BOYS HOOPS: FISHERMEN HOLD OFF LUMBERJACKS’ RALLY SPORTS • PAGE 10A
DailyAstorian.com // TUESDAY, JANUARY 10, 2017
144TH YEAR, NO. 138
ONE DOLLAR
Clatsop
killer
up for
parole
DEBATE SPILLS
OVER THE DAMS
District attorneys
oppose release
Jesse Tinsley/The Spokesman-Review
A man fishes for salmon in the Snake River in October above the Lower Granite Dam in Washington state. There is a renewed
push to remove the Lower Granite and multiple other dams on the Snake River to help wild salmon runs.
PORTLAND — In 1976, George Wil-
liam Nulph kidnapped and murdered a
woman in Cannon Beach. He was let out of
prison about 10 years later
and then raped women in
Portland.
Now Nulph, who has
spent the last 30 years in
prison, is set for a parole
hearing Tuesday.
The 64-year-old con-
George
vict argues he’s no longer a
William
threat to the community and
Nulph
should be released. But dis-
trict attorneys representing
Clatsop and Multnomah counties are fight-
ing to keep him locked up.
Locals get their
opportunity to
comment on the
future of dams
By EDWARD STRATTON
The Daily Astorian
S
upporters of the removal of four dams
on the Snake River rallied at Astoria’s
Suomi Hall Monday before attending the
last of 16 public scoping meetings organized
by federal agencies to gather public comment
on the future operation of the Columbia and
Snake Rivers hydroelectric dam system.
The scoping meetings have been orga-
nized by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers,
the Bonneville Power
Administration and the
PUBLIC
Bureau of Reclama-
COMMENT tion, tasked with gath-
ering public comment
The federal agen-
and developing alterna-
cies are taking
tives on how to operate
public comment on
the system.
the dam system
through Feb. 7.
In May, U.S. District
Submit comments
Court Judge Michael
and find more
Simon ruled the current
information at
salmon recovery plan
www.crso.info;
violated the Endangered
email comment@
Species Act by not
crso.info or send
doing enough to pro-
comments by mail
tect 13 listed Columbia
to: CRSO EIS,
P.O. Box 2870,
River Basin species of
Portland, OR
salmon and steelhead. It
97208-2870. After
was the fifth-such plan
public scoping
to be rejected.
ends, the agencies
Simon’s predeces-
will develop alter-
sor in the case, Judge
natives and draft
James Redden, said
an environmental
impact statement,
after stepping down that
expected in late
the four Snake River
2019 to early 2020.
dams — Ice Harbor,
Lower Monumental,
INSIDE
Little Goose and Lower
Environmentalists
Granite — should be
want dam work
removed to help strug-
halted. Page 2A
gling salmon species.
Simon stopped short
of such a pronouncement, but said the gov-
ernment needed to look at more aggres-
sive approaches to help struggling salmo-
nids, including removal of the dams. The four
dams on the Snake River provide about 5 per-
cent of the Pacific Northwest’s hydropower,
along with barge transport for agricultural
products between Lewiston, Idaho, and the
Columbia.
See DAMS, Page 4A
By AMY FRAZIER
KOIN 6
The first case
In 1976, Frances Christians — the mother
of two young children — was on her way
home from work in Cannon Beach when
Nulph kidnapped her, sexually assaulted her
and shot her to death execution-style.
Danny Miller/The Daily Astorian
Joseph Bogaard, executive director of Save Our Wild Salmon, speaks to a crowd at
Suomi Hall on Monday in Astoria. Save Our Wild Salmon hosted an informational
session before a public scoping meeting on Columbia and Snake River dams.
See NULPH, Page 4A
Counties
pushed to
exit forest
class action
Lawsuit seeks funds
for change in policy
By MATEUSZ PERKOWSKI
Capital Bureau
Danny Miller/The Daily Astorian
Dioniscio Y. Abing, representing the Chinook Nation, speaks during a gathering or-
ganized by Save Our Wild Salmon Monday at Suomi Hall in Astoria.
‘Since the erection of the Snake River
dams, I have witnessed the end of …
commercial canning in Astoria.’
Dioniscio Y. Abing
a self-described adopted member of the Chinook Nation who worked in the former
Bumble Bee Cannery on Pier 39, said during the rally at Suomi Hall
Fifteen Oregon counties must soon decide
whether to opt out of a class action lawsuit
seeking $1.4 billion for allegedly insufficient
logging in state forests.
As the Jan. 25 deadline approaches, a coa-
lition of environmental and fishing groups is
urging counties and the taxing entities within
them — including school and fire districts —
to exit the litigation.
The North Coast State Forest Coalition,
which represents the seven organizations,
hopes to send a message that counties and
taxing districts see state forests as more than
just “piggy banks,” said Chris Smith, the
coalition’s coordinator.
See TIMBER, Page 4A
Former chief, fire district reach agreement
Lawsuit had alleged
civil rights violations
By LYRA FONTAINE
and R.J. MARX
The Daily Astorian
CANNON BEACH — The legal dis-
pute between former Fire Chief Mike
Balzer and the Cannon Beach Rural Fire
Protection District is over.
U.S. Magistrate Judge Paul Papak in
Portland dismissed Balzer’s civil rights law-
suit against the fire district on Wednesday.
“It’s fair to say the parties came to
an agreement,” Judy Snyder, the attor-
ney representing Balzer, said Monday. “I
would say that Mr. Balzer is pleased with
the resolution.”
‘Personnel matter’
Balzer was fired in October 2015 in
what the fire district’s board described as
a “personnel matter.”
Records showed that Balzer, who
earned more than $100,000 in annual
salary and compensation, was faulted
for “poor leadership” in a performance
evaluation.
Balzer challenged the fire district
and individual board members in a law-
suit that claimed his federal due process
and free association rights were violated.
In a court filing, Balzer argued that the
fire district made false statements “for
the sole purpose of embarrassing and
humiliating” him and fired him without
a hearing.
The Daily Astorian/File Photo
See BALZER, Page 4A
Mike Balzer served as fire chief from 2012 to October 2015.