I’ve closed the poll asking whether we should officially create the name “Salish Sea” for the waters including Puget Sound, the Strait of Juan de Fuca and Georgia Strait.
Oddly enough, exactly 100 users answered the poll question. That makes percentage calculations easy, but winners and losers are a little open to interpretation.
We have 44 people who say they don’t see the need for the addition of a new name. That compares to 40 who said they unequivocally liked the name “Salish Sea” to identify the international ecosystem.
Another 14 people said they would support the “Salish Sea” name, but only if the U.S. and Canadian governments went along with it. Another two people said they would support the name if the Canadian government went along with it. With that condition attached, we would have 56 people who support the name change if the U.S. and Canadian governments agree.
I’m not sure whether the Washington State Board on Geographic Names would complicate their decision that way. As I understand it, all state name changes are forwarded to the U.S. Board on Geographic Names, which can adopt the change, oppose the change or ignore it.
British Columbia has a naming board, which makes such decisions for the province.
I think the Washington board could change the name, effective after adoption by the U.S. and/or B.C. governments. But they may just want a cleaner decision.
For background information, check out the original entry about Salish Sea in Water Ways.
If you’d like to send comments to those who can make a difference, write to:
Washington State Board on Geographic Names
1111 Washington St. SE, PO Box 47030
Olympia, WA 98504-7030
360-902-1231
Fax 360-902-1778
bogn@dnr.wa.gov
That was a fun and interesting poll.
As with any poll, the characteristics of the people polled and who and how many responded need to be considered in coming to a conclusion.
This blog deals with the environment. It is reasonable to assume those intering it would be more interested in the environment than the average newspaper reader not entering the blog, who in turn is still more likely to be interested in any topic versus a non-reader.
Since even among those interested in the environmental topics aren’t staunchly for the “Salish Sea”, I doubt it will go over in the general public. However, since it apparently serves an environmental description, what is the problem with it just being an environmental term?