The Nugget
Vol. XLIII No. 33
P OSTAL CUSTOMER
News and Opinion
from Sisters, Oregon
www.NuggetNews.com
Sisters
attorney
wins
landmark
case
PRE-SORTED STANDARD
ECRWSS
U.S. POSTAGE PAID
Sisters, OR
Permit No. 15
Wednesday, August 12, 2020
A hot day on Whychus Creek...
Sisters
sees more
cops on
the street
By Sue Stafford
Correspondent
By Jim Cornelius
Editor in Chief
On January 21, 2017,
Andrew K. Myers9 life
changed irrevocably.
The airline pilot, who had
flown for JetBlue Airways
since 2002, was in a JetBlue
Airways plane on the tarmac
in Portland, conducting run-
ups on a plane engine when
the cockpit and cabin of
the plane filled with fumes.
Myers suffered multiple med-
ical complications from his
exposure to the toxic chemi-
cal fumes 4 complications
A pair of fawns refreshed
themselves in the cold waters of
Whychus Creek in Sisters’ high summer.
PHOTO BY JERRY BALDOCK
See ATTORNEY on page 16
Sisters9 new deputies
aren9t on the job yet 4 but
the community is already see-
ing a greater law enforcement
presence.
The new law enforcement
contract between the City
and the Deschutes County
Sheriff 9s Office (DCSO)
went into effect July 1, 2020.
When fully in force, the con-
tract calls for a permanent
supervising lieutenant and
three full-time deputies. The
DCSO is currently training
new replacement deputies
to fill the current positions
See POLICE on page 10
OSAA: No high school Dwarf mistletoe a problem in forests
sports before December
By Craig F. Eisenbeis
Correspondent
By Charlie Kanzig
Correspondent
The OSAA (Oregon
Scholastic Activities
Association) announced a
big change to the 2020-21
high school sports seasons
in response to the COVID-
19 pandemic. The decision
came following an execu-
tive session on Wednesday,
August 5.
In essence there will be
three seven-week competitive
seasons within a truncated
6-1/2-month time period
between December and June.
The OSAA actually
defined four <seasons= under
the plan: <Season One= from
August 31-January 3 will be
considered a time that high
school students could be
allowed to take part in sports
and activities not overseen by
the OSAA, but approved by
the Oregon Health Authority,
Oregon Department of
Education, the Governor9s
Office and local school dis-
tricts. In other words, it may
be possible that a club sport,
Inside...
for example, will be allowed
under specific guidelines.
Conditioning and train-
ing during this period, con-
ducted by coaches, would be
allowed but cannot be consid-
ered mandatory.
Gary Thorson, athletic
director and head football
coach for Sisters High School,
is hopeful some activities
will be possible in the fall.
<The 800-pound COVID
gorilla needs to be dealt with
before we get too excited
about what we can and can9t
do during that (Season One)
time period, but if and when
we get a green light from the
state and district our athletes
and coaches will be active,=
he said. <We have been very
limited to what we can and
can9t do, but if things open up
to the point that we can have
scrimmages and competition
with local schools we will,
for sure. We want all our kids
safely competing and getting
things back to normal ASAP,
all the way down to the youth
See SPORTS on page 23
Dwarf mistletoe contin-
ues to pose a threat to Sisters
Country forests.
Dwarf mistletoe falls
into the broad definition of
a pathogen and is a parasite
that infects coniferous trees
such as the firs and pines in
our local forests. Although
mistletoe does have some
chlorophyll capable of pro-
ducing nutrients, that capabil-
ity is a mere fraction of what
typical plants produce. As a
result, mistletoe gets the vast
majority of its water and sus-
tenance from a host tree; and
it9s voraciously parasitic in
doing so 4 literally sucking
the life from its host by send-
ing root-like tendrils into the
tree itself.
While a host tree can toler-
ate some mistletoe, the drain
of nutrients and water from a
significant infestation takes
a severe toll. Over time, the
tree9s growth will be stunted,
perhaps deformed, and the
tree weakened. It make take
several years for the tree to
actually die from an infesta-
tion; but, in the meantime, the
PHOTO BY CRAIG F. EISENBEIS
Dwarf mistletoe is a parasite that feeds on conifers, such as this young
ponderosa pine along the Whychus Creek Scenic Overlook Trail.
weakened tree also becomes
more susceptible to other dis-
eases and attacks from insects
such as pine beetles. Infected
trees have a far higher mor-
tality rate than healthy trees.
Local interest in the dis-
ease recently emerged for two
reasons: First, a significant
infestation west of Sisters, in
and around Suttle Lake, has
sparked a major logging oper-
ation to remove thousands of
infected trees. Second, the
disease has become notice-
able at the Whychus Creek
Scenic Overlook Trail.
Infestations have been
seen on young ponderosa
pines right at eye level along
the Overlook Trail 4 which
makes the Overlook an excel-
lent place to view the parasite
up close.
The Suttle Lake project is
ongoing, and logging opera-
tions have caused some tem-
porary trail and road closures
in recent weeks. Jean Nelson-
Dean, Forest Service Public
See MISTLETOE on page 22
Letters/Weather ............... 2 Sisters Naturalist .............. 4 Entertainment ................. 11 Fit for Sisters ................... 17 Classifieds ................. 20-22
Meetings .......................... 3 Announcements ...............10 Obituaries .................. 12-14 Crossword .......................19 Real Estate ................ 22-24