Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Illinois Valley news. (Cave City, Oregon) 1937-current | View Entire Issue (April 11, 2007)
Page 5 Illinois Valley News, Cave Junction, OR Wednesday, April 11, 2007 Walden: ‘Active stewardship’ key to success (Continued from page 1) The Natural Resources Committee is one of two House committees with ju- risdiction over the legisla- tion. Regarding H.R. 17, Walden said, “Counties in much of the West are suffer- ing dramatic cuts in their budgets right now; teachers are being given pink slips; and libraries are going to close in the most populous county in my district in April if we don’t act in this Congress to keep a promise that has been made to these counties since Theodore Roosevelt basi- cally created the forest re- serves 100 years ago. “So I would encourage earliest possible considera- tion in this committee as we did in 2005 to move that legislation forward.” Walden said that in Oregon and the Second Congressional District, in particular, one of the most obvious and overriding in- fluences is land ownership. “In my district, more than 50 percent of the land base is owned by the federal government,” he noted. “In other words, poli- ticians and federal employ- ees in Washington, D.C. have an influence over my constituents unimaginable to most in the East. As laws and regulations are churned out from within the beltway, Westerners feel their impact most intensely, particularly those concern- ing the management of fed- eral lands.” He then listed 10 of the major laws with which fed- eral land management agen- cies and local communities must deal. “Individually each of these laws provides impor- tant environmental safe- guards,” Walden explained, “but collectively they inter- twine and overlap in often contradictory ways that make it nearly impossible for federal land managers, local elected officials, part- nership groups, and private citizens to navigate -- even simple decisions are vulner- able to lawsuits on proce- dural grounds. “The result is legal grid- lock. “In 1986 the national forests in my district pro- duced a timber sale program of 2.226 billion board feet at a value of about $213 mil- lion, a quarter of which, $53 million, went to the local counties for schools and roads. “Twenty years later, in 2006, the timber sale vol- ume was a mere 198 million board feet worth revenues of $17 million, less than 10 percent the 1986 levels. “The loss of family wages and the impacts on many local economies and their basic community infra- structure has been dramatic. “The collapse of the timber sale program and the resulting job losses weren’t restricted just to my district, but were felt across the country in nearly all coun- ties near national forests: Annual nationwide federal land harvest averaged around 11 billion board feet for decades, dropping to below 2 billion board feet in the 1990s.” Walden noted that as less wood from national forests became available, the need for wood was re- sponded to by increasing imports to record levels, largely from countries with poor environmental policies and safeguards. “Were job losses in ru- ral America necessary?” asked Walden. “Is it now necessary for us to further ship our jobs overseas and rely on foreign natural re- sources?” He said that long before 1986, national forest growth had begun to exceed har- vest, beginning in the 1930s. “In fact,” he said, “it is evident that not only has growth exceeded harvest, but mortality has exceeded County cutbacks outlined (Continued from page 1) ruple the county’s portion of the real property tax from 58-cents per thousand to nearly $2.50 per thousand dollars of assessed value. “If the May levy fails, a second levy will be at- tempted in September. If both levy attempts fail, by the end of 2007 the commis- sioner expects the following list of cuts” may be needed: *Seventy-five county employees may need to be layed off. If September’s second attempt for a levy increase fails, an additional 25 employees are likely to be cut. *Josephine County and city of Grants Pass share the county jail. Currently there are 150 beds for inmates at the county jail. After the cuts there likely will be only 10 to 20 beds available for Josephine County and Grants Pass inmates. (The fishing term “Catch and Release” will take on a com- pletely new meaning.) *The county sheriff’s budget is expected to fund only one patrol car for the entire county, and it will be on duty only 20 hours per day. *The district attorney’s office currently has eight attorneys and nine support staff. It prosecutes offenders for Josephine County and Grants Pass city. After the cuts the county expects to budget only the D.A. and two assistant attorneys, plus two to three support staff members. At such reduced staffing levels, prosecutions would then be limited to violent crimes. Drug offenders could neither be arrested due to the lack of jail beds, nor prosecuted due to the lack of D.A. capabilities. Such low staffing levels also would preclude prosecution of non- violent property crimes, like burglaries. *Road maintenance and repair could lose $2 million and cut up to 17 public works department workers. *Josephine County’s library system would be expected to close its doors, with only a single library opening a reading room for a few hours each week. *All nonmandated pub- lic health services may be affected; they comprise a third of county public health services. *The Juvenile Deten- tion Center, which services the county and city, likely would be closed, with the resulting loss of at least 14 beds. Juvenile offenders could then only be cited and released. Richardson added, “The loss of federal timber re- placement revenue (commonly referred to as O&C funds), to 33 Oregon counties is imminent and catastrophic. It is not being melodramatic to say more than one Oregon county faces shutting off their lights, closing their doors, and ceasing to exist by year's end, unless O&C funding