AGRICULTURE
VERSUS MINING
Commissioner Jack Howard of Union County
says he was glad the bill focuses on job creation,
but that it could set up a dangerous precedent of
competing land use goals between counties and
the state. In an email to EW, Howard writes that
he is concerned “it may be that we’ve moved
from taking away the overreach of statewide
planning to an inability for local governments to
actually have a full range of discretion to deny a
local application.”
Bill Harvey, the chairman of the Baker
County Board of Commissioners, says he sup-
ports the bill and welcomes more mining in
eastern Oregon. “Historically, mining is how the
economy started out in Baker,” Harvey says.
According to DOGAMI, mining claims were
made in Baker as early as 1862.
“Each county should have their own say,”
Harvey says. “We know our land and we know
what we can and cannot do.”
Harvey says he doesn’t think mining will
conflict with agriculture because the best min-
Dave Hunnicutt, who lobbied for the bill on
behalf of the Oregon Mining Association, says
that mining is “by far the most heavily regu-
lated natural resource use and pays the highest
wages.”
“We can do it the Oregon way and do it with
our environmental regulations,” Hunnicutt says,
“or we can keep importing and pretending like
things aren’t being mined because we don’t like
it.”
Though Oregon does have an extensive re-
view process for mining permits, inspection and
enforcement of permits remains a major con-
cern. According to Ali Hansen, the communi-
cations director for DOGAMI, the agency has
five staff statewide responsible for inspection of
approximately 900 mines. None of these five in-
dividuals are full-time inspectors.
Eugene Sen. Floyd Prozanski, one of four
state senators to vote against the bill, raised con-
cerns about the legislation’s impact on greater
sage grouse habitat. While bill co-sponsor Re-
publican Sen. Fred Girod emphasized in the
reading of the bill that current sage grouse pro-
tections will be honored, Prozanski says he’s
• Val Hoyle, our popular Lane County Democrat who was majority leader
of the Oregon House, told EW this week that she is going to run for Oregon
Labor Commissioner in May 2018. Current Labor Commissioner Brad
Avakian told Hoyle he doesn’t plan on running again once this term ends. A
non-partisan election, this one will be over if a candidate garners more than
50 percent of the vote; if not, there’s a runoff. It’s good to have Val back in the
arena, and labor commissioner is a fine fit for her. Next question: Who else
will be running?
• Last week an angry man kicked in our employee door after hours. One
of the riders with Cascadian Courier Collective didn’t just stand idly by when
he witnessed it. He chased after the suspect (we don’t necessarily
recommend doing that, by the way), got a photo of the man, called the
Eugene police and notified us. Thanks to him and the police and all the
people who shared our post with the photo, the suspect was caught. Thank
you everyone and thanks especially to those who are not just bystanders,
but act when they see something.
• In Eugene, we’ve been talking about the housing shortage. In
Springfield, we’re intrigued to see that the City Council has moved to waive
system development fees for two years for those looking to build accessory
or secondary dwelling units — what some call granny flats or mother-in-
laws — to create affordable housing. See more info on our blog at
eugeneweekly.com.
‘Each county should have their own
say. We know our land and we know
what we can and cannot do.’
— BILL HARVEY, BAKER COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
ing sites are on rocky hillsides and not in the
valleys where most farming takes place. Eastern
Oregon county commissioners contacted for this
story were in favor of the bill and promoted in-
vestments in mining in eastern Oregon, though
some had reservations about the impact the new
rules could have on ranchers and farmers.
Agricultural interests including the Oregon
Farm Bureau, Harney County Farm Bureau and
Grant County Farm Bureau have expressed wor-
ries that the new laws could create conflicts be-
tween mines and agriculture, which is the back-
bone of the economy in eastern Oregon.
The public policy counsel for the Oregon
Farm Bureau, Mary Anne Nash, says OFB is
generally supportive of mining but would pre-
fer to see better-defined rules to avoid impacts
to farmland. OFB would rather see conflicts
mitigated in the first place than see mining com-
panies pay neighbors, as provisions in the bill
allow.
