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About Illinois Valley news. (Cave City, Oregon) 1937-current | View Entire Issue (May 16, 2007)
Page 13 Illinois Valley News, Cave Junction, OR Wednesday, May 16, 2007 Forest boss notes USFS Biscuit facts Conroy describes comments, news stories at odds with his position AN ORIENTATION SESSION for approximately 94 fifth-grade students from Ever- green Elementary School was conducted Thursday, May 10 at Lorna Byrne Middle School. The prospective sixth-graders were toured in groups throughout the school by members of the LBMS Student Council. The intent is to show incoming students what to expect come September. (Photo by ‘Illinois Valley News’) Six middle school students raising funds to compete in National History Day event Six Lorna Byrne Middle School seventh-grade stu- dents in Cave Junction have earned a trip to Washington, D.C. to participate in National History Day competition. Now all they need is the money to help get them there. From June 9 to 14, Sierra Heikka, Zach Kay, Myana Dhenin, Angelina Heath, Ja- mie Sowell and Kristen Vi- dales plan to compete with students from around the country. Lacey Fox, LBMS English and geography teacher, who advised the stu- dents on their state award- winning history projects, will accompany them. Teacher Julie Barnes and two chaper- ones also will make the trip. Fox said that this is the second consecutive year that LBMS students have quali- fied for nationals. The LBMS group quali- fied for the event by placing second in Oregon’s statewide competition at Willamette University in Salem. Sierra and Zach produced a docu- mentary on Oregon pioneer John McLoughlin, and the other students produced a play about the infamous Sa- lem (Mass.) witch trials. Myana said that the pro- ject involved extensive inter- net research, as well as old- fashioned book reading. After the statewide competition, the group worked to perfect its presentation, she noted. “The judges had a lot of suggestions for what we could change,” she said. “So we’ve been adding things in and reworking it.” It’s anticipated that air- fare, food and lodging for the trip will cost approximately $8,000. So far, the group has raised nearly half, said Nicole Doran, Myana’s mother. A raffle will be held June 5 at LBMS as part of the fund-raising efforts. Prizes include a $40 Visa gift card donated by SOFCU Commu- nity Credit Union, tools do- nated by True Value Hard- ware, and a slew of gift cer- tificates from Illinois Valley merchants. “Businesses have been very generous,” Fox said. On Saturday, May 19, the students will bag grocer- ies at Shop Smart Food Warehouse as part of the fund-raising push. “It was nice of the store to offer that,” Doran said. All donations are tax- deductible, and checks can be left at LBMS or mailed to the school. Checks are payable to Lorna Byrne Middle School History Day Fund. Myana said that the com- munity support will certainly inspire her and her fellow students to represent the school well. “I know how hard fund- raising is, so I plan to do my best at nationals,” she said. -Scott Jorgensen Tips for business vacation For many business own- ers, the thought of planning a summer vacation can be com- plicated at best and unthink- able at worst. Concerns about customer or client care and anxiety about missed business oppor- tunities can make many small-business owners feel that they cannot take off. Senior Insurance Solutions Richard Chaffee Medicare Insurance Specialist WOW! Now Ø premium Medicare Supplement Available Blalock Insurance 328 Caves Hwy. 541-592-3373 Linda Sallman 128 S. Redwood Hwy. Cave Junction OR 97523 541-592-4541 Across from the new Home Valley Bank on Redwood Hwy. 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Some credit and charge cards allow card mem- bers to earn points toward everything from airfare to car rentals to hotel stays and let them redeem points at virtu- ally any airline with no black- out dates or restrictions. By using a charge card like the Business Gold Re- wards Card from American Express throughout the year for business purchases, you can accumulate points quickly to help offset the cost of your next vacation. *Brief key clients or cus- tomers. When possible, give them a minimum of two- to three-weeks notice. Identify your stand-ins and communi- cate your confidence in their ability to help should a prob- lem arise. *Take a day trip or a three-day weekend. Some- times a long getaway is just not in the cards. In that case, a brief escape with a change of scenery can do wonders and allow you to return to work rested and refreshed. For more ideas, visit