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About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (Oct. 13, 1976)
Environmental Footnotes Roadless canyon wilderness endangered CHIEF JOSEPH’S HOMELAND THREATENED: Less than 100 years ago Chief Joseph and me Nez Perce tribe called the Wallowa VaHey home. Many of them wintered in the big canyon country north of Enterprise, along Joseph Creek, where Chief Joseph was bom. Today, nearly 30,000 acres of U.S. Forest Service land still remains as wild as it was when Chief Joseph roamed these pris tine canyons. This unique, undisturbed area is critical winter range for Rocky Moun tain elk and is the last undeveloped area along Joseph Creek. A local northeastern Oregon conserva tion group, Maintain Easter Oregon Wilder For Oregon Lovers... and those who war* to know more .n detail, acout Ciencr. a very special - i. aty State Bp Seed reservation order tad payment to; Atlaa of Oregon U of 0 Bookstore To take advantage of thu price books moat be piekod up at tbs Bookstore. Customers wffl be notified when books are available. *Now or never ness (MEOW), have proposed that the Joseph Canyon roadless area be protected as part of the National Wilderness Preser vation System. Until recently the forest service has had the foresight to save this spectacular area. But now their outlook has changed, MEOW says, and the future of the roadless wilder ness area is apparently in jeopardy. The north slope stands of timber, critical to elk for thermal cover during winter, are marginal timber sites at best. MEOW or ganizers claim that plans are being made to build roads into the area and log these mar ginal stands at a net cost to the taxpayer. Rather than manage the area for the re source it produces best (elk), this plan would result in loss of elk habitat as well as further erosion of the local economic base. Other wildlife and watershed values are high in the Joseph Canyon roadless area. Black bear are found in timbered areas and cougars are not uncommon. Mink, muskrat, beaver, river otter and racoons make their homes along the larger streams, most of which support steel head and resident trout By E G. WHITE-SWIFT Of the Emerald Golden and bald eagles are abundant in the area. Goshawks, Cooper’s hawks and sharp-shinned hawks nest in the conifer thickets along Swamp and Davis Creeks. Blue grouse, ruffed grouse and chukars are numerous. Great grey owls are currently subjects of research on the Wallow Whitman forestland. If you are an Eagle Cap Wilderness fan or have eqoyed the Joseph Canyon roadless area, this is the time to become involved, as the forest service will be making their deci sions soon. For the forest service viewpoint, write Al Oard, Supervisor, Wallowa-Whitman Na tional Forest, P.O. Box 907, Baker, Ore. 97814. For the Maintain Eastern Oregon Wilder ness viewpoint, write MEOW, ’Winding Waters Chapter, Route 1, Box 157, Enter prise, Ore., 97828 (426-3096). EPA WITHDRAWS FROM KAB: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Russell Train notified Keep America Beautiful recently that the agency was withdrawing from the organization’s national advisory council. Train’s announcement was prompted by a recommendation from Roger Strelow, EPA’s assistant administrator for air and waste management. Strelow had recom mended that “EPA should withdraw im mediately from participation in KAB until and unless its position or loooymg in oppose tion to beverage container legislation is re versed.” EMERGENCY 1060: The old red. white, and blue Army wants to use the chemical compound “1080" to kill ground squirrels at Fort Ord, Camp Roberts and Hunter-Liggett Military Reservations in California to com bat an alleged threat of bubonic plague. Use of this dangerous toxicant and other poisons on federal lands was banned by executive order in 1972. The Army is seek ing an emergency exemption from that order, although no cases of the plague have been reported at the bases. The Army contends that because of high squirrel populations, inevitably there will be a plague However, environmental groups say the Army had not seriously considered alternative measures to deal with the prob lem and have requested that the Army pre pare an environmental impact statement before any program is undertaken. They fear that if the use of a restricted chemical, in this case Compound 1080, is allowed, it might trigger a flood of requests from ag ricultural interests to reinstate widespread use of the poison. HIKES PLANNED: The Obsidians, outback-packers from way back, are plan ning two hikes this weekend. A six-mile hike about Bear Mountain south of Eugene will be led by Obsidian Lee Hatch Sunday. Also Sunday, the Obsidians are planning a spur-of-the-trail hike somewhere in the upper-Mohawk Valley. As they drive through the valley, they will find the trail that “looks good" for the weather. The Sierra Club is planning a 17-mile hike Sunday into the Hardesty Mountain and June Mountain areas. Call 686-5014 for more information. SOLAR CELLS CHEAPER: At noon on a sunny day, an array of solar cells a little more than one square foot in area can gen erate about 10 watts of electric power — enough to operate a small TV set. Once installed, the cells produce essen tially free electric power, but the high initial cost prevents them from being generally competitive with other forms of energy. The Energy Research and Development Administration (fcrlUA) recenuy announcea a 26 per cent drop in the cost of solar cells, from $21 a watt to $15.50, over a six-month period. ERDAs goal is 50 cents a peak watt by 1986. ERDA also announced plans for instal ling 60 kilowatts of solar cells on a remote island to supplement the existing power sta tion at an existing facility. The location for the test has not been chosen yet. The solar system will be integrated with the existing system to measure the capabilities of solar under field conditions. ELECTRIC FENCE FIRES — Illegal electric fence controllers are being sold throughout Oregon reports the State De partment of Forestry. These illegitimate de vices are responsible for forest and grass fires in the state because of their overly long electrical impulses. Nineteen fires resulted from the fences in 1975 on lands protected by the forestry de partment. In addition, 60 electric fence caused blazes were reported to municipal and rural fire departments that same year. The only legal electrical fence controls are those authorized by the Underwriter s Laboratory, the Canadian Standards As sociation of the Factory Mutual. It is against the law to sell any controls without the ap proval of one of these organizations, how ever, they are being found on the shelves of department and farm stores throughout Oregon. Persons using unauthorized fences may be charged for fire control costs if the fence starts a blaze spreading to state-protected lands, asserts Leo Wilson, department of forestry fire prevention director Council accredits Social work degree A University program leading to a bachelor's degree in social work was re cently accredited by the Council on Social Work Education. Granted through November, 1977, the accreditation is the initial one for the prog ram, which is newly identified as a separate degree offering in the Wallace School of Community Service and Public Affairs (CSPA). According to Carmelrta Thomson, visiting assistant professor in CSPA. there are ap proximately 25 designated social work ma jors, ‘but many more students are enrolled in work classes. ’' The program, which Thomson described as designed to train students in "the helping professions," includes courses in casework methods, group work methods, child wel fare services and community organization, as well as research and field experience. It employs four full-time faculty members plus “adjunct instructors who teach one or two classes," Thomson explained. iC 'fcttairLofb ^ y fbt-Men arid Ubmen • Why not visit the\ y Hair Loft for those Why-am-I- back-in-school-blues? We have three conveniently located shops and three times the service! 445-1202 464-2565 2435 MUamefe l239Aider M£( 6. 19* (aowfror* (nextr^crtoHic H^iawertsflab) fecred Heart) <5ianH3rinder) Berg’* Nordic SKI Shop *. 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