CapitalPress.com
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Editorials are written by or
approved by members of the
Capital Press Editorial Board.
October 6, 2017
All other commentary pieces are
the opinions of the authors but
not necessarily this newspaper.
Opinion
Editorial Board
Editor & Publisher
Managing Editor
Joe Beach
Carl Sampson
opinions@capitalpress.com Online: www.capitalpress.com/opinion
O ur V iew
A cautionary tale for work near streams, wetlands
T
he Oregon Department of
State Lands wants to fine a
farmer $6,000 for alleged
violation of state fill-removal
laws.
The potential fine seems
excessive, particularly to
the actual harm — or, more
accurately, the lack thereof. But
rather than a story about fines and
punishment, the case serves as
a cautionary tale for landowners
with streams and wetlands — or
anything that can be later so
classified.
Kelly Sampson grows hay and
nursery stock on 80 acres near
Canby, Ore., on the banks of Milk
Creek.
Sampson told Capital Press
that he noticed a section of the
stream bank was eroding, and he
decided to plant willow trees to
Mateusz Perkowski/Capital Press
Farmer Kelly Sampson stands near Milk Creek, a tributary of the Molalla River,
which runs through his 80-acre property near Canby, Ore. State officials warn
that landowners should seek advice before working near streams, rivers or
wetlands.
stabilize the soil.
He put hay bales onto rocks
next to the creek to retain
moisture for the young trees.
Ordinarily, landowners don’t
need a fill-removal permit from
the Oregon Department of
State Lands if they’re adding
or removing less than 50 cubic
yards of material in a waterway
or wetland.
But in this case Milk Creek —
a tributary of the Molalla River
— is designated as “essential
salmonid habitat,” so any amount
of disturbance requires a permit,
according to the agency.
Sampson was unaware of the
designation, and says his reading
of the rules on the DSL website
made him believe he was in the
clear.
A complaint received by DSL
indicates that Sampson placed
hay bales as well as “horse
manure and barn cleanout”
below the creek’s ordinary high
O ur V iew
Agriculture means
opportunity for young people
I
n the U.S., about 21 million jobs
are involved in agriculture, food
and related industries. That’s more
than 1 out of every 10 jobs in the
nation.
For today’s young people, that
means opportunity, and lots of it.
Jobs are readily available in every
aspect of agriculture. It could involve
cutting-edge research seeking a cure
for a nettlesome animal or plant
disease. Or it could involve running
the family farm or ranch. Or it could
involve repairing and maintaining the
equipment on which farmers rely.
Just as important are the support
jobs in areas such as the sales, law
and finance.
Those many job categories
require widely varied backgrounds,
experience, training and education.
The options are nearly limitless.
The toughest question any high
school graduate faces is this: What’s
next? Often that question leads
down the path toward attendance
at a four-year college or university.
Others choose to start their academic
career at a community college before
transferring to a four-year school.
Still others go to vocational school,
take part in apprenticeship programs
or dive directly into the job market,
learning as they earn.
All of the options have their pluses
and minuses.
For example, four-year universities
offer a lot of opportunities, but
they usually come with an outsize
price tag. About two-thirds of all
students borrow money for college,
according to Credit.org, a nonprofit
that provides financial counseling. A
recent study found that the average
student loan debt is more than
$35,000.
Unless a student can attract a
significant amount of scholarships
and grant help, the jump to a college
degree will be accompanied by a
hefty student loan balance. Those
loans will be a huge drag on any
Tim Hearden/Capital Press
From left, Basil Frew, Chase Tanaka and Austin Okeson measure the inside of a connecting
rod during a basic engine theory class at San Joaquin Delta College in Stockton, Calif. The
three are students in the college’s mechanic program.
young persons as they set out on their
own.
However, other educational and
training options offer lucrative
career opportunities without overly
burdensome financial baggage. Last
week we reported on some of the
many training programs available to
young people who want to become a
diesel mechanic or heavy equipment
technician. Working on tractors,
combines and other heavy-duty
equipment requires state-of-the-art
skills and knowledge, ranging from
“turning wrenches” to electronics and
computers. When a complicated piece
of equipment worth several hundred
thousand dollars goes down, only a
well-trained technician can get it back
on the job.
Many community colleges
offer programs affiliated with
manufacturers and dealers or similar
programs that allow students to
gain the knowledge and experience
they need to walk out the door and
into a well-paying job involved in
agriculture.
It’s easy for young people to
“freeze up” when it comes to
considering careers. In agriculture,
there are many options that open
doors to well-paying jobs. Not all
of them require a four-year college
degree.
If a student’s interests lead to
college, good. But a fulfilling career
does not necessarily require a college
degree. The right training can
guarantee that.
water mark.
Though Sampson’s intentions
were good, he was in apparent
violation of the law.
