Farmers faced with farmland tree planting as way to save salmon

For farmers evaluating Governor Inslee’s Salmon Recovery bill, the devil is in the details.

Details like what exactly constitutes a Riparian Management Zone and whether the riparian buffers proposed in the now withdrawn HB 1838 will not just target salmon-bearing streams and side channels but encompass delta farmland behind Skagit River dikes.

The million-dollar question: Inside those buffers, is farming permitted?

The bill is clear about the need to maintain and enhance natural resource industries like agriculture and to encourage the conservation of productive agricultural lands.

Its languag...