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January 20, 2017 CapitalPress.com 9 Washington County official wants Trump to stop grizzly restoration By DAN WHEAT Capital Press SEDRO WOOLLEY, Wash. — The National Park Service and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service have issued draft plans to restore 200 grizzly bears to the North Cascades, drawing immediate opposition from an Okanogan County commissioner. The two federal agencies issued draft plans and envi- ronmental impact statements on Jan. 12 and invited public comments at meetings in eight communities next month. Okanogan and Chelan counties have opposed such efforts in the past. Jim De- Tro, Okanogan County com- missioner, said most people in Eastern Washington are opposed, given how the En- dangered Species Act has ru- ined the timber industry and destroyed custom, culture and economic stability. He said he hopes the federal effort is stopped by President Researchers weigh solutions for acidic soil By MATTHEW WEAVER Capital Press Some Eastern Washington farmers are considering which options are most affordable to combat increasingly acidic soils. Soil pH levels are likely to continue to slowly drop unless something is done to reverse it, said Tim Paulitz, research plant pathologist for the USDA Agricultural Research Service in Pullman, Wash. Lower pH levels lead to a reduction in yield, particularly in legume crops, because some nutrients become less avail- able. Acidic soil is particularly a problem in Spokane Coun- ty near Rockford, Wash., and along the Idaho border. Acid- ity levels are dropping in other areas as well, although not as steeply, Paulitz said. Researchers are consid- ering the use of calcium car- bonate, or agricultural lime, to reduce the problem, but the economics of the solution ar- en’t yet clear. “How much lime do you really need to add to push the pH enough, and is that going to be so costly that you’re not going to be able to afford it?” Paulitz asked. Many farmers don’t have close, cheap sources of lime, Paulitz said. Some finely ground sources of lime quickly shift pH levels, but won’t be long-lived, while larger-particle sources take longer. “It’s not something that’s instantaneous,” Paulitz said. “It takes a while for that reac- tion to happen.” In the meantime, some wheat varieties developed in the Midwest and being used in WSU’s spring wheat breeding program are tolerant of alu- minum, another problem in the soil when pH levels drop. Growing those varieties may be a stop-gap option, Paulitz said. “The buffering capacity of the soil is being overwhelmed over years of ammonia-based fertilizers,” Paulitz said. “You could be increasing certain diseases. Other diseases, you may decrease. The pH really has an effect on the plant and pathogens, and they all inter- act.” Farmers who direct-seed apply ammonia-based fertil- izers in a narrow band in the upper soil instead of mixing it in during conventional tillage, which has reduced pH levels in top layers. Direct-seeding farming systems allow growers to plant seed and fertilize in one or two passes directly into the residue and root structure of the previ- ous year’s crop. Specialized equipment opens a narrow seed row in the soil, and plants grow through that seed row. Associated Press File Federal officials have come up with four options for bringing grizzly bears back to the north Cascades of Washington state. An Okanogan County commissioner opposes the plan. Donald Trump when he takes office Jan. 20. “I would say we will sup- port reintroduction in Eastern Washington if every tributary that flows into Puget Sound and the Pacific Ocean has two con- firmed mating pair of grizzly first,” DeTro said. That would be like the state ramming its wolf recovery plan down the throat of Eastern Washington, he said. The agencies said they are “pleased” to announce the plans. “Restoring grizzly bears to the North Cascades Ecosystem would enhance the probability of longterm survival and con- servation of grizzly bears in the contiguous United States there- by contributing to overall griz- zly bear recovery and greater biodiversity of the ecosystem,” the agencies said in a newslet- ter. Conservation Northwest and the National Parks Con- servation Association were “thrilled” two years ago when the same agencies announced a round of public meetings to help them decide whether to consider restoration. Okanogan County com- missioners have reminded the agencies of a state law passed more than a decade ago pre- venting state funds from being used for grizzly bear recovery. The draft alternatives in- clude a no-action plan and three action plans of varying speed but each seeking to re- store a reproducing population of approximately 200 grizzlies through capture of bears in British Columbia or Montana and their release in the North Cascades. Plans include habitat and access management and public education and outreach. The last known sighting of grizzlies in the North Cascades was in 1996 but there are six populations of them in North America, the agencies said. Grizzlies were listed as a threatened species in the con- tiguous U.S. in 1975. They were listed as endangered in Washington in 1980. The North Cascades Ecosys- tem encompasses 9,800 square miles in the U.S. and 3,800 in British Columbia. The U.S. portion includes North Cas- cades National Park, Ross Lake National Recreation Area, Lake Chelan National Recreation Area, Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest and Mt. Bak- er-Snoqualmie National Forest. The public comment meet- ings are from 6 to 8 p.m.: Feb. 13, Cle Elum, Putnam Cen- tennial Center; Feb. 14, Cash- mere Riverside Center; Feb. 15, Winthrop Red Barn; Feb. 16, Omak, Okanogan County Fairgrounds annex; Feb. 21, Bellingham Technical College; Feb. 22, Darrington Communi- ty Center; Feb. 23, Sultan High School; Feb. 24, Renton Com- munity Center. Other means of comment can be given at: http://park- planning.nps.gov/grizzlydeis. Comments may be submitted through March 14. Water fight will spawn lawsuits, lawmakers warned By DON JENKINS Capital Press OLYMPIA — The Senate Agriculture and Water com- mittee was cautioned Thursday that reclaiming control of water policy from the Washington Supreme Court will probably lead to a court fight. The warning, made by a tribal attorney and a state De- partment of Ecology official, was rebuffed by Sen. Jim Hon- eyford, R-Sunnyside. “If we’re afraid of being in lawsuits, then we might as well close our doors, sine die and go home, because we’re not going to accomplish anything,” he said. The committee held the first of what likely will be many hearings this session on how to respond to high court rul- ings that have blocked Ecology from taking water from rivers Don Jenkins/Capital Press Washington lawmakers are discussing a controversial state Su- preme Court decision on rural water wells. and streams for new uses, even in cases the department says won’t harm fish. The so-called Hirst decision last year threatens to stop the drilling of new wells for rural homes. The Foster decision in 2015 bars Ecology from offset- ting water withdrawals by im- proving fish habitat. The rulings leave intact ag- riculture water rights, but alarm farm groups concerned about the futures of farm families and rural communities. Both rulings placed a high priority on minimum stream flows that Ecology has set in 26 of the state’s 62 watersheds. The court has held the flows are protected water rights. If Ecology can’t tap rivers to offset new water uses, at- tention will turn to agriculture, said Bill Clarke, representing a coalition of water users in Pierce County. “In this state, anytime we have a, quote, ‘successful mitigation’ what that means is we’re taking irrigated farm- land and losing it,” he said. Tribes and environmental groups support the Supreme Court rulings. Mukleshoot Indian Tribe attorney Ann Tweedy warned lawmakers not to weaken stream-flow protections. “It would force tribes and others who are concerned about instream flow resources to utilize federal protections, like the (Endangered Species Act) and potentially adjudica- tion of tribal rights as well,” she said. One piece of legislation introduced by Honeyford, Senate Bill 5003, would ef- fectively nullify Foster. The bill would allow Ecology to consider the economic benefits of withdrawing from rivers for development. Ecology would be required to have a habitat plan to keep the withdrawals from harming fish. “This is an attempt to give the Department of Ecology some tools to better manage our water supply,” Honeyford said. Sen. John McCoy, D-Tu- lalip, said he was so disturbed after reading the bill the eve- ning before that he had trouble sleeping. 3-4/#4