The nugget., January 10, 2018, Page 23, Image 23

Wednesday, January 10, 2018 The Nugget Newspaper, Sisters, Oregon
RANGER: STA will
host Reid as guest
speaker at event
Continued from page 3
in the wonders of the natural
world.
Catherine Hayden is
STA’s current board chair and
is pleased to have the new
ranger speaking at the STA
forum, especially since it is
only a few weeks into his ten-
ure. “STA is excited to wel-
come Ian to the position of
District Ranger as well as our
speaker for January’s install-
ment of the Bjarne Holm
Speaker Series,” she said.
“We are looking forward to
hearing more about the plans
for the future of the District
and what role trails will play.”
STA Board Secretary
Chuck Humphreys was very
enthusiastic to hear that
Reid will be the STA’s next
speaker.
“Ian strikes me as the kind
of Ranger who will listen
fully and fashion compro-
mise as needed — yet still
provide robust and vision-
ary leadership to see that the
District can move forward,”
Humphreys said. “As a vol-
unteer, I feel fortunate to have
a chance to work with him.”
Reid comes to Sisters from
his most recent posting where
he served as the North Fork
John Day District Ranger on
the Umatilla National Forest.
He is a graduate of Oregon
State University, where he
majored in fisheries. He
subsequently earned a mas-
ter’s degree in biology from
Southern Oregon University.
He has spent over 18 years
with the Forest Service in a
wide variety of posts, where
he has already put together an
impressive résumé covering
multiple forest disciplines.
Gary Guttormsen, STA
trails coordinator, is keenly
aware of Reid’s extensive
background, which he sees as
a solid basis for Reid’s new
assignment.
“I am very excited about
Ian being selected as our new
Ranger,” Guttormsen said. “I
think he will bring an enthu-
siastic, informed, and cre-
ative leadership model to the
Sisters Ranger District.”
Hayden agrees. “After
meeting with Ian in
December,” she said, “it’s
clear that he cares a great
deal about finding the right
balance between the compet-
ing interests for the forest —
from timber, to wildlife and
plant life to recreation. STA
recognizes the value of this
kind of leader as we go for-
ward with shared projects.”
For his part, Reid is look-
ing forward to working with
STA and the community.
“I think the Sisters Trails
Alliance is an excellent
example of shared steward-
ship and partnership between
the local community and
land-management agencies,”
he said.
“The Forest Service
appreciates all of the previ-
ous work done by the STA to
improve the use and enjoy-
ment of the Sisters Ranger
District and looks forward
to working with them in the
future on projects of mutual
interest,” Reid said. “It’s
inspiring to see so many local
citizens willing to roll up
their sleeves and donate their
time, labor, money, and other
valuable resources to better
recreational access and expe-
riences for all.”
By sponsoring free pub-
lic presentations, STA hopes
to promote outdoor public
recreation and education in
Sisters Country. This event
will be held on Thursday,
January 18, in the Sisters-
Camp Sherman Fire Station
Community Hall in down-
town Sisters at 355 S. Elm
St. Doors will open at 6 p.m.,
and the formal program will
begin at 7 p.m. The program
is free and open to the public.
23
Report: Oregon’s inspection
backlog endangers air quality
PHOTO PROVIDED
Ian Reid will speak at the STA
forum next week.
Snacks and refreshments will
be provided.
For more information
about STA or performing
volunteer work on trails or
other outdoor-related proj-
ects, contact the organization
at 541-719-8822. Additional
information can also be found
on their website at www.
sisterstrails.org or follow
STA on Facebook at Sisters
Trails Alliance.
SALEM (AP) — The state
environmental agency’s back-
log of inspections and permits
could endanger Oregon’s air
quality and residents’ health,
state auditors said.
The Oregon Audits
Division’s report made public
last week shows 43 percent of
the state’s largest air polluters
are operating with expired
permits, the Statesman
Journal reported .
The expired permits mean
those businesses might not be
meeting the most recent envi-
ronmental standards, auditors
said.
“Untimely permits, com-
bined with a current backlog
of inspections, endanger the
state’s air quality and the
health of Oregonians,” the
auditors said in the report.
The backlogs and regula-
tory uncertainty could deter
companies from moving to
Oregon, auditors said.
“Some business leaders
and permit holders expressed
frustration and decreasing
confidence in DEQ’s abil-
ity to effectively manage the
permit program,” auditors
said.
The state Department
of Environmental Quality
told auditors it’s behind on
inspections, but that it does
not have a system for track-
ing when inspections are
due.
Department Director
Richard Whitman said the
problems stem partially from
declining funding.
Whitman said the depart-
ment has begun addressing
the problems identified in the
report, and it is developing
a plan to present to the state
Legislature in 2019 to bet-
ter fund the permitting and
inspection work.
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