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Hults
Dr. Joseph L. Miller Jr. has fought to protect the purity of
the drinking water for the city of Portland for decades, and
continues today. As recently as last month, May 1995, he
submitted comments on plans to "manage" Bull Run Watershed
We are please to be able to share with our readers the thoughts of
one of the most tenacious Oregonians since Tom McCall.
Editorial
"1 Oppose the Whole Process."
Now & Then
It was with great sadness that we learned on Memorial
Day last, o f the death o f Bridget Snow. We share the grief
o f her family and friends, and dedicate this issue o f the Edge
to her m em ory. Bridget lived in Cannon Beach for over
fifty years and was loved and respected by all who knew her.
We know that this passing will effect our dear Professor
Lindsey and Mr. Logan, and we will miss their regular
reports o f her wit and strength. She was one o f the
vanishing group o f strong women who made Cannon Beach
the place it is. She was also one o f the few who could recall
the last tim e the hills surrounding Cannon Beach were
logged. Perhaps she could not stand the thought seeing it
done again.
O ne o f the jo y s o f your beloved editor's day job, running
Jupiter's Rare & Used Books, is the occasional outstanding
book that he will hold briefly in his hands. Recently,
thanks to Dr. Joseph M iller, tireless defender o f Bull Run
W atershed (see this p a g e ), we got our hands on
several volum es from the 1700's. Books, some older than
Am erica, leather bound, printed on hemp, with wood block
illustrations. One, from 1784, a small almanac from
England, listed days whereupon bleeding was ill advised and
also held a list of dates for "remarkable events". O f course,
the first date was 3949 B.C. "Creation o f the W orld". No
quibbling; not approx. 3900 B.C., not 3948 or 3950, nope,
3949 B.C. W e assume on a M onday, New Year's Day, a
little after midnight.
This reminded us o f how incomplete our knowledge is.
Uncle Mike notes that we have no idea what 98% o f our
universe consists of. This is perhaps why we are skeptical
of zealots and true believers. W hen former Secretary o f
Defence MacNamara, twenty years too late, declared that the
Viet Nam W ar had been a mistake, we started to wonder
about what other m istakes will be admitted to in the future.
Will we see Newt and the boys confessing their mistakes on
education, health care, the budget? Will the major timber
companies, the petro-chemical industry, and automobile
manufacturers one day tearfully ask for the forgiveness o f the
whole planet, for the m istakes that brought about the
needless death and destruction of our environment? Will it
do any good?
This issue o f The Edge will focus on some o f the
m istakes we can still correct or prevent from being made. In
Portland, Bull Run is in danger, in W illapa Bay, herbicides
and pesticides threaten. Here in Cannon Beach, the harvest
continues, both on the surrounding hills and in the city
limits, as new construction eliminates the last old ones, to
"get more light" or m ake room for "new growth".
The humble Ms. Sally asked, what does it mean, "Some
nights the w olf is silent and the moon howls"? We huffed
and gruffed and pontificated, spewed out vague suppositions,
and finally admitted we had no idea what it means. We have
a feeling about the statement. It was originally found as
graffiti, under a bridge in Portland. We picture a wolf
howling at the moon as a primal vision o f nature in reaction
to the cosmos. Then we suddenly hear the whole universe
screaming back at the earth, from the mouth of the moon.
The universe has listened to the whines and howls enough,
and it is time to shut up and listen to something other than
our own noise.
This month we, and several others, have found ourselves
howling at the moon, and for good reasons. We are at 8
pages this month, simply because that is all we can afford.
This means that space is limited and some ads have been
reduced to reflect this. We have tried to keep a balance of
ads and content.
1. W hat happens to Bull Run Lake affects a National
Treasure. It affects the purity o f drinking water for 700,000
people now; and for more in future generations. There
should be a full-fledged Environmental Impact Statement.
2. A 20-year permit for extensive MANAGEMENT would
prejudice current efforts in Congress to secure
PROTECTION for this w ater source. Protection is the
oposite of management.
The values in Bull Run that have historically done better
under protection than management, include;
Naturally pure, cheap, abundant, reliable drinking water.
