The updated Methow Conservancy Good Neighbor Handbook will be available online and in print throughout the valley.
People looking for thoughtful, timely tips about how to live in harmony with our surroundings and our human and animal neighbors will find a wealth of information in the updated edition of the Methow Conservancy’s Good Neighbor Handbook.
The new edition, released in early February, is a compendium of practical information for everyone in the valley, whether they’re newcomers or long-time valley residents. “The tone is welcoming and non-judgmental,” conservancy Associate Director Sarah Brooks said.
The handbook builds on the conservancy’s commitments to protect healthy land, clean water, fresh air, critical habitat and open spaces; and to connect people to the land and support local agriculture.
There are sections devoted to living near water, forests and shrub-steppe. The book educates people about what it means to share the land with mammals large and small, and with birds, fish and reptiles. And the new edition includes more pointers about building good relations with our human neighbors – next door, in the community at large, and on trails and rivers.
Illustrated with beautiful photos by local photographers, the handbook provides just a quick snapshot of key recommendations. To keep the printed book from becoming too unwieldy, the conservancy put detailed information online, where people can research the subjects most important to them. “People kept suggesting topics, and we were afraid it would be 900 pages long,” Brooks said.
The links highlight tips from the conservancy and other organizations on everything from bees to weeds to climate change. There are also resources about the history of the valley and its inhabitants, affordable building, and wildlife. Sections on living with fire and increasingly scarce water supplies have been expanded, including resources on drought-tolerant landscaping and maintaining healthy forests.
The handbook will help people become aware of things that may not have been on their radar. It includes suggestions for preserving dark night skies, such as taking stock of outdoor lighting to determine which lights you really need, and then shielding the lights you have.
It urges people to consider a building site and colors that allow a house to blend into the environment rather than stick out above a ridgeline.
Practical sections cover what to do with recycling, how to enjoy the bounty of local agriculture, and where to volunteer.
The handbook counsels tolerance all around. Packrats may nest under the hood of your car and rattlesnakes may curl up under your woodpile. “Remember that these small nuisances are part of the adventure, and that you can find creative ways to peacefully coexist with both the charismatic and the bothersome wildlife,” it says.
The new edition also looks at contemporary issues that spread our impact beyond the Methow. For example, it reminds people that sharing detailed information on social media can negatively affect wildlife that need seclusion to thrive. It reminds us that the areas we cherish for recreation are susceptible to being loved to death.
“It’s a series of thoughts on things you might want to know, not a book of regulations,” Brooks said.
For a digital copy of the handbook and detailed links to more information, go to https://methowconservancy.org/goodneighbor. People can also get a copy of the free handbook by stopping by the Methow Conservancy office in Winthrop, or by calling 996-2870. Copies will also be available around the valley, at real estate offices, visitors centers, and libraries.
