A16
News
wallowa.com
FERGI
“We’ll just haul people
further up the hill,” said
co-organizer Charlie Kis-
senger. “We’ll fi nd a way
make it happen.”
Costumes and crazy
styles are part of the fun
so feel free to accessorize,
thrift shop, dig out that vin-
tage snowsuit or step into a
tutu to top your ski tights.
The races begin at 3
p.m. with kid’s ski and
snowboard races fi rst, fol-
lowed by adult races, ski/
snowboard golf and then
the grand fi nale, the lawn
chair race. In the last race,
participants race their
homemade lawn chair
contraptions of innovative
designs down the slope as
fast as they can.
A potluck will start at 5
p.m. and, beginning at 6 or 7
p.m., music will be provid-
ed by Matt Harshman and
Friends. Alcoholic beverag-
es are allowed, but you must
bring your own.
Fergi Fest is free.
Visit http://www.skifer-
gi.com for a map to Fergi
and other information or
Ferguson Ridge Ski Area on
Facebook for sharing and
photos.
By Steve Tool
Wallowa County Chieftain
In about a year, travelers
along Highway 3 may hear an
unexpected sound — the roar
of chain saws — as wood is
harvested from federal land
about 20 miles north of Enter-
prise.
The U.S. Forest Service has
put the fi nal stamp of approv-
al on the Lower Joseph Creek
Project, a land and forest im-
provement program designed
to enhance forest resiliency in
the northern part of the Wal-
lowa-Whitman National Forest.
The project will treat more than
100,000 acres of land through
thinning, logging, prescribed
burning and other treatments.
Wallowa-Whitman
For-
est Supervisor Tom Montoya
signed the fi nal Record of De-
cision on the project on March
17.
The project was initiated by
Wallowa County’s Natural Re-
sources Advisory Committee
back in 2007-08. The advisory
committee is composed of var-
ious county interests, including
representatives of environmen-
tal, tribal, business, industry
and other county concerns.
“NRAC had decided that
to move these projects in the
county forward, we needed to
complete a watershed analy-
sis of the area,” said Wallowa
County commissioner Susan
Roberts.
After about two years of
analysis, the hard work of those
involved literally went up in
fl ames when the Eagle Cap
Ranger District headquarters in
Enterprise burned to the ground
in July of 2010. Roberts said
that although it didn’t force the
project back to its beginnings, it
was a huge step backward.
The project regrouped and
the USFS released a Draft
Environmental Impact State-
ment in late 2014 along with
three alternatives to restore the
area. Alternative 2, the USFS
preferred alternative, includ-
ed removal of about 10.4 mil-
lion cubic feet of timber in the
treatment as well as providing
as many as 55 jobs over a 10-
WOLVES
Continued from Page A1
Radio collar data indicat-
ed that wolf OR-41 from the
pack was within 300 yards
of the depredation site on the
previous day. The pack cur-
rently has three members.
Hansen said that he noted at
least two different sizes of
wolf tracks at the scene and
suspected all three members
of the pack participated. On
Nov. 23 of last year the pack
injured a calf about 25 miles
southeast of the Flora depre-
dation.
The incident is the sec-
ond confi rmed wolf depre-
dation for the state in 2017
and the fi rst for Wallowa
County.
ek
We
Student of the
ENTERPRISE HIGH SCHOOL
Wallowa County Chieftain
Lower Joseph Creek Project a go
Continued from Page A1
Casey
Kiser
March 29, 2017
Casey Kiser has earned a 3.64
GPA here at EHS. Casey has taken
classes throughout his high school
career to make him a well-rounded
student. He has studied Creative
Writing and British Literature
along with Advanced Placement
Literature and Composition. He is
currently enrolled in Physics. He
has studied Psychology as well as
the Family and Consumer Sciences.
Music is a place where he has
really excelled and his contribution
and support of our school has been
truly appreciated. Thank you Casey
for your contributions in making
EHS a better place.
Proudly sponsored by
Joseph
432-9050
Enterprise
426-4511
Wallowa
886-9151
The Student of the Week is chosen for
academic achievement and community
involvement. Students are selected
by the administrators of
their respective schools.