Public pride and satisfaction in the way this area is taken
care of.
W ild animals and plants; especially disappearing species
and ecosystems.
In additon, real protection would retain an existing option
for all the Bull Run and Little Sandy inhabited watersheds to
be designated as Research Natural Areas, so scientific
observations could be done o f the impacts o f past
manipulations. Information obtainable only in this way can
enable us to improve our caretaking of priceless and
disappearing sources of naturally pure water in many other
places. This option for future learning requires a control;
undisturbed headwaters.
3. The extent o f disturbance o f the natural values that would
occur if this permit is issued is hinted at by the mitigation
measures.
4. Public involvement can only have been minimal, due to
poor notification. I do not read the classified ad section of
the Oregonian.
5. Public health considerations are ignored. The prime
consideration in protecting the natural purity and safety of
the water, is exclusion o f all unnecessary human entry.
This permit would authorize entry to many people for 20
years.
It would not be unreasonable to fear that issuance o f this
permit would lead to admission o f public recreation. In
1971 the Forest Service proposed admitting the public to
Bull Run, including swimming in the reservoirs from which
come their drinking water. Public outrage blocked that
proposal.
The Bull Run Lake perm it issued in 1993 required
admission o f the public. Such entry would surely violate
the intent o f the Preamble o f Public Law 95-200; That the
principal m anagement objective should be the continued
production o f pure, clear, raw, potable water. Admission of
the public would mandate filtered, not raw water (for public
health reasons).
Respectfully Submitted,
as
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FIREWOOD
Immediate Delivery
(503) 368-6457
When Possible Bum Dry Wood
The Wood you bought last year, Burn this year.
The Wood you buy this year, Burn next year.
C liff E rdman
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CA N N O N B E A C H : Jupiter's Rare and Used
Books, The Cookie Co., Coffee Cabana, Bill's
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Tavern. Cannon Beach Book Co., Hane s Bakerie,
The Bistro, Midtown Cafe, Once Upon a Breeze &
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M A N Z A N IT A : M other Nature's, Cassandra's,
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U Cleanline Surf
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Nehalem Bay Video
R O C K A W A Y : Sharkey's
T IL L A M O O K : Rainy Day Books
N E SK O W IN : The Hawk Creek Café
P A C IF IC C IT Y : The River House
O C E A N S ID E : Ocean Side Espresso
L IN C O L N C IT Y : Trillium Natural Foods,
Driftwood Library
N E W P O R T : O ceana Natural Foods, Don Petrie's
Italian Food Co., Café DIVA, Cosmo Café,
Bookmark Café, Newport Bay Coffee Co.,
Cuppatunes, Bay Latté, Ocean Pulse Surf Shop &
Canyon W ay
E U G E N E : The W OW Hall, K.LCC, Oasis
C O R V A L L IS : The Environmental Center, OSU
S A L E M : Heliotrope
A S T O R IA : KMUN, Columbian Café, The
Com m unity Store & Café Uniontown
S E A SID E : Buck's Books & Universal Video
P O R T L A N D : The Goose Hollow Inn, Powell's
# Books (Two Locations), Music Millennium (Two t
Locations), The Laurelthirst, Key Largo, East Ave
Tavern, and many many m ore......
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D U V A L L , W A SH IN G T O N : Duvall Books
S E A T T L E , W A SH IN G T O N : Elliot Bay Book
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Co., Honey Bear Bakery, New Orleans Restaurant.
Still Life in Fremont, Allegro Coffeehouse, The
Last Exit Coffee House, & Bulldog News.
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Here is the test to find whether your mission
on earth is finished: If you're alive, it isn't.