www.OPEN.com. (NU) By SCOTT CONROY, Supervisor, Rogue River- Siskiyou National Forest The last of the Biscuit Fire salvage sales is nearing completion, marking the end of a significant and controver- sial chapter in the history of the Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest. It also provides a time for review, and a time to test the claims of many about what the Biscuit Recovery project was or was not. The Biscuit Fire Recov- ery Project served as a light- ning rod in the national de- bate over post-fire logging. It attracted protests, congres- sional hearings, news stories, publications, scientific de- bate, and of course, many lawsuits. The conflict was serious, heated, and waged with a “no-holds-barred” intensity to a degree I have rarely wit- nessed in my 30 years in natural resource management. Unfortunately, there were casualties, and from my per- spective, one of the most sad- dening of these casualties was “truth.” Claims were made about the “Biscuit Fire Recovery Project” that frequently left my staff and I open-mouthed in wonder that otherwise rea- sonable people could make them, and that others would unquestionably embrace them as true. Here are some exam- ples of actual newspaper headlines: “Healthy Old Growth Trees to Be logged in the Bis- cuit Fire Area” accompanied by a picture of an unburned old-growth forest. Truth: no unburned old-growth forests were salvage-logged, and only fire-killed trees, or trees that constituted a legitimate safety hazard, were author- ized for cutting. “The U.S. Forest Service lost more than $9 million logging trees burned by the massive 2002 Biscuit fire in southwestern Oregon” Truth: we spent approxi- mately $5.8 million to ana- lyze, document, prepare, ad- minister, and legally defend these salvage sales. The sales generated more than $12.3 million to the taxpayer, and provided about $40 million of value to the local communi- ties. One critic published a prediction that our loss would be almost $14 million without ever bothering to ask to look at our books. Where did that come from? In court, there was testi- mony that the sales were lo- cated in Wilderness (which would have been illegal); that we didn’t retain enough snags for wildlife (have you seen the millions of snags still pre- sent throughout the Biscuit fire area?); and that our goal of salvage logging to assist with reforestation was proven unnecessary by research find- ings. That last claim was made again and again. Opponents frequently misrepresented our intentions for salvage logging as though we believed log- ging was necessary for forest recovery. My decision to sal- vage log was to realize both the potential jobs for local communities and the eco- nomic return to the federal government. law and for your greatest good for the long term. To do so, I need the productive participation of citizens will- ing to acknowledge and deal in what is true, even if it does- n’t support their beliefs or desires. There is hope and oppor- tunity for good results when honest people deal honestly with each other. Un- researched, unsupported, ex- aggerations and intentional misrepresentations designed to inflame rather than to enlighten serve no common good. One last truth you should know. The time and resources spent battling such claims could have been more pro- ductively spent restoring our landscapes in hope of avoid- ing another Biscuit Fire on your lands. I also knew these sales would be implemented with rigorous environmental pro- tections and generate funds for recovery efforts. One claim heard often was that these sales were ille- gal. My staff received letters and phone calls from people around the country aghast that we were engaging in actions so obviously against the law. The courts, how- ever, disagreed and ruled in favor of the Forest Service in more than 17 rulings. Seven- teen. The Forest Service has prevailed in every court deci- sion. “Truth” is an unaccept- able casualty in matters con- cerning debate over the man- agement of our National For- ests. These lands are treas- ures, and I am charged with managing them according to Traffic safety group lists opening Josephine County Traffic Safety Advisory Committee has a vacancy for which ap- plications will be accepted until Friday, June 1. Applications are avail- able at co.josephine.or.us; or at the office of the county commissioners in the court- house in Grants Pass. Bicyclist succumbs to head injury A Grants Pass bicyclist, who injured his head when he col- lided with a car on Saturday, May 5 in the downtown area, has died of his injuries. 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