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10 CapitalPress.com January 8, 2016 Idaho Subscribe to our weekly Idaho email newsletter at CapitalPress.com/newsletters Former spud shed official pleads guilty to embezzling $1.7M By JOHN O’CONNELL Capital Press BLACKFOOT, Idaho — A former financial controller of a southeast Idaho fresh pota- to packing plant has pleaded guilty to embezzling $1.7 mil- lion from the business and its affiliate. In an agreement reached Dec. 23 with Bingham County prosecutors, Russell C. Leon- ardson pleaded guilty to two counts of grand theft for em- bezzling from Aberdeen-based Idaho Select Inc. and Select Express LLC, an affiliated ag- ricultural transportation com- pany. In exchange for his plea, prosecutors dropped 70 counts of forgery against Leonard- son for allegedly converting checks from his name to an- other name to hide embezzled funds. Leonardson agreed to pay the companies $1.7 million in restitution and faces up to 14 years in prison on each grand theft count, according to Bing- ham County Prosecutor Cleve Colson. Colson said prosecutors have agreed to suggest that the judge accept the sentenc- ing recommendations of a pre-sentence investigation by the Idaho Department of Cor- rection, which is still pending and will factor in details such as Leonardson’s criminal his- tory and family background. The judge won’t be bound by the recommendations. Leon- ardson is scheduled to be sen- tenced at 1:30 p.m. on Feb. 18. “Both counts encompass the entirety of the thefts — the entirety of what we know was taken from Select Express and Idaho Select,” Colson said. A pending civil suit, filed by Select Express and Ida- ho Select, provides insight into the criminal case against Leonardson. According to the civil filing, Leonardson was hired in 1997 to perform finan- cial management functions for Idaho Select and also served as the first manager of Se- lect Express, formed in 1998. Leonardson’s job description tasked him with “establishing internal controls to protect Idaho Select from financial predators and deficiencies.” Idaho Select’s president, Scott Poulson, said in his affidavit that he frequently expressed concerns to Leon- ardson that his financial state- ments weren’t thorough or timely, and that Leonardson became angry when he and Idaho Select board members suggested hiring a full-time accountant. Leonardson re- signed, and Poulson hired Cooper Norman fraud investi- gators, who confirmed Leon- ardson had used Select Ex- press credit cards and checks to pay off personal debt and make unauthorized purchas- es for himself and others, according to the civil filing. Restitution will cover thefts from January 2007 through July 2014. According to the civil case, Cooper Norman ob- tained evidence from an au- diting program that tracks missing checks and maintains a time-stamped history of any changes to financial records, in a format that can’t be al- tered by users. Irrigators use canal water to recharge aquifers By JOHN O’CONNELL Capital Press ABERDEEN, Idaho — For decades, holding shares in the Aberdeen-Springfield Ca- nal Co. has essentially been a contingency plan for Gay- len Van Orden, who relies on wells for a steadier source of water. However, that surface wa- ter may finally come in handy for the Eastern Idaho farmer and other irrigators in the re- gion who have switched to wells but still held onto their canal shares. Aberdeen-Springfield Ca- nal Co. recently announced a plan authorizing share- holders to inject their unused storage water into the aquifer — through a process known as recharge — to offset man- datory reductions they’d oth- erwise be expected to make from their well irrigation in the coming season. Under the terms of a set- tlement reached last summer resolving the Surface Water Coalition’s water call against junior well users through- out the Eastern Snake Plain Aquifer, groundwater users will have to cut consumption by an average of 240,000 acre-feet annually, or about 11 percent per user. Van Orden said many members dug their own sup- plemental wells in lieu of us- ing surface water — and some have removed their lateral canals — as they switched John O’Connell/Capital Press Volunteers prepare french fries in Pocatello’s Pond Student Union Ballroom during a prior Idaho Potato Conference. Free fries are a tradition at the event, hosted at Idaho State University but spon- sored by University of Idaho. Courtesy of Aberdeen-Springfield Canal Co. This structure, called the Hilton Spillway, is utilized by Aberdeen-Springfield Canal Co. for conducting managed aquifer recharge. The company intends to allow members to recharge some of their storage water to help them meet a required reduction in well-water use this year, rather than curbing their groundwater pumping. Idaho Potato Conference aims to boost leader talk attendance By JOHN O’CONNELL from flood irrigation to sprin- klers, which require a stable water source and can’t make do with delivery reductions during times of peak demand. “A lot of people with shares in the canal system are paying even though there aren’t any canals around their fields,” Van Orden said, add- ing growers on the farthest extremities of the canal were especially apt to switch to wells. Since the settlement was approved, Aberdeen-Spring- field General Manager Steve Howser has already received requests from growers to re- turn about 1,500 well-irrigated acres to surface water, seeking to meet their required ground- water reduction. Howser fears it would jeopardize the canal company’s ability to deliver a stable supply if many more growers were to follow suit, and he hopes shareholders will take advantage of the recharge plan to maintain the status quo. Howser said about 17,000 acres on his system are eligi- ble for the recharge program. He said the company would have to recharge just under 5,000 acre-feet