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Illinois Valley News, Cave Junction, Ore. Wednesday, September 13, 2017
Chetco Fire meeting more relaxed
Annette McGee Rasch
IVN Senior Contributing
Writer
H&R Block
210 W. Lister St.
Cave Junction
592-3667
Ted Crocker, LTC
Bob Litak, LTC
Licensed Tax Consultants B14914
Recent clear skies have
helped sooth Illinois Valley
residents weary from wildfire
smoke - thus the community
information meeting held in
the high school cafeteria Sun-
day, Sept. 10, drew 170 people
who were far more relaxed
than the hundreds of nervous
souls who’d crammed into the
same space a week earlier.
Members of the Chetco
East Zone fire management
team, Illinois Valley Fire Chief
Dennis Hoke, and County
Commissioner Lily Morgan
presented current fire infor-
mation, discussed manage-
ment strategies and facilitated
a lengthy question and answer
session with the community.
“We look at where the
fire is at, where it has grown
and we respond where we need
to,” explained East Zone Inci-
dent Commander Brian Gales.
At this paper’s print
time, the fire was estimated
to be 184,267 acres and is 8
percent contained. While still
one of the nation’s largest, the
fire had only grown a small
amount in recent days and was
“mostly smoldering, creeping
and backing. Aerial observ-
ers report minimal fire activ-
ity on the eastern flank, with
very little open flame,” Gales
explained, though he added
that with three-to-five days of
drying, the fire might “take a
small run” but said he doesn’t
think the fire can produce “a
wall of fire coming at the fire
line.”
Gales said his crews are
tying together sections of old-
Biscuit Fire dozer-built con-
tainment lines between the fire
and Highway 199 and added
that the fire is still between 8
and 12 miles away from those
lines. Regarding potential burn
out operations, Gales added
that, “we’re not going to do
that unless we absolutely need
to.”
Still, Gales cautioned that
the Checto Fire must be taken
seriously as the potential for
serious fire behavior remains,
which is why 320 firefighters
are camped out at Lake Sel-
mac for the duration and the
Oregon National Guard has
sent in troops to help out. A
Level 1 evacuation notice for
residents living west of High-
SALE
...
Continued from A-1
Although some of the project involves
thinning and restoration, which is not
objectionable by some environmental activist’s
standards, many areas will be logged down
to 30 percent canopy retention. Any stand
that is logged below 30 percent canopy
retention is considered, by the BLM’s internal
definition, to be clear cut. For example, if a
stand is logged down to 29 percent or less
it is considered to be clear cut. Essentially,
the BLM is allowing buyers to cut within 1
percent of their definition. Ream’s ultimate
concern with this practice is that it generates
an extreme fire hazard because the biggest,
oldest and most fire resistant trees are taken
out and, as an additional consequence, the
increased sunlight and airflow dries out the
ecosystem. Compounding the issue, he added
that many of the units to be heavily logged
are relatively close to communities, thereby
creating a potential danger to lives and
property.
Ream theorizes that the deal is being
rushed forward at an expedited pace because
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way 199, from Hayes Hill to
the California border remains
in place; and residents of the
Oak Flat area up Illinois River
Road remain under a Level 3
evacuation order.
Illinois Valley District
Fire Chief (IVFD) Dennis
Hoke said his crew has been
doing “structural triage” -
where properties in the Level
1 evacuation zone are evalu-
ated based on whether they
can be successfully defended
from wildfire. There are four
possible categories, and those
considered undefendable are
red tagged.
“Some places have no
address, or the driveways are
in poor condition,” Hoke said.
“If we can’t get our apparatus
in there, a property will be
marked as undefendable. Or if
a place has a cedar shake roof,
a wood shed right next to the
house and trees touching the
roof, we can’t save that.” And,
while doing structural triage
in O’Brien, one IVFD crew
was shot at on Naue Way last
week. “That’s property will
‘red-tagged’ as undefendable,”
Hoke dead-panned.
the government’s fiscal year ends Sept. 30.
Essentially, he alleged, the BLM wants to
make the books look healthier at the last
minute.“They told us that they were interested
in taking comments from the public but during
the time that was happening they were out
marking the trees.”
Ream was surprised by the lack of
communication and felt it was a big step
backward in the BLM’s usual diplomacy. In
the past, the BLM has abided by a system
called the Applegate Adaptive Management
Area Process. The process opens up
communications with the affected community
and provides the framework to create a plan
which is acceptable for both parties. Ream felt
that the BLM suddenly, and without cause,
decided to abandon it.
During the environmental assessment
period, there was a substantial amount of
formal complaints filed against the sale by
public administrators and the BLM is required
to adequately address them before awarding
the timber. Despite this, politicians have
thus far remained mostly silent. To demand
their attention, Ream asks citizens to contact
Senator Merkley, U.S. Rep. DeFazio and
Senator Wyden with a list of their concerns in
order to force their hand into the situation.
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