VIEWPOINT
LET TERS
BY TAYLOR PA RK ER
Never Make the
Same Mistake
Twice
DON’T WIPE OUT THE WOLVES
arlier this year, Gov. Kate Brown signed a bill affirming the Oregon
Department of Fish and Wildlife’s decision to remove wolves from the
state Endangered Species Act and essentially block judicial review.
Although the delisting decision and subsequent passage and signing
of HB 4040 dealt wolf recovery a blow, the wolf conservation and
management plan ultimately determines the fate of this keystone species.
Eight years ago there were no wolves in Oregon. Twenty-five years ago there
were no wolves in the West. There are currently not just wolves in Idaho, Washington
and Oregon, but now in northern California as well.
Ecologically, wolves have been described as ecosystem engineers, keystone
species and natural “vaccines” against disease spread. Through their predation
of deer and elk, they decrease browse time, which allows appropriate plants to
grow; they increase the available scavenger food source for a wide variety of other
animals; they decrease the abundance of destructive mesopredators (raccoons,
coyotes, skunks, etc.) and they thin otherwise healthy herds of elk and deer of
chronic wasting disease.
Ecologically, wolf conservation is smart. In extrapolating how much time,
energy and money I spent in the past couple years trying to photograph wolves
in the wild, I imagine conserving this species makes economic sense as well. The
argument that wolves are devastating livestock operations and harming humans
doesn’t stand the test of time. Sure, there are some livestock losses, and in those rare
instances that they occur, ranchers are compensated. However, the depredation of
livestock does not outweigh the benefits wolves bring to our ecosystem. It’s baffling
to me that the “big bad wolf” myth is still perpetuated and is ultimately creating
more fear and anger.
The modern human and wolf interaction is novel. With the policies we enact
and the support or opposition we provide, we collectively decide how we want to
live with other species and within our ecosystem. Wolf protection and management
is an experiment for future large carnivore recovery in this country and globally.
For the last 10,000 years humans have done a terrific job of killing the monsters of
our nightmares and we are left with a world bereft of these powerful animals. I’m
pleased to see that as a society we’re investing in wildlife and fostering recovery for
the many predator species we nearly wiped out: grizzly bears, wolverines, jaguars
and mountain lions.
We can continue to deny protections or we can learn from our mistakes and
coexist better. Wolves embody not just the image of wilderness, but also the
definition of a natural system working. If we make decisions that give them that
chance, we are not only supporting a healthy environment, but also contributing
to the natural legacy of our state. Wolves deserve the strongest protections we can
offer, and Oregon’s current and future generations deserve an intact ecosystem to
explore and appreciate. I believe it is possible to have both.
E
Taylor Parker is a conservation professional who has worked on habitat restoration and rare species projects glob-
ally for the last 13 years and is a contributing writer for the Endangered Species Coalition.
4
June 9, 2016 • eugeneweekly.com
DISASTROUS DERAILMENT
It was encouraging to read in The
Register-Guard Saturday that Union
Pacific plans to spend $34.6 million on
Oregon railroad lines. Unfortunately,
this plan was late, as a train loaded with
volatile Bakken crude oil derailed, caught
fire and leaked oil into the Columbia River
near Mosier, Oregon, on Friday, June 3.
In January 2014, transportation safety
agencies in Canada and the U.S. called for
railroads to analyze the risks of moving
crude oil in outdated DOT111 rail tank cars
that were designed to carry corn syrup.
Deborah Hersman, chair of the National
Transportation Safety Board, said the
agency “is concerned that major loss of
life, property damage and environmental
consequences can occur” and “safety
regulations need to catch up to this new
reality.”
There has been a 400-percent increase
in rail oil shipments since 2005, and 26 oil
trains have been involved in major fires in
the last decade. The new CPC 1232 tank
cars have thicker shells, bulkhead and
valve protection but have been involved in
the most recent derailments and fires.
The Union Pacific rail lines that run
through Eugene carrying crude oil in
unit trains (100 or more cars of the same
product) to California refineries are not
part of the multimillion-dollar track and
bridge upgrades.
Sadly, these disastrous derailments
and fires of this volatile fossil fuel product
shipped through residential and businesses
throughout Oregon and nationwide are
indiscriminate and can happen anywhere and
anytime. Just ask the residents of Mosier.
Jim Neu
Eugene
of proper funding of our schools.
We can’t wait for Salem to do the right
thing anymore. In November, the voters,
not the politicians, will decide the fate of
our schools.
Big business, multinational corporations
and the right-wing, out-of-state billionaires
are pledging to spend more than $25
million to defeat this measure. They will
try to confuse voters with propaganda and
outright lies.
We will not be fooled. In November,
we will send a clear message that our kids
matter and they deserve schools we can all
be proud of.
Pete Mandrapa
Eugene
TALK ABOUT BIKES
I think the letter from Robert C.
Laney about the rude bicyclist [Letters,
6/2] exemplifies the disconnect between
bicyclists and drivers of motorized vehicles
in our community.
The fact is that most of our infrastructure
was not designed for use by both motorized
vehicles and bicycles at the same time.
Drivers and bicyclists feel uncomfortable
operating their vehicles, which vary
greatly in size, maneuverability and speed,
in the same space.
This results in drivers feeling intimidated
by what is often an unanticipated presence
in their path, and bicyclists feeling
intimidated by larger vehicles that are
potentially life-threatening.
Rather than putting the blame on the
other person, let’s communicate about how
we can make a community that supports both
motorized and non-motorized transportation.
Richard Griscom
Eugene
SMALL-TOWN FEEL
SMART METERS
I like the restriping of Willamette
Street. It doesn’t seem to be as frantic as
it was. Now driving is more relaxed, and
there is a small-town feel. I think it will be
beneficial for local shops.
Jan Gardner
Eugene
I recently learned from an EWEB board
member that they’ve (secretly) finished
installing all the collectors/transmitters
around Eugene and have installed at least
200 smart meters on “non-residences”
so far — things like billboards and new
streetlights, etc. He made sure to note that
EWEB was using the “opt-in” option for
permission to install.
To this day, there is still not one word
in EWEB’s newsletter about any aspects of
this $26 million program since inception!
There are so many questions needing
answers after numerous public meetings
demanding information.
For example, EWEB has not chosen to
tell us how often different meters transmit,
at what frequencies, power outputs,
locations of collectors, etc. While they’ve
been rolling this out, why are they hiding
the details? EWEB is a public entity!
Hundreds of thousands of these meters
have been removed in California in two
major class-action lawsuits, as well as
in other states, and they’ve been banned
in some countries after massive rollouts
because of unexplained fires, many health
issues and exorbitant bills after installation.
This is the same radiation as 4G wi-fi,
but on steroids. Collectors might be right
outside your bedroom now! You have the
option of turning your phone off — not so
with smart meters!
There is also the question of security
OUR KIDS MATTER
Almost 130,000 Oregon voters have
signed the IP 28 petition and have said
enough is enough. The time has come
for Walmart, Comcast, Apple and other
multinational corporations making billions
in Oregon to pay their fair share in taxes.
For too long average Oregonians have
been subsidizing these corporations that have
been reaping record profits and benefiting
from the lowest overall business tax in the
nation.
Oregon children deserve schools that
are adequately funded, class sizes that
are manageable, a school year that is not
the shortest in the nation and classes that
engage our kids, challenge them and help
them graduate.
In 2000, legislature created the Quality
Education Commission, whose task was
to figure out the adequate funding for
our public schools. Oregon voters passed
Ballot Measure 1 that year, directing the
legislature to deliver appropriate funding.
They have failed. Sixteen years later, we
are more than $1 billion short of the goal