To its credit, when DSL
finds an unintentional violation
it works with the landowner
to work things out. If you can
restore things as you found them,
the fine can be waived. Or, the
fine can be reduced to the extent
that the effort is successful.
The best policy for a
landowner is to assume a permit
is needed and seek professional
advice.
“Give us call and we can
advise them,” said Lori Warner-
Dickason, field operations
manager for DSL. “If they
proceed without confirmation
from us, they do so at their own
risk.”
Staying above the
fray on social media
By KARI BARBIC
For the Capital Press
Keeping a discussion on
social media constructive can
be a real challenge, especial-
ly when the other side goes
negative, or even hostile. But
nobody wins in an online
shouting match. So how do we
advocate and educate on con-
troversial issues without get-
ting drowned out by the noise?
1. Find your common
ground.
This may be easier said
than done, but we can usually
find some level of common
ground with people who hold
opposing viewpoints. Granted,
those people may have some
harsh opinions and unkind
words as the conversation
heats up, but chances are the
discussion would look far dif-
ferent if they weren’t shielded
by their computer screens.
As you prepare to address a
topic, consider opposing views
and the types of people who
may disagree with your stance.
When it comes to agriculture,
there’s no shortage of opin-
ions — informed or not. This
shouldn’t surprise us. The peo-
ple who would tell you how to
run your farm may have equal-
ly strong opinions on how their
doctors and mechanics should
do their jobs as well.
We don’t have to make sense
of everyone else’s viewpoints
but we can evaluate their per-
spective and find broad areas
to agree on. Take a mom who’s
anti-GMO. Do you both want
safe, affordable food for your
families? It’s probably safe to
assume the answer is yes. You
may differ in how to arrive at
that goal, but you can lay the
groundwork for a productive
discussion if you at least share
the same starting point.
2. Keep your facts front
and center.
Be sure to have solid exam-
ples and numbers on your side
from the start. It’s not hard to
rally like-minded peers around
an issue, but if you want to
engage in a thoughtful debate
with opposing viewpoints,
do your homework and tri-
ple-check your facts. Bringing
facts straight from your farm
can help educate your audience
far more effectively than broad
Guest
comment
Kari Barbic
generalizations.
When you’re advocating
for regulatory reform, talk
about the specific steps you’ve
taken and farming techniques
you’ve adopted that have im-
proved your farm’s sustainabil-
ity. Show the difference in the
amount of water and pesticides
you use thanks to advances
in technology. Even better,
show your audience pictures
or videos of what a modern
sustainable farm looks like, or
use Facebook Live or Insta-
gram Stories to bring visitors
to your farm in real time. You
may not win over your op-
ponent with one compelling
photo or clip, but you’ll leave
them with something to think
about as you set the stage for
your next interaction.
3. Acknowledge when the
other side has a valid point
(and learn from them).
We may learn a thing or two
by studying our opponent’s
playbook. Are there specific
strategies and messages that
seem to be working for them?
To help sharpen your own
tools, take some time to consid-
er what makes their messages
effective.
None of us can be right
about all the things all the
time. But we can go a long
way in establishing credibil-
ity with others who may be
listening in on our debate if
we give credit where it’s due
when the opposing side makes
a good point. If you stay fo-
cused on building your repu-
tation as a credible resource,
you have a better chance of
making all your words count,
even if you don’t get the last
word.
Few of us have been per-
suaded to change our opinions
after just one discussion. Keep
that in mind and relieve your-
self of the pressure of trying to
change a person’s opinions and
habits via just one Facebook
thread.
Kari Barbic is a media spe-
cialist at the American Farm
Bureau Federation.
Readers’ views
Collaborative
process a mistake
The first mistake anyone can
make when dealing with any gov-
ernment agency is to agree to a
collaborative process. The word
you agree to is co-operative. My
experience has proven that once
you have agreed to be collaborative
you will never gain any meaningful
progress as the opposition can now
control the narrative and thus the
outcome of whatever subject mat-
ter the meetings are about. This is
because by being collaborative you
agree that all parties must agree, no
matter how minor the point. This
allows the opposition to delay and
control not only the direction but
ultimately the outcome.
Remember that to obtain their
goal it becomes necessary to first
marginalize and then criticize those
whom they perceive to be their op-
position. As all liberals believe that
they are morally and intellectually
superior to those who do not be-
lieve as they do it is no wonder you
are treated as mindless boobs.
So, what to do now? Get on
the horn to mobilize and flood the
next meeting with your people. De-
mand to be included, as you too are
members of the “public” and find a
lawyer to represent you at the next
meeting.
Learn to play the game by the
same rules they play by. Realize
that what we have is a war and one
does not win wars when one side
is armed with bows and arrows
while the other side has guns. Pay
attention and use the same tactics
they use.
Brian Smith
Smith Lumber Co.
West Point, Calif.
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