U.S. Forest Service.
Swamp Creek, a tributary of Joseph Creek, flows through Wallowa County and will be subject
to the Lower Joseph Creek Restoration Project.
“
T
his isn’t just good for us; this is good for
the community”
David Schmidt
owner of Integrated Biomass in Wallowa, a company that manufactures secondary wood
products mainly from restoration and thinning projects
year restoration period with
about $3 million labor income
provided over the length of the
project.
However, the fi nal deci-
sion scaled the timber removal
down to 5 million-7.5 million
cubic feet of raw material avail-
able for wood processing. Part
of the downward revision is a
decrease in the amount of land
subject to harvest and because
no trees over 21 inches are sub-
ject to removal. However, jobs
associated with the project are
still projected at about 50 as
road repair and the installation
of six new culverts will help
take up the slack.
Final Results
Roberts said that while she
is pleased the project is going
forward, the county wasn’t
necessarily pleased with the
amount of land receiving treat-
ment, down to about 17,000
acres. The Record of Decision
also forbid the cutting of trees
more than 21 inches in diam-
eter, some of which contain
high-dollar lumber. Lastly, the
roads affected by the project
were not to the county’s liking
“They (USFS) tell us that
we gained road miles, but
only in areas less critical to the
county. We lost them where it
was more critical they remain,”
Roberts said. She added that
several of the roads lost were
prime wildlife viewing areas.
Brian Kelly, reservation
director of Hells Canyon Pres-
ervation Council, released the
following statement regarding
the decision.
“Joseph Canyon is a mag-
nifi cent place. Its forests, grass-
lands and creeks are essential
habitat for steelhead, elk, and
a wide variety of wildlife. The
Joseph Canyon wild lands
connect the important habi-
tats of Hells Canyon with the
Blue Mountains and the Pacif-
ic Northwest. Unfortunately,
the Forest Service’s decision
for the Joseph Creek project
appears to allow logging in re-
mote forests located in wilder-
ness-quality, un-roaded, can-
yon lands.” Kelly added that
HCPC worked hard through
the Wallowa-Whitman Forest
Collaborative to fi nd solutions
and is disappointed with the re-
sults. He added that HCPC will
continue to review the fi nal de-
cision and continue to advocate
for the wild lands and waters of
Joseph Canyon.
Introducing new
Nurse Practitioner
Jennifer
Barden
Jennifer brings 17 years of
nursing experience covering
the areas of emergency,
trauma, oncology,
telemedicine, pediatrics and
public health. Now, as a nurse practitioner, Jennifer can
diagnose illnesses, prescribe medications, take care of
your annual physical exams, and help you stay well.
Now accepting new patients
Schedule your appointment today!
541.426.7900
Mountain View Medical Group
603 Medical Parkway
(next to Wallowa
Memorial Hospital)
Enterprise, Oregon 97828
We treat you like family
601 Medical Parkway, Enterprise, OR 97828 • 541-426-3111 • www.wchcd.org
Wallowa Memorial Hospital is an equal opportunity employer and provider.
Wallowa Valley Senior Living
is now accepting applications for our
Premium Assisted
Living Apartment
If you are looking for medication supervision,
social opportunities and personal care
oversight for yourself or a loved one, stop by
or call today to schedule an appointment for
a tour. Our parking lot provides easy access to
your vehicle and pets are welcome.
541.426.5311
605 Medical Parkway
Enterprise, OR 97828
The HCPC statements about
the USFS allowing logging
in “remote forests located in
wilderness-quality, un-roaded,
canyon lands” are misguided.
The project will not allow any
commercial logging in either
the Inventoried Roadless Areas
nor in Potential Wilderness Ar-
eas. Commercial logging will
primarily take place in Man-
agement Area 1 of the project.
Nils Christoffersen, exec-
utive director of Wallowa Re-
sources, participated with his
organization from the begin-
ning as a part of NRAC and the
forest collaborative.
