10 CapitalPress.com
October 27, 2017
Oregon
Oregon ranchers petition
for Supreme Court review
Dispute with federal
agency centers on
grazing, water rights
By MATEUSZ PERKOWSKI
Capital Press
An Oregon ranching
couple is asking the U.S.
Supreme Court to revive
their lawsuit against the U.S.
Bureau of Land Manage-
ment over grazing and water
rights.
A ruling by the 9th Cir-
cuit Court of Appeals upheld
the dismissal of the case
earlier this year, effective-
ly allowing BLM to shirk
its obligations, according to
Jesse and Pamela White of
Malheur County.
The dispute between the
Whites and the BLM aris-
es from the unraveling of a
1973 deal under which the
ranchers allowed the federal
agency to impair their water
rights in exchange for pro-
viding them with addition-
al cattle grazing on public
land.
Under the agreement,
BLM was allowed to build
20 reservoirs affecting the
Whites’ water rights while
increasing their allowable
grazing by 1,400 animal unit
months, or AUMS — a mea-
Carl Sampson/Capital Press
Cattle graze in Eastern Oregon. A Malheur County, Ore., couple
has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to review a case they
brought against the U.S. Bureau of Land Management.
sure of the forage consumed
by a cow-calf pair during a
month.
Continued conflicts with
BLM prompted the couple
to try to enforce their water
rights, leading the agency to
decide in 2008 to remove or
retrofit the structures affect-
ing the Whites.
Meanwhile, the BLM
would revoke the 1,400 ad-
ditional AUMS as their wa-
ter rights were restored.
While they initially
agreed to this arrangement,
the Whites later filed a law-
suit against BLM for com-
pletely withdrawing the
1,400 AUMs without fully
restoring their water rights.
A federal judge dismissed
their complaint, partly be-
cause water rights are under
the jurisdiction of Oregon
regulators, and the 9th Cir-
cuit refused to overturn that
ruling.
The Whites disagree with
this interpretation because
the continued impairment
of their water rights should
trigger the reinstatement of
the additional AUMs, over
which Oregon water regula-
tors have no authority.
The 9th Circuit found that
BLM can’t be compelled to
restore the AUMs or the wa-
ter rights because these aren’t
official “agency actions” un-
der administrative law.
By Jeannette Warnert
UCANR
4-H members in Santa Clara County will work with Google employees
to develop computer science technical skills, digital fluency, creativity
and problem solving skills in a new 10-week program made possible
with a donation from the Silicon Valley internet search giant.
Youth participants, teen leaders and adult volunteers are now being
recruited to take part in the 4-H Computer Science Career Pathway, a
weekly series that began Sept. 27. The pathway will translate abstract
concepts into practical experiences the participants can use to explore
the field of computer science.
“We are thrilled to begin our partnership with Google and prepare our
youth for successful careers in any field they choose through this
innovative program,” said Fe Moncloa, the University of California
Cooperative Extension 4-H Youth Development advisor in Santa Clara
County.
The outreach will go beyond the 10 weekly sessions. During the first
year, an estimated 700 youth in traditional 4-H community clubs, in
after-school programs, and in programs offered by partnering
community organizations will be touched by 4-H computer science.
Booths set up at festivals and fairs will reach still more young people.
“There are many different opportunities for our youth to explore
computer science,” Moncloa said.
The Santa Clara program is one of dozens funded through the National
4-H Council, which received a $1.5 million grant from Google to build
skills youth need for the future. Santa Clara is the only California county
involved.
“We don’t know what the jobs of tomorrow will look like,” said
Charlotte Smith of Google.org when the grant was announced. “Some of
them might require computer science skills, but it’s much more than that
– problem solving, collaboration. We want to give kids as many kinds of
tools as we can so they can succeed in any discipline and in any field.”
To reach underserved youth in Santa Clara County, 4-H will partner
with two well-established community organizations. Youth Alliance,
based in Hollister, provides innovative and culturally relevant services to
local youth and families. Youth Alliance offers after-school programs
for elementary and junior high school youth to give children a safe place
to spend afternoons, get homework help and participate in cultural arts
Under
administrative
law, courts can only order
a federal agency to take an
action when it has “ignored
a specific legislative com-
mand,” but the Whites “do
not identify any statute or
regulation that requires the
BLM to grant them addition-
al AUMs,” the 9th Circuit
said.
