 volunteers who had hoped to plant native trees at the local wildlife refuge as part of a Martin Luther King Jr. Day community service project, discovered the planting had been canceled due to the government shutdown.
While we recognize this isn’t a tragedy — especially considering that hundreds of thousands of federal employee families are struggling to pay their bills, Coast Guard members are risking their lives without pay and thousands of Native Americans are going without medicine and water — it is worth noting that the shutdown is beginning to seep into our area and negatively affect one of the places Camas-Washougal residents hold dear.
The 1,049-acre Steigerwald Lake refuge is one of 562 national wildlife refuges in the U.S. According to the Wildlife Society, the shutdown is taking its toll on the nation’s refuges with many reporting vandalism and dumped garbage while U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services employees are furloughed.
In early January, the National Wildlife Refuge Association, the Coalition to Protect America’s National Parks and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Retirees Association said the refuges and national parks should be closed to the public during the shutdown.