July 15, 2016
CapitalPress.com
5
State urges dismissal of county’s timber management lawsuit
Lawsuit says state’s management has cost counties $1.4 billion
By MATEUSZ PERKOWSKI
Capital Press
ALBANY, Ore. — The
State of Oregon is urging the
dismissal of a lawsuit that al-
leges state forest management
prioritizes environmental con-
cerns to the detriment of log-
ging.
Earlier this year, Linn
County filed a complaint
against Oregon for allegedly
depriving multiple counties
of more than $1.4 billion due
to a forestry rule that empha-
sizes wildlife, water quality
and recreation over timber
harvest.
During oral arguments July
11 in Albany, attorneys for Or-
egon said the case should be
thrown out because the forests
are meant to be managed for
the greatest permanent value
to the state, not to the counties.
This “greatest permanent
value” is allowed to include
many factors beyond timber
production under laws that al-
lowed counties to donate their
burned and logged forests to
the state government, said Sar-
ah Weston, an attorney for the
state.
“The statute does not re-
quire revenue maximization,”
she said. “The statutes have
always provided for multiple
values and multiple uses.”
Counties acquired these
forest lands by foreclosing on
property tax liens during the
Great Depression but turned
them over to state ownership
in exchange for a portion of
future logging revenues.
Oregon’s attorneys claim
that Linn County cannot sue
the state to receive compensa-
tion for breach of contract, and
that the county’s challenge to
the “greatest permanent value”
rule can only be heard by the
Oregon Court of Appeals, rath-
er than in a county court.
Because the lawsuit seeks
to recover damages for insuf-
ficient logging in the future,
it clearly intends to alter the
meaning of “greatest perma-
nent value,” said Scott Ka-
plan, another attorney for the
state.
Either the state changes its
definition or it’s potentially lia-
ble for hundreds of millions of
dollars, he said.
“This is absolutely a chal-
lenge of state policies of forest
management,” Kaplan said.
Linn County argued that
contracts between the counties
and the state government are
enforceable.
“The counties gave up as-
sets in exchange for promis-
es,” said John DiLorenzo, at-
torney for Linn County.
Counties would not have
donated vast tracts of land if
they’d known the state would
change the terms of the deal at
will, he said.
“We believe that’s precise-
ly what the state has done in
this case,” DiLorenzo said.
“Counties must have a way to
enforce their bargains.”
More than 650,000 acres
in Benton, Clackamas, Clat-
sop, Columbia, Coos, Doug-
las, Josephine, Klamath, Lane,
Lincoln, Linn, Marion, Polk,
Tillamook, and Washington
counties were given to Oregon
based on “promises and assur-
ances” on which the state gov-
ernment has since fallen short,
the lawsuit claims.
The law that lays out Ore-
gon’s forest management obli-
gations was written when the
United States was preparing to
enter World War II and must
be understood in that context,
DiLorenzo said.
At the time, the greatest
value of the land was to pro-
duce a large amount of timber
for the war effort, rather than
to preserve wildlife habitat or
aesthetic beauty, DiLorenzo
said.
Legal precedents also indi-
cate that Oregon was obligat-
ed to maximize revenue from
those lands, he said.
Several environmental and
fishing organizations claim
this interpretation is erroneous.
The optimum management
of state forests was bound to be
contentious and so that ques-
tion was left to the discretion
of the Oregon Department of
Forestry, said Ralph Bloemers,
an attorney representing the
groups.
“It’s not up to the county,
or the timber industry, or the
conservation community, what
that should be,” he said.
There’s also nothing in
the law stating that revenues
take priority over other uses,
Bloemers said. “It continues to
be a huge gaping hole in their
complaint.”
Linn County also argues
the lawsuit should be certified
as a class action, which would
allow other counties to partici-
pate in the litigation.
There are numerous poten-
tial plaintiffs with common
legal arguments that would
be more efficiently resolved
as part of a single case, Linn
County claims.
The issue of class certifica-
tion will be heard at another
hearing that’s scheduled for
Aug. 17 in Albany.
Giant steer looms large at Boise Airport
By SEAN ELLIS
Capital Press
Eric Mortenson/Capital Press
Falconer Kort Clayton holds Copper after a demonstration flight July 6 during the Blueberry Field Day
at Oregon State University’s North Willamette Research and Extension Center. Trained falcons scare
pest birds out of berry fields, vineyards and orchards.
At OSU blueberry field day,
a falcon steals the show
By ERIC MORTENSON
Capital Press
AURORA, Ore. — Blue-
berry Field Day at Oregon
State University’s North
Willamette Research and Ex-
tension Center included the
expected technical discus-
sions of fertilizers, pesticides
and cultivars, but then a bird
swooped in and stole the
show.
That would be Copper, a
fierce-eyed falcon trained to
scare the bejeebers out of pest
birds that damage blueberries,
wine grapes or orchard crops.
Falconer Kort Clayton, own-
er of Integrated Avian Solu-
tions, let Copper loose for a
demonstration flight during a
field day presentation on bird
control options. Compared to
Copper’s buzz bomb perfor-
mance, discussions of humic
acid and boron applications
barely stood a chance.
Copper, a 4-year-old Red-
naped Shaheen, is one of
Clayton’s five falcons and
usually accompanies him to
field demonstrations. “He’s
super reliable,” Clayton said.
“He’s a flashy flier, he’s not
really bothered by crowds.”
