NEWS
B Y M AT T H E W D E N I S
HERBICIDE BAN SIGNATURES FILED
Lane County ordinance would ban aerial herbicide spraying
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• On Saturday, Oct. 14, you can attend a four hour
intensive training from the Civil Liberties Defense Center.
The training will impart knowledge and skills that will
increase the security of individuals and political activist
groups — a must for everyone fighting for a better world
in these times, CLDC says. Learn about asserting your
rights, how to combat state repression of your movement,
as well as digital security for activists and best practices
for private communications. There will also be a section
on legal observing and copwatching. The training is 1-5
pm Saturday, Oct. 14 at the Unitarian Universalist Church,
1685 W. 13th Avenue.
Michelle Holman said. “[This law] says that we have a
right to clean water, clean air, we have that right and we
are going to defend it,”
The timber industry’s stance against regulation rep-
resents a reluctance to risk a steady revenue stream. A
ban on pesticide spray would require major change —
abandoning herbicide application on Lane County lands
as well as shifting production and harvest strategies.
Successful business models in neighboring states,
however, suggest that private firms can maintain profit-
ommunity Rights Lane County and the Freedom
From Aerial Herbicide Alliance handed over
about 15,000 signatures calling for the ban of
aerial herbicide spraying by timber corporations
to the Lane County Clerk’s Office on Friday,
Sept. 29.
Timber companies apply aerial herbicides to eliminate
brush and any tree growth other than groves of single-
species, cash-producing trees — primarily Douglas fir.
Opponents argue that aerial spray can contaminate the air
• The 2017 commUNITY Yoga Celebration, a mini
yoga, holistic living and sustainability celebration, runs
10 am to 6 pm Saturday, Oct. 14, at 1685 W. 13th Avenue.
There will be food, live music, raffles and guided
meditations. The event is a fundraiser for McKenzie River
Trust.
‘We the people, when the government and the
corporations don’t listen to us, we quit talking to them
and start to talking to one another,’
• Beyond Toxics is hosting a Resilient Forestry Tour
1:30 to 3:30 pm Saturday, Oct. 14. The tour includes a
walk through Shady Creek Forest, about 45 minutes west
of Eugene. Carpools leave from the Lane County Historical
Museum, 740 W. 13th Avenue, at 12:30 pm.
— COMMUNITY RIGHTS ORGANIZER MICHELLE HOLMAN
LANE COUNTY SPRAY INFORMATION
able operations even with more-stringent regulations.
For Community Rights Lane County (CLRC), deliv-
ery of these signatures represents a larger push asserting
“the right to protect our communities,” according to com-
mittee member Rob Dickinson.
A separate ballot proposal, the Lane County Self-
Government Charter Amendment, would grant citizens
the power to write and pass laws. In order to qualify for
the May 15 election, CLRC still needs to collect about
another 3,000 signatures by March to qualify for ballot
inclusion.
Soggy participants stepped in from the rain and
crowded into the small waiting room at the Lane County
Clerk’s Elections Office as Dickinson delivered the three
stacks of signature lists. To follow, the activists joined
arms and voices and sang a rendition of “America the
Beautiful" to clerk administrators.
and water, harming human health.
If the office verifies at least 11,000 of the signatures,
then voters in Lane County’s May 15 primary election
ballot will decide whether to impose the spraying ban.
Proponents expect significant opposition from the timber
industry. While advocates say the majority of Oregonians
support such a ban, the timber industry has a powerful
lobby in the state Legislature.
In 2015, for example, the industry blocked SB 613, a
bill that would have required formal proposals with the
state Forestry Department before the application of aerial
pesticide and controlled burns on private lands. Stymied
at the state level, environmental groups such as Commu-
nity Rights Lane County have turned to voter initiatives.
“We the people, when the government and the corpo-
rations don’t listen to us, we quit talking to them and start
to talking to one another,” Community Rights organizer
4
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Lane County plans to begin spraying roadsides near
guardrails. If you live along a Lane County maintained
road and have questions, especially if you do not know if
your Lane County No Spray Area registration is active,
contact Pamela Reber at 541-682-8521 or pamela.
reber@co.lane.or.us.
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eugeneweekly.com • October 5, 2017
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