to offset the required groundwater reduc- tion if the full eligible acreage were enrolled. Joyce Capital, Inc. In agriculture, nothing is certain. Your interest rate should be. We offer competitive interest rates for your agricultural financing needs: • Term agricultural loans (purchases & refinances) • FSA Preferred Lender • Amortizations up to 25 years CONTACT: Kevin Arrien, or Joe Lodge at Joyce Capital, Inc. Agricultural Loan Agents (208) 338-1560 • Boise, ID joe@arrien.biz Shareholders will have the opportunity to pool any remaining water to be re- charged to help groundwater districts meet their ground- water recovery goals. Pay- ments from the groundwater districts will be returned to the shareholders. Howser said his company also plans to line a 1.5-mile stretch of the main canal through More- land to conserve an addition- al 75 cubic feet per second of storage water. Lynn Tominaga, execu- tive director of Idaho Ground Water Appropriators Inc., said his groundwater districts have approached other canal com- panies, including Idaho Irri- gation District and New Swe- den Canal Co., both based in Idaho Falls, suggesting they consider similar recharge op- tions for their members. Canal companies are still mulling the possibility, he said. Mat Weaver, deputy direc- tor of the Idaho Department of Water Resources, cautioned water users to remember that “relying on recharge is prob- lematic because it’s water supply-driven.” He also not- ed that recharge water may not remain in the system long enough to completely com- pensate for water pumped from wells. 2-4/#17 Capital Press POCATELLO, Idaho — Organizers of the 48th Annu- al Idaho Potato Conference, which will be hosted here Jan. 20-21, anticipate far fewer empty seats in the Pond Stu- dent Union auditorium when industry leaders speak at their upcoming event. Top spud officials come to the Idaho State Universi- ty campus from Washington, D.C., Denver and Eagle, Idaho, for the opportunity to update growers, shippers and others involved in potato production about their organizations’ ef- forts. Too often during past con- ferences, however, they’ve delivered their comments to sparse crowds, said UI Ex- tension weed scientist Pam Hutchinson, who is co-chairing the event. New during the upcoming conference, Hutchinson ex- plained leaders from the National Potato Council, the U.S. Pota- to Board and the Idaho Potato Commission will present during a special “featured speaker” time slot, from 9 a.m. until noon on Jan. 20, with a half hour break. Hutchinson said the speakers have thus far spoken during the 8 a.m. time slot, when many at- tendees were still arriving. During previous years, she said, other presentations have been scheduled at the same time, some offering pesticide applicator recertification cred- its, which aren’t available to those who attend updates by the organizations. This year, Hutchinson said there will be no conflicting ses- sions during the featured speak- ers’ time slot, aside from a single presentation offered in Spanish, with no credits available. Hutchinson said she’s also considering door prizes to help draw a crowd. “They travel a long ways and they have really excellent information, and when your talk is at the same time as a workshop that gives pesti- cide applicator recertification credits, that’s hard to compete with,” Hutchinson said. USPB President and CEO Blair Richardson said he’s glad for the opportunity to speak, regardless of the audience size, but he’s pleased with the effort to make it easier for members of his industry to attend. “I’m excited about some of the changes we’ve made as a board over the last few years,” Richardson said. “It’s a great opportunity to visit with some of the growers, and there’s nothing like being face to face with them.” University of Wiscon- sin-Madison plant pathologist Amanda Gevens will also be among the featured speakers. Gevens will focus on late blight, a fungal disease that caused widespread problems in Idaho during the 2015 grow- ing season. “We want to take advantage of her expertise and experience in late blight,” Hutchinson said. “She’s published in research journals and has developed good recommendations be- cause they have it there more than we do.” Other sessions will high- light the latest advancements in weed, disease and insect man- agement. Hutchinson said UI is aiming to increase its focus on grower involvement in work- shops and has panel discussions scheduled on pale cyst nema- tode control and potato virus Y. UI will also unveil website updates, including a more com- prehensive UI potato website and a youth website, focused on potatoes, developed by UI Extension scientists. Partici- pants will be allowed to regis- ter online for the first time for the upcoming conference, and an Internet cafe will be added to provide visitors with online access. Nez Perce Tribe opposes forest rehabilitation plan ROP-1-2-2/#14 LEWISTON, Idaho (AP) — A large-scale timber sale and rehabilitation project re- cently approved by the Nez Perce-Clearwater National Forest still faces opposition from the Nez Perce Tribe over environmental concerns. The Lewiston Tribune re- ports the 44,000-acre Clear Creek Integrated Restoration Project is backed by members of the Clearwater Basin Col- laborative, made up of county commissioners, loggers and environmentalists. The proj- ect would be implemented over several years. Its goals include harvesting 85 million board feet of timber and im- proving fish and wildlife hab- itat. The tribe is concerned the logging will negatively im- pact Clear Creek, the water source for a fish hatchery it manages. The tribe’s Fisher- ies Division director says of- ficials haven’t yet addressed their concerns. The Idaho Conservation League’s Jonathan Oppen- heimer says the organization looks forward to discussing challenges surrounding the Clear Creek project.