He noted that the project is
the outcome of nearly 8 years
of collaborative effort, starting
with Wallowa County’s Com-
munity Planning Process to
the Wallowa Whitman Forest
Collaborative. He said that the
project ultimately addresses
the priority forest and riparian
concerns impairing the proper
function and condition of the
watershed. Christoffersen also
offered that forest ecosystems
and social values regarding the
forests are complex, and that
the collaborative process in-
volves trade-offs, but because
of the project’s complexity,
many stakeholders could not
reconcile some project details
to their satisfaction.
“Despite that fact, collab-
orative processes are critical
to fi nding solutions to these
complex issues, to improving
our understanding, and forging
stronger partnerships to sustain
the health of our forests and our
communities,” he said.
Christoffersen also re-
marked on the forest treat-
ment plan as a whole, ob-
serving that the mechanical
treatment activity is based on
the best available science and
silvicultural plans to advance
forest restoration.
“The legacy of past man-
agement has fundamentally
altered these landscapes. The
project seeks to address these
legacies - including over-
stocked stands, loss of habitat
diversity - in particular old
forest structure, and fi re risk,
among others,” he said.
Christoffersen summed up
his feelings about the project’s
success with these words:
“This was a strong and long
collaborative effort invested
in good data collection, scien-
tifi c analysis and a strong pro-
cess to identify the important
conditions and needs of that
landscape and has advanced a
good plan to do that.”
David Schmidt is owner
of Integrated Biomass in Wal-
lowa, a company that man-
ufactures secondary wood
products mainly from resto-
ration and thinning projects
similar to LJCP. Schmidt said
that he is pleased with the de-
cision.
“What this does is create
more certainty for our supply
for our products and helps jus-
tify out investment here. We
need to pick up the pace of
forest restoration. “This isn’t
just good for us; this is good
for the community,” he said.
Wallowa Whitman Forest
Supervisor Tom Montoya said
that although it was likely that
actual logging wouldn’t start
until 2019, the state could
lend a hand by moving the
dates up by as much as a year
through the Federal Forest
Restoration Program.
“We’ve been partnering
with the state on other timber
sales. We’ve been talking with
them about Lower Joseph,
and they may be able to as-
sist us here, and there may be
some dollars available to help
with that. They have a few
pre-sale crews that help with
that by laying out boundaries
and marking trees and those
kind of things,” he said.
Although this is the fi nal
ROD, no law prevents any
objectors from fi ling lawsuits.
At this point, none of the par-
ties involved has declared an
intention to do so.
Introducing Resident
Dr. Aimee
Rowe, MD
Dr. Rowe graduated from
University of California, Davis
medical school aft er receiving
a Master of Science in Public
Health from the University
of North Carolina, Chapel
Hill. Dr. Rowe is here on the Family Medicine Rural Rotation
program through Cascades East. She will be in residency at
Mountain View Medical Group through April 7.
To schedule your appointment with Dr. Rowe, call
Mountain View Medical Group
541.426.7900
Mountain View Medical Group
603 Medical Parkway
(next to Wallowa
Memorial Hospital)
Enterprise, Oregon 97828
We treat you like family
601 Medical Parkway, Enterprise, OR 97828 • 541-426-3111 • www.wchcd.org
Wallowa Memorial Hospital is an equal opportunity employer and provider.
This week’s athlete of the week is
Enterprise High School graduate
David Ribich, now a track star at
Western Oregon University. In the last
few weeks Ribich has kept piling up
awards with his running excellence.
Of late, Ribich was voted Male
Athlete of the Year by coaches of
the Greater Northwest Athletic
Conference after an indoor
season that saw him break GNAC
conference records in the mile and
win the mile and 3000 meters in the
championships. He also placed third
in the mile at the NCAA Division II
Indoor Championships. Ribich also
ran the anchor leg on the Wolves’
national champion distance medley
relay, setting a Division II all-time
record with Ribich diving over the
finish line for the win.
Proudly Sponsored By:
Eastern Oregon’s Full Service Propane Supplier
201 E. Hwy 82, Enterprise
541-426-0320
www.edstaub.com
David
Ribich