<sigh> I live in Thurston County and the Gopher madness is worse that the article leads you to believe.
If you buy property in an area that is designated as being good for gopher habitat you must hire an assessment done to determine if they are present. The critters are only active for a short time starting in june. If you buy the land in the late fall, your project gets shelved for months waiting for the gopher season while you continue to make payments on land you cant use.
Sales of mole traps are brisk...