“We need to make sure we’re protecting
farmers and ranchers in the process,” Nash says.
“Bring on the jobs, but make sure they’re not
displacing the existing jobs.”
ENVIRONMENTAL
IMPACTS
The proposed Grassy Mountain mine in Mal-
heur County has an anticipated deposit of more
than a million ounces of gold and four million
ounces of silver, which the Nevada-based Para-
mount Gold mining company values at over
$100 million after taxes. According to the com-
pany’s environmental baseline study, the under-
ground mine and on-site processing facilities
would disturb roughly 400 acres.
concerned the bill isn’t responsive to future
changes in sage grouse management.
Prozanski says he has reservations that the
bill allows a different land use program for the
seven counties that could lock in current rules
and block future protections for sage grouse.
Mines and the roads required to service them
could have lasting impacts on habitat for plants
and animals in eastern Oregon. Water demands
of the mines could also lead to diminished lake
and groundwater levels, which could affect mi-
gratory birds that utilize the lakes as well as
farmers and ranchers that depend on groundwa-
ter for irrigation.
The Oregon Natural Desert Association
(ONDA) opposes the bill and argues: “The risk
to years of conservation effort is not warranted
when a major mining project such as that en-
visioned in SB 644 already has feasible path-
ways for reasonable and thoughtful permitting
through existing law.”
ONDA argues the new process could become
more complicated and less effective in minimiz-
ing the harm of mining. “Without appropriate
safeguards the result is all-too-often the long-
term degradation of the environment and im-
pacts to human health, safety and well-being.”
For 21-year-old miner Chance Dewitt, new
mines “would be good for eastern Oregon as far
as there’s a lot of people and a lot of money in
the industry.”
However, he does foresee some complica-
tions with bringing big mining to eastern Or-
egon. “I could see how it could not go over all
that smooth at the bars,” Dewitt says.
• Sen. Ron Wyden dropped by the Eugene Weekly office over the
weekend, before heading over to Springfield for one of many, many town
halls he’s held this rowdy political season. When we asked him about Trump’s
future he stressed the word “if” when he told us “if” Trump gets through all
this, he’ll definitely run for a second term. Russiagate piles higher and
deeper, and meanwhile the Trump administration works to reverse all that’s
been accomplished on climate change, health care and more.
• Good to see the petition to create an independent performance
auditor for Eugene got approval from the city recorder’s office in time for
petitioners to work the crowds outside the Oregon Country Fair last week.
This initiative is important to the democratic process in Eugene. It would not
change our form of government, but it would add a vital level of transparency
and accountability, and likely save taxpayers many times the cost.
Opponents are trying to confuse the issue with talk of compromises and
alternatives, but it’s clear the best results come from elected, not appointed
auditors. It will take a big group effort to gather the signatures to get this
measure on the ballot next May, and the petitioners only have 100 days.
For more information or to contact the chief petitioners, go to
cityaccountability.org or call 541-520-9572.
• The City Club of Eugene’s July 7 program on opioids left us wondering
what we can do to help reverse this epidemic that kills 91 Americans every
day. One small suggestion: Take every painkiller left in your medicine
cabinet from a tooth extraction or earlier medical episode to one of the nine
drop boxes in Lane County. That will prevent someone else from getting into
them. The local opioid problem was discussed by three impressive women
at the City Club meeting: Dr. Elizabeth Maxwell from PreventionLane;
Maureen Jenne from Emergence; and Judge Ilisa Rooke-Ley from Lane
County’s drug court.
• Are you a wine lover? A cannabis connoisseur? Our beloved longtime
wine writer Lance Sparks is retiring and we are looking for someone to fill his
inestimable shoes. Eugene Weekly is also looking for a freelance weed
columnist to write for us. Think you’ve got the skills (and the stomach for the
letters to the editor)? Email editor@eugeneweekly.com for details.
eugeneweekly.com • July 13, 2017
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