Leave No Trace Comes to San Juan Islands Sept 23-28

— from Barbara Marrett for San Juan Islands Visitors Bureau —

Special Education Events September 25-29 in the San Juan Islands with the Subaru/Leave No Trace Traveling Trainers to Help Preserve and Protect Natural Resources for Generations to Come

Leave No Trace Selected Washington’s San Juan Islands as One of Its Eight Endangered ‘Hot Spots’ in the Nation and are Hosting Events to Help Raise Awareness about Natural Areas Around the Country Facing the Threat of Irreversible Environmental Damage.

The Leave No Trace Center for Outdoor Ethics and its Subaru/Leave No Trace Traveling Trainers Team are partnering with the San Juan Islands to host community events and educational activities September 25-29, 2014.

All members of the San Juan Islands community are encouraged to attend and learn about Leave No Trace principles to help protect and preserve the Islands for years to come.

“Many outdoor areas across our nation, like the San Juan Islands, are negatively impacted by recreational use. We are literally loving the land to death,” according to Danielle Rowland, Subaru/Leave No Trace Traveling Trainer. “In most cases, the land impact isn’t due to a malicious intent to harm nature and wildlife. Instead, it’s simply lack of an understanding or know-how of ‘Leave No Trace’.”

“The San Juan Islands are a popular destination for visitors around the world. The area sees more than 800,000 visits a year and experiences visitor-created impacts in many areas. These impacts include littering, damage to vegetation and trees, trail erosion, walking in undesignated areas and wildlife feeding,” said Nick Teague Bureau of Land Management. “We are thrilled to partner with the Subaru/Leave No Trace Traveling Trainers to help educate our community, raise awareness for future enjoyment and preserve these beautiful landscapes.”

The Subaru/Leave No Trace Traveling Trainers travel throughout the country providing public education about how to reduce impacts in the outdoors. The following is a list of events happening in the San Juan Islands that are free and open to the public:

Volunteer and San Juan Recreation Tourism Business Trainings- Join the Subaru/Leave No Trace Traveling Trainers for one of three free interactive presentations and discussions that will focus on the elements of the Leave No Trace minimum impact program. The first two hours of each session will highlight the Leave No Trace outdoor skills and ethics program, which is applicable to all outdoor enthusiasts and all environments. Participants will be provided with information on how to easily and effectively integrate Leave No Trace into their daily lives and businesses. The second two hours of the course will focus on how to teach Leave No Trace methods to others and learn how to promote change in visitor and/or employee behavior.

To RSVP for Workshops please contact the San Juan County Parks Administration office at parks@sanjuanco.com or 360-378-8420.

• Thursday September 25: San Juan Island Day: 10 am-2 pm. Workshop location: meeting room downstairs at Key Bank, 2nd St. Friday Harbor
• Friday September 26: Lopez Island Day: 10:30pm-2:30 pm. Workshop location: Love Dog Café, Lopez Village
• Sunday September 28: Orcas Island Day: 12:30 pm-4:30 pm. Workshop location: Moran State Park, Cascade Lake, Day Use Kitchen Shelter

Saturday September 27: National Public Lands Day, Subaru/Leave No Trace Traveling Trainer Activities, Watmough Bay on Lopez Island and South Beach American Camp, on San Juan Island—10 am-2 pm. The Traveling Trainers will have educational hangtags and free fun educational activities for all ages to learn how to minimize your impact when in the outdoors.

“Hot Spots sites, like the San Juan Islands are damaged but can recover and become healthy again after we spend a few days with the community focusing on specific Leave No Trace applications,” said Subaru/Leave No Trace Traveling Trainer Roland Mott. “By identifying and working with the community, Leave No Trace helps areas like the San Juan Islands heal, and ultimately aids in protecting and preserving the places we cherish for future generations.”

In addition, the Trainers will be working with San Juan County, local public land managers, conservation and education partners as well as volunteers to increase awareness and implement Leave No Trace within the islands. Through a countywide effort the Leave No Trace principles and skills will help preserve and protect the San Juan Islands landscape.

About The Leave No Trace Hot Spot Program
In its fourth year, the Leave No Trace Hot Spot programs raise awareness about natural areas around the country facing the threat of irreversible environmental damage. As part of the initiative, The Leave No Trace Center for Outdoor Ethics, a national organization that protects outdoors by teaching people how to enjoy it responsibly, works with volunteers, nonprofit organizations, friends groups and governmental agencies to reduce the impact of recreational activities in the selected endangered area. This goal is achieved through community outreach, education, training, signage, educational materials and local collaboration. Hot Spot locations in 2014 include: Little Talbot Islands State Park, and St. Andrews State Park, Fla., New River Gorge National River, W. Va., Shawnee National Forest, Ill., Enchanted Rock State Natural Area and Lake Casa Blanca, Texas, Hoosier National Forest, Ind., and the San Juan Islands, Wash.

About Leave No Trace
The Leave No Trace Center for Outdoor Ethics in a national nonprofit organization that protects the outdoors by teaching people how to enjoy it responsibly. Their Subaru/Leave No Trace Traveling Trainers are mobile teams educators that visit 48 states every year delivering Leave No Trace programs such as Hot Spots. For more information, visit: www.LNT.org