Wallowa County Chieftain
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Community
February 14, 2018
A9
Nash reflects on first year as county commissioner
By Steve Tool
Wallowa County Chieftain
M
ore than a year ago, rancher
Todd Nash was looking for a
way to help the county ben-
efit from sustainable man-
agement of its abundant natural
resources. An opportunity arrived
when former county commissioner
Mike Hayward suddenly resigned his
post in late 2015.
Wallowa County resident John
Lawrence temporarily filled the posi-
tion. Nash gathered grassroots sup-
port and was easily elected to the post
winning 62 percent of the vote in the
May 2016 primary. He took office in
2017 at the conclusion of Lawrence’s
term.
After a year in the post, Nash
reflected on his expectations, what
he’s accomplished and his political
future.
“I think the old standby applies of
drinking from a fire hose, certainly
the first six months,” Nash said with
a laugh. “There’s still a tremendous
amount to learn. The complexities of
this job can be a little overwhelming
at times.”
Nash said he eventually