Dillon Honcoop Warns of Activist Narratives and Water Adjudication Threats to Local Farmers
- Republican Women of Whatcom County
- Oct 15
- 2 min read
In a recent Facebook post from Tonya Hickman: At today’s Whatcom County Women’s GOP luncheon, Dillon Honcoop spoke on the topic of water adjudication, farming, and activist-driven narratives that are harming farmers and rural communities.
Honcoop explained how left-leaning activists often pursue higher education and advanced degrees in order to create “studies” that promote a particular political agenda. These studies—like one recently released by the Cascadia group—often frame farmers negatively, using language such as “Animal Feeding Operations” to invoke images of massive factory farms, even though federal definitions are so broad they could include small family farms or even households with a few chickens.
He emphasized that these “studies” form the foundation for media narratives, which are then repeated and reinforced through sympathetic coverage, creating public perception rather than reflecting factual realities. One common false claim, he said, is that “farmers are stealing water.”
Honcoop pushed back on that narrative, pointing out that water management issues—like fish deaths during dry seasons—stem not from farmers but from poor state-level planning and policy decisions. Instead of building reservoirs and using dams to store water during wet seasons, politicians have blocked water storage projects. The result: preventable flooding during heavy rains (like the devastating 2021 floods in Everson, Nooksack, and Sumas) and water shortages during dry months.
He warned that the Department of Ecology’s lawsuit against Whatcom County and its push to raise utility rates in Area 1 are part of a broader move toward water adjudication—a process that creates a priority list of water users, giving the state the power to curtail water access. He cited examples from Roslyn and Yakima, where water disputes took decades (42 years in Yakima’s case) to resolve, underscoring the need for local cooperation rather than state-imposed control.
Honcoop concluded by stressing the need for reservoirs and proactive water management to protect both farms and fish, noting that the Skagit Valley has benefited from dams that have preserved its water systems.
He encouraged citizens to question activist “science” that claims moral high ground but often distorts or misapplies data to promote left-wing environmental agendas.
For more context, Honcoop referenced: