Thurston Comprehensive Plan

How You Can Contribute to the Thurston County Comprehensive Plan Update

Betsy Norton and Charlotte Persons, for the Conservation Committee

You probably know that the Thurston County Comprehensive Plan Update will guide county policies and actions for the next 20 years.  That is why it is called Thurston 2045.

Why is it important for our local environment and wildlife? 

Birds and other wildlife need appropriate habitat and ecosystems to survive. The majority of wildlife habitat is in the rural county:  on prairies, forests, streams, rivers, and along shorelines.  The county’s vision, policies and programs have a big impact on how much of this habitat is conserved and if/how it’s protected against degradation and fragmentation, and also how the county will address climate change.  So that’s the reason for BHAS Conservation Committee’s emphasis on the Comprehensive Plan Update.   Local government is really the key public entity with the final say on habitat loss or conservation and how the county will do its part to reduce Green House Gases (GHG’s) and adapt to climate change. 

For Thurston County 2045 Comprehensive Plan documents, links to view or submit public comment, and updated schedules, please see this webpage:

https://www.thurstoncountywa.gov/departments/community-planning-and-economic-development-cped/community-planning/thurston-2045

What you can do:

• We encourage you to review the April 4 version that will be published by the Planning Commission, especially the Environment and Climate chapters.
• Attend a hearing or public meeting by the County on the comp plan update and testify verbally.
• Submit written comments in support of birds, wildlife corridors, habitat conservation and climate actions to slow the pace of change and improve our resilience to its impacts (link is available online at the website above).

Where we are in the process:

• March 2025: The Special Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS) for an earlier version of the county’s draft plan has been published on the 2045 site above. Comment period ends 3/30/25.

• March 19, 2025, Planning Commission Meeting:  BHAS CC supported the Thurston Climate Action Team, along with a host of other groups and individuals, in urging the Planning Commission to include all appropriate action items from the Thurston Climate Action Plan into the Comp Plan Update. Then the Planning Commission voted to do so!  We hope the April 4 version will include these items explicitly, giving some teeth to county action on climate, which is so necessary for the future of birds, wildlife and the environment, as well as us humans. 

• April 4 :  The Thurston County Planning Commission will publish their final draft version, which you can download and review.
• April 23:  TC Comp Plan Q&A with staff @5:00-6:00 pm, followed by a public hearing 6:00-9:00 PM where you can testify on the public record, at 3000 Pacific Ave SE, Lacey.      
• April 26:  TC Comp Plan Q&A with staff@ 9:00-10:00 am, followed by a public hearing 10:00 AM-2:00 PM where you can also testify on the public record, at 3000 Pacific Ave SE, Lacey.   
• April to … [June-ish?]:   The final Planning Commission draft is approved and sent to the Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) for review.
• December 2025:  The BOCC will approve a final version of the 20-year Comp Plan Update.

FYI –  comp plan links for other counties:

• Lewis County: https://lewiscountywa.gov/departments/community-development/rezones/comprehensive-plan-and-development-regulation-amendments/comprehensive-plan-periodic-update/
• Mason County: https://masoncountywa.gov/departments/community_development/planning/comprehensive_plan_update/index.php

Photo credit: Journal, by David Schwarzenberg. Public Domain.