— from Caroline Mills —
The Waldron Island Community is very concerned about proliferation of drone aircraft for use both in surveillance and military attack. Accordingly, on 9 November 2013 the
Waldron Community Meeting (WCM) voted to declare Waldron a drone-free zone, and to request that San Juan County follow suit with a declaration of the entire county as a drone free zone.
They didn’t stop there. They also voted to demand that you, our county officials, create a county-wide drone free zone.
A petition to that effect is posted at the Waldron Post Office to back this vote up with signatures. It will be posted for 60 days and forwarded to you.
The petition reads as follows:
“The use of unmanned aerial vehicles (drones), including weaponized drones, has been adopted by the United States as an implement of warfare and of surveillance.
Increasingly local law enforcement agencies are adopting the use of drones. Both the use of these deadly weapons of war and the use of invasive surveillance capabilities are incompatible with the philosophical and moral underpinnings of our democracy.
Therefore, we, the undersigned residents and property owners in San Juan County, strongly advocate that the County Council ban the use of unmanned aerial surveillance technology (drones) and weaponized drones by any government agency or commercial entity or private individual in the entire air space of San Juan County.”
We respectfully request that you give this citizen concern your focused attention and timely action. Thank you for your consideration of this matter.
Sincerely Yours
original signed by
Ryan Drum, PhD
WCM Chairman
Ms. Caroline Mills
WCM Secretary
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Yes!
Just wondering what the legal issues are regarding a county preventing a state or federal government from doing something. Does county trump state and fed? Don’t think so. So does a county declared ban having any enforceability at state and federal level?
This causes me to wonder what the great people of Waldron are hiding! Happy Pearl Harbor Day!
Is there a way for people on other islands to sign the petition? Good for folks on Waldron to get this going.
With Amazon.com threatening to make next day delivery available by drone, this issue becomes pressing. If commercial companies fill our skies with noisy, visually intrusive unmanned vehicles, our peaceful lives will be impacted. Yes, county council, please make us a drone free area!