In their petition for re-
view to the nation’s highest
court, the Whites argue the
BLM’s 2008 agreement is
a final action that’s legally
binding under administrative
law.
It’s not enough for the
BLM to say it will restore
the couple’s water rights —
the agency must actually
carry out that decision, the
Whites said.
“Under the Ninth Cir-
cuit’s interpretation, how-
ever, BLM can avoid ju-
dicial review by granting
the relief but then failing
to provide it,” their peti-
tion said. “Under this ap-
proach, it does not matter
that the agency’s failure to
provide the relief granted is
equivalent to denial of that
relief.”
Attorneys for the federal
government have until Nov.
9 to respond to the Whites’
petition to the Supreme
Court.
Young rancher follows
in his family’s footsteps
By CRAIG REED
For the Capital Press
DIXONVILLE, Ore. — At
just 21 years old, Trent Pynch
is already a couple years into
the responsibility of carrying
on his family’s ranching tra-
dition.
Both his grandparents, Jim
and Bonnie Pynch, and his
parents, Jamey and Heidi, had
sheep. Trent Pynch has pur-
chased those animals and is
now making the decisions re-
garding their care.
“Since he was 3 years old,
all he wanted to do was to get
into sheep,” Jamey Pynch said
of his son. “He’ll always have
livestock, it’s in his blood. My
dad had always done this and
I’ve always done it.”
Trent Pynch does get help
from the older members of his
family and from his girlfriend,
Arica Hunter, because he has
several other responsibilities
in addition to his 180 ewes and
12 mother cows. He’s a full-
time employee at the Doug-
las County Farmers Co-op in
Roseburg, Ore., in the spring
he’s a leader of the Dixonville
Livestock 4-H Club and he’s
possibly one of the young-
est-ever board members of the
Douglas County Livestock As-
sociation.
“I do sleep occasionally,”
he said with a smile. “I’m
busy, but that’s how I like it. It
keeps me out of trouble.”
Rancher George Sandberg
said he is not surprised by the
young rancher’s involvement
in agriculture.
“What I saw in Trent was
a lot of ambition, working his
way into agriculture by show-
ing sheep, talking to adults and
always looking for something
to get involved in,” Sandberg
said. “He’s in an industry
that’s not known for having
young people. To be 21 and
doing what he’s doing is pretty
exceptional.
“There’s just not very many
young people in agriculture
and Trent is already doing
what seasoned people in agri-
culture are doing,” the rancher
added.
Trent Pynch grew up on the
family sheep ranch. At age 4,
he and his grandmother Bon-
nie worked together to nurse a
sickly, cold bummer lamb back
to health. The lamb was then
given to Trent and 17 years lat-
er his flock has offspring from
that ewe lamb.
In the first grade, Trent,
with his father’s help, picked
out and purchased two ewes
at a sale. Offspring from those
two are also in his flock.
In the fourth grade, he be-
came a member of the Rose-
burg Stockman 4-H Club.
Three years later as a sev-
enth-grader, he and his lamb
earned grand champion honors
in the Douglas County Lamb
Show.
programs.
A second community partner is Sacred Heart Community Service in
San Jose, which assists families with a wide variety of needs, including
after-school programs, housing, food, nutrition education, citizenship
classes and English-as-a-second-language training.
Santa Clara County UC Cooperative Extension 4-H has formed a team
to launch the 4-H Computer Science Career Pathway.
UCCE 4-H program representative Claudia Damiani will train college
students to offer the computer science curriculum to young people in
Youth Alliance and Sacred Heart Community Service programs.
Google employee and 4-H volunteer Curtis Ullerich will will teach the
computer science curriculum to other volunteers in Santa Clara County.
“Some people think computer science is limited to coding,” Moncloa
said. “Curtis, the way he teaches, he presents computer science in a
different way. Sure, coding is one element, but there is so much more.”
Fiona Reyes and Santiago Piva are 4-H Teen Leaders in this project.
They will teach and mentor youth, and collaborate with Ullerichwill to
extend the curricula to 4-H volunteers.
For information, visit http://ucanr.edu/survey/
survey.cfm?surveynumber=21539 .
43-2/HOU