Richard Bach
^ooV,'ifV^ nv/L
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W H E R E T O G E T AN ED G E
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(Enclosed with Dr. Miller's letter was the testimony of
Harold T. Osterud, Professor and Chairman o f the
D epartment o f Public Health and Preventative Medicine
UOHSC, School of Medicine. Dr. Osterud also speaks
eloquently o f the need to keep Bull Run protected from
recreational use as well as logging, listing the dangers of
disease that increase with the number o f people allowed in
the watershed, plus the cost o f correction once the water is
polluted. Dr. M iller as always enclosed the names and
numbers for the folks to call if you want to keep Bull Run
protected. They are, this time, Connie Athman and Alan
Smart, and we called them. They informed us that the
Portland City Council has decided on option B, which
allows water to be taken until it is level with the intake
pipes, and will provide for the recovery o f Bull Run Lake in
6 years. The "leave it alone" option was not successful, but
they recommend you write your congression Representative.
W e also encourage this, and recommend you tell them that
you stand with the good Doctor M iller in opposing the
whole process!)
l^'.lhron ( A o is a\so nofS.nOj a V>fo(a*v
Vo S e t
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Joseph L. M iller Jr., M.D.
(ret. Portland physician)
"J* a à M so fl, mí . •arc. «riiSSinq'ZSírvxs VlincCoUxn,
2S
o f being forced to set in motion the expensive and restrictive
engines of recovery, the Secretaries ol Interior and
Commerce (a marriage made someplace other than heaven)
would run a cost/benefit analysis o f their survival versus
somebody they know making a bundle. Then, and only
then, would they prescribe treatments ranging from doing
something about it to sending a note o f condolence. In the
eyes o f Gorton/Johnston, this merely levels the playing
field.
Speaking o f level playing fields, there was an interesting
piece in an old issue o f Popular Mechanics I recently stole
from some waiting room. The piece was about the Big
One: the asteroid that hit the Earth 65 million years ago and
wiped out the dinosaurs so we'd have oil deposits to kill
each other over. The fiery chunk o f karma struck off the
present coast of Colum bia and make a hole 180 miles in
diameter, roughly the distance from Portland to Seattle. We
know about the cloud of debris that blotted out the sun tor
decades. W hat the article pointed out was the immediate
effect o f a large asteroid slamming into the ocean. Evidence
indicates it raised a wall o f water three miles high that
deposited shattered boulders five feet across as far north as
Connecticut. One such wave deposit off Cuba, perhaps a
back flush, is 300 miles wide and 1500 feet thick.
On cost/benefit analysis o f that level playing field,
Gorton/Johnston w ouldn't even be a blip.
the man who says it can't be done is
generally interrupted by someone doing it.
Harry Emerson Fosdlck
Q uestion: Name a newspaper you can get in Cannon Beach, Astoria, Seaside, Lincoln City,
Tillamook, Newport, Eugene, Corvallis, and Portland.
Answers: The Upper Left Edge, The Oregonian, USA Today, and maybe The Wall Street Journal.
Q uestion: Now add; the Long Beach Peninsula, Seattle, and Duvall, Washington.
Answers: The Upper Left Edge, USA Today, and maybe The Oregonian.
Q uestion: Name a paper that you can get in all of the above for FREE!
Answ er: The Upper Left Edge
Q uestion: Match the price for a full page ad with each paper.
A. $140,400.00
1). The Upper Left Edge
The
Oregonian
B. $57,500.00
2).
USA
Today
C. $ 7 ,5 8 1 .3 3
3).
The
Wall Street Journal
D. $300.00
4).
A n sw e rs:
A-4, B-3, C-2, D-1
Editor/Publisher/Janitor: The Beloved Reverend
Billy Lloyd Hults
Assistant EditorZPublisher/Graphics
Editor: The Humble Ms.Sally Louise Lackaff
Copy Editor/Science Editor/Voice of Reason/
Indian Country/Unde Mike/etc.: Michael Burgess
Wildlife/Music Reporter at Large: Peter
"Spud" Siegel
Education Editor: Peter Lindsey
Meanwhile in Newport: Alex LaFollette
Improvisational Engineer: Dr. Karkeys
Wine Expert: Jim Anderson
Political Consultant: Kathleen Krushas
Environmental News: Kim Bossé
Movies, Food, and Music: Rob Milliron
Mr. Baseball: Jeff Larson
Local Colour: Ron Logan
View From the Van: John Fraser
June's Garden: June Kroft
Major Distribution: Coyote Distribution
Economics Editor: Geraldine Rock
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