issues are resolved. “Sixth-eight percent of Josephine County’s General Fund revenues depend on federal timber replacement money; for Douglas County 69 percent and for Curry County 63 percent of its General Fund revenues come from federal pay- ments. “The federal timber money replacement pay- ments are scheduled to end by July 1, and the O & C counties are in jeopardy.” According to the Asso- ciation of Oregon Counties (AOC), the O&C counties will lose approximately $460 million needed to fund essential county services during the 2007-09 bien- nium. “The root of the prob- lem,” Richardson explained, “stems from the federal gov- ernment’s control of 57 per- cent of Oregon land -- of which 2,651,771 acres are O&C lands. How the feds obtained such large tracts of Oregon’s land mass is not important. “What is important is the recognition that rural Oregon’s prosperity has always depended on effec- tive and productive manage- ment of our natural re- sources. Timber was to rural Oregon communities what corn is to Iowa. “For more than a cen- tury O&C counties relied on timber-related jobs for their economy, supplemented for decades by federal timber payments. Now both are gone. “It appears the federal government is not able to effectively, efficiently and economically manage Ore- gon's forests in a sustainable manner. If the federal gov- ernment is incapable of managing Oregon’s forests and unable to generate a reasonable amount of O&C funding revenues, maybe it is time for the federal gov- ernment to relinquish con- trol over Oregon's forest lands,” said Richardson. Is Diabetes Ruining Your Life? Are you... Tired of increasing medications? Having difficulty losing weight? Always tired and fatigued? Afraid of future complications? Frustrated and don’t know where to turn? There is Hope! This life-changing program for Type 2 Diabetes was developed by the Lifestyle Center of America ® and will reveal the most powerful and proven lifestyle changes you can make to restore your health. Sunday, April 15, 6-8 p.m. JUNCTION INN RESTAURANT BANQUET ROOM Come to the FREE INFORMATION SESSION to register for the WELLSPRING DIABETES PROGRAM TM coming soon. Contact: Kim Bowlby Phone: 541-597-4084 harvest as well. “Many more trees are dying on our national forests than are being har- vested. The rest of the story, unless you’ve been a hermit for the last few years, was not just predictable but inevitable. “The explosive increase in forest fuels, combined with drought, has resulted in a huge increase in the num- ber and size of catastrophic wildfires -- to a record- breaking 10 million acres last year. “In the words and ac- tions of President Teddy Roosevelt we can still hear the echo of balance and mul- tiple use; of providing for the needs of that day, and for the needs of the future. “Teddy Roosevelt,” said Walden, “was many things, but principal among them he was a man of action. And if he were to join us today, I hardly believe he would be pleased to know that 190 million acres of the federal forest reserves are subject to catastrophic wildfire, dis- ease and bug infestation. “The man who charged up San Juan Hill would never stand for the gridlock that has overtaken the ability of the educated and trained public land management professionals to effectively steward our natural resources and special places. And nei- ther should we. “Let us not defend a system that allows the sym- phony of fiddlers to tie us up in court for years while bugs devour our forests and fires ravage our communities. Let us not defend a sys- tem that is so complicated that it takes three times longer to remove a burned, dead tree than to rebuild the Pentagon.” 20% OFF your 1st facial 20% OFF facial products Located at N.W. Hairlines ~ 223 N. Redwood Hwy. RISE, Inc is looking for a few stellar families in Josephine County! Creating opportunities for and with children with disabilities, that’s what the RISE Proctor Parent Program has been doing for 20 years! ♦ RISE’s Proctor Parent Program helps people become state certified foster parents. ♦ We have an extensive matching process in order to honor the needs and preferences of children and families. ♦ We work with you to create an environment where children and families can succeed. ♦ Becoming a proctor parent with RISE can be a great alternative to a traditional job! Come join us and be proud to work with a company that encourages you to make a difference! Call: 503-371-3001 or 1-800-260-4227 H.D. PATTON JR C O N S T 541 • R U C T 476-2127 I O N Lic #39671 Outstanding New Subdivision “Too Far South” Cave Junction (some restrictions apply - building may vary from illustration) R EACH - U p , S TAND - UP , F LY - UP ! COMPUTER CLASSES AT THE ILLINOIS VALLEY FAMILY COALITION The Illinois Valley Family Coalition is sponsoring a series of computer classes for beginners. • Sign up right away to reserve your seat. • You must enroll for either the 3:00 PM or 5:00 PM starting times. • These classes are not interchangeable as seating is limited at each session. • Class size is limited to 11 students. Session three – Word – 4 classes How to create personal and business letters, reports and other documents. File Management is a prerequisite for this class. Class E Class F Tuesday April 17 3 – 4:30 PM 5:00 – 6:30 PM Thursday April 19 3 – 4:30 PM 5:00 – 6:30 PM Tuesday April 24 3 – 4:30 PM 5:00 – 6:30 PM Thursday April 26 3 – 4:30 PM 5:00 – 6:30 PM Session four – Excel/Spreadsheet – 5 classes How to format spreadsheets, sort data, and create formulas to automate calculations. File Management is a prerequisite for this class. Class G Class H Thursday May 3 3 – 4:30 PM 5:00 – 6:30 PM Tuesday May 8 3 – 4:30 PM 5:00 – 6:30 PM Thursday May 10 3 – 4:30 PM 5:00 – 6:30 PM Tuesday May 15 3 – 4:30 PM 5:00 – 6:30 PM Thursday May 17 3 – 4:30 PM 5:00 – 6:30 PM Illinois Valley Family Coalition 535 E. River Street, Cave Junction Phone 592-6139 to reserve your space. Sliding scale fees based on income.