There was more to Cop-
per’s appearance than show,
because bird damage is a ma-
jor problem for fruit and berry
producers. Growers across the
country use chemical repel-
lents, netting, noisemakers
Bird damage in fruit production
by state and crop, 2011 *
(Damage per acre/U.S. dollars)
State
Blueberry Winegrape
California
Michigan
New York
Oregon
Washington
$835
757
651
1,850
989
100
174
93
232
383
Honeycrisp
apple
Sweet
cherry
Tart
cherry
—
763
1,575
121
2,941
457
302
2,103
302
978
—
91
174
42
1,231
BOISE — A 15-foot-tall,
inflatable steer named “Bub-
ba” will loom over Boise Air-
port visitors this summer.
The animal, part of a dis-
play that touts the benefits of
beef and Idaho’s cattle indus-
try, commands a large pres-
ence in the airport’s baggage
claim area and is a head-turner.
“It automatically draws
your attention, which is what
we want to do,” said Traci
Bracco, executive director of
the Idaho Beef Council, which
created it. “You can’t miss
him.”
Bracco said the council was
“looking for a fun, innovative
campaign to create some buzz”
about Idaho beef and the state’s
ranching industry. “It’s a fun,
interactive way to connect with
consumers and attract attention
to Idaho’s beef industry.”
The display, which includes
a backdrop picture of Idaho
ranches to give the appear-
ance that Bubba is roaming the
range, made its appearance at
the airport in late June and will
Sean Ellis/Capital Press
A visitor at the Boise Airport takes a picture of “Bubba,” a 15-foot-
tall, inflatable steer that looms over the baggage claim area on
July 5. The Idaho Beef Council display will be at the airport through
early September.
be there through early Septem-
ber.
Including friends and fam-
ily members, about 3 million
people pass through the Boise
Airport each year.
IBC board member Morgan
Evans, a Downey area ranch-
er, said the council tries to use
its producer checkoff funds as
wisely as possible to achieve
the greatest impact and the
Bubba display is an example
of that.
Morgan said airports are a
great way to share the coun-
cil’s message about the bene-
fits of beef and ranching with
consumers. The IBC has had
beef-related banners in the Boi-
se and Idaho Falls airports for
several years and will include
the Lewiston and Pocatello
airports this year, he said.
*Based on results of 2,353 respondents that represent 31.7 percent of all growers targeted in
the survey.
Source: USDA APHIS
and pulsating lasers to keep
birds out of fields, with mixed
results.
Cornell University esti-
mated that 10 percent of the
U.S. blueberry crop is lost
to bird damage. In Oregon’s
blueberries, a crop worth $102
million annually, the loss can
be significant.
A 2013 USDA study esti-
mated birds cause $189 mil-
lion damage annually to Hon-
eycrisp apples, wine grapes,
blueberries and tart and sweet
cherries in just five states: Or-
egon, Washington, California,
Michigan and New York.
The USDA study also said
bird damage costs per hect-
are (2.47 acres) ranged from
$104 in Oregon tart cherries
to $7,267 in Washington Hon-
eycrisp apples.
To scare or discourage
birds, growers use such things
Capital Press graphic
as propane cannons, flagging
or netting. During the field
day bird abatement presen-
tation, company represen-
tative Rick Willis described
the Bird Gard system, which
is in place at the OSU re-
search plots. The system’s
microprocessor, which can
be powered by a solar pan-
el, plays robin and starling
distress calls, and the call of
predatory red-tailed hawks
— all of which unnerve pest
birds.
Another presenter, Marc
Gaffrey of Bird Control U.S.,
explained how the compa-
ny’s Agrilaser scares birds
by shooting harmless laser
beams across fields.
The system, mounted on
a swiveling tripod, can be
moved from place to place,
and a hand-held model is
available.
By TIM HEARDEN
Capital Press
SACRAMENTO — The
incoming president of the Pa-
cific Legal Foundation wants
to expand the property-rights
organization’s national pres-
ence.
“I want PLF to be bold and
brave and to be creative and
innovative,” Steven Ander-
son, who will take the reins on
Sept. 1, told the Capital Press.
“I’m optimistic about where
we’re headed and how we’re
going to get there.”
The foundation’s board
last week announced the hir-
ing of Anderson, currently the
executive vice president and
chief financial officer of the
Arlington, Va.-based Institute
for Justice, to succeed Robin
L. Rivett, who retired in May
after a decade as president and
41 years at the PLF.
Anderson comes aboard
as the PLF’s mission is gain-
ing momentum, with the U.S.
Supreme Court accepting two
of its cases in the past year.
In U.S. Army Corp of En-
gineers v. Hawkes, justices
unanimously ruled in May
that landowners can challenge
a federal determination that
their property is subject to
Clean Water Act restrictions.
Another PLF case alleging
an unconstitutional taking,
Marr v. State of Wisconsin,
is set to be heard by the high
court in October. The Sacra-
mento-based PLF has won its
last eight cases before the Su-
preme Court.
Established by senior offi-
cials from then-Gov. Ronald
Reagan’s administration in
1973, the PLF also provides
speakers for events and offers
a Liberty Clinic program for
law students at Chapman Uni-
versity in Orange, Calif.
Among Anderson’s goals
is to build on the organiza-
tion’s recent success before
the high court and expand its
fundraising efforts, he said.
“Generally speaking, if we
want to do more, we’ll have
to call on more people to pro-
vide support for Pacific Legal
Foundation,” he said. “It’s
something I do in my current
role. … I think the product
that PLF provides, a lot of
people want to buy. I look
forward to talking with those
people who allow the great
work of PLF to happen.”
For the Institute of Jus-
tice, a similar free-enterprise
legal organization, Anderson
handled such day-to-day op-
erations as litigation, activ-
ism and outreach, legislative
affairs and financial manage-
ment, according to a news
release.
29-7/#6
PLF’s new president wants to extend reach