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About Eugene weekly. (Eugene, Oregon) 1993-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 2, 2012)
NEWS BRIEFS growth timber would be protected legislatively.” And he says the plan would protect the Rogue River wilderness and Devil’s Staircase. DeFazio adds, “Yes, the plan would involve harvesting timber, but it is focused on younger stands and harvests in a sustainable way to maintain forest health and protect the most sensitive areas.” The conservation groups, which include Cascadia Wildlands and the Sierra Club in addition to Oregon Wild, say the problem with federal lands logging-based plans is that they depend on “support from national taxpayers for significant portions of their local operating expenses.” The groups say unsustainable logging levels have led to “threats to clean water and watersheds, wild salmon and birds and still did not result in sustainable funding for counties.” The conservation groups’ “Shared Responsibility” plan calls for the federal government to transfer the 2.6 million acres of BLM lands to the Forest Service and the Fish and Wildlife Service for administrative savings. It also calls for Oregon to adopt an increase in the Oregon Forest Products Harvest Tax on private timberland owners, and for the counties to make modest increases in property taxes and utilize a portion of presently unutilized existing taxing authority. LeGue says, “Our new plan keeps the trees standing and creates a new paradigm where all levels of government chip in to fund the counties.” The federal lands issue as it affects Lane County will be discussed at an upcoming series of talks with Lane County Commissioner Rob Handy, public interest forester Roy Keene, and Architecture Week editor-in-chief Kevin Matthews at 6 pm Feb. 6, March 5, April 2, May 7 and June 4 at Cozmic Pizza. — Camilla Mortensen BEER CAN BE BEAUTIFUL Several years ago, entrepreneur Ginger Johnson said to herself, “Self, it’s time to find out what beer is about.” Now, after delving into the intricacies of the beer industry, Johnson owns and operates Women Enjoying Beer, a business that works to help breweries market to the female craft beer enthusiast. Women Enjoying Beer is based in Ashland, but Johnson is excited to appear in Eugene this week for Brew Fest, KLCC’s annual beer-tasting benefit. Johnson began her beer journey by asking herself why so few women are into beer, and then began countering years of gender imbalance in the beer industry by producing qualitative research into the female beer drinker’s psyche. “I want to explore the enormous opportunity the grossly under-tapped female market share has to offer,” Johnson says, “I’m learning way more about women and beer than I thought I’d ever know.” Johnson has found that women most appreciate the social component of beer drinking, that they want to be educated about the brews they choose and that they’re looking for a good value. She has facilitated events that pair beers with chocolates, “Swig and Stitch” gatherings that combine beer tasting with sewing demonstrations and even “Raft and Craft” trips that allow consumers to quench both their thirst for adventure and good beer while white-water rafting. On Friday, Feb. 3, Johnson will be hosting a meet and greet in the tasting room at Oakshire Brewery, and she will be at the KLCC Microbrew Festival all weekend, Feb. 10-11 at the Fairgrounds. IT’S ABOUT TIME BY DAVID WAGNER H ow many times do I get reminded that every year is different from the year before? This year is proving to be a strange one, leap year and politics aside. Momentous times are heralded as we enter the Year of the Water Dragon. Here we are in rainfall recovery, finally catching up on years of below average rainfall. But now we gripe because so much fell all at once that our streams and rivers overflow their banks. The botanical world forges ahead serenely, the buds swelling and bursting. The spring beauty (Cardamine RED EARED SLIDER, nuttallii) traditionally has its first bloom on Feb. 16, Lincoln TRACHEMYS SCRIPTAALBUS Constance’s birthday. Growing up in Eugene, he and his family would go out searching to see if they could find one of these little pink flowers blooming on his day. He went on to become one of the most prominent botanists of the 20th century at UC-Berkeley. I always do a Lincoln Constance Memorial Flower Hunt on his birthday. If not the spring beauty, our other harbinger, the osoberry, is usually out. The animals are doing strange things, too. Last month I mentioned that few members of our fauna hibernate. Seeing a red eared slider out sunning himself on the third of January taught me a new word: brumation. These reptiles do not hibernate, they brumate: coming out when there is a sudden warm spell but burrowing back into the mud when it gets cold again. Makes me think, I should brumate the rest of this winter. David Wagner is a botanist who has worked in Eugene for more than 30 years. The 2012 Willamette Valley Nature Calendar is the last one he will make. A few are still available; contact him directly at fernzenmosses@me.com CONTINUED P. 8 WALSH THROWS IN FOR COMMISH Kieran Walsh says he’s running for the South Eugene District Lane County Commission position against popular current Commissioner Pete Sorenson “because I just care about my community.” He says he believes the timber-money funded open meetings civil lawsuit against Sorenson means the commissioner has “lost credibility” and that is part of what inspired him to enter the race. Most recently a Washington County prosecutor found there was not enough evidence for criminal charges against Sorenson, as well as Rob Handy and former commissioner Bill Fleenor, in regard to the open meetings issue. This is the third investigation into Sorenson that has resulted in a finding of no wrongdoing. Sorenson has said his votes on strong progressive issues, including forest issues, have “infuriated really powerful interests.” Walsh says another issue is the conservative/liberal split on the county board. He says he will be able to get along with other commissioners on the Lane County board because he is good at listening to others. Of Sorenson he says, “By his own admission, he can’t talk to the other commissioners.” Also, he adds, “People running against each other is healthy, it promotes dialogue.” Walsh, a property manager who has served as a CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocates) volunteer and who is on the board of Sponsors Inc., says he is more of a “John Q. Public” who is also very good at procuring things for cheap. Criticizing county spending is one of the reasons he got into the race. “One of my friends said, ‘Look, don’t complain about it, do something,’” he says. Walsh is also a longtime soccer coach who has taken youth teams overseas to “expose kids to other cultures.” Walsh says specifically to save money, all the cities and towns in Lane County should make all their purchases from a central purchasing office to keep costs down. “If I can do it,” he says, “one single guy out of my house,” then government agencies should be able to do it too. Getting needed items for a low cost is something he has done as a volunteer for CASA and Sponsors, he says. He also says he’d like to see the county make more use of volunteers. “We can’t hire, so we need volunteers.” Walsh says county funding issues could be improved by moving away from a timber-based economy, including Congressman Peter DeFazio’s possible forest trust plan, and aiding small businesses “right here in our own community.” He cites towns like Flint and Detroit that were dependent on one industry and when that industry was failing, the town failed too. “We need to go after Washington, they owe us the money,” he says, adding, “This impacts the security of the county.” — Camilla Mortensen PHOTO BY TODD COOPER WWW.EUGENEWEEKLY.COM • BLOGS.EUGENEWEEKLY.COM EUGENE WEEKLY FEBRUARY 2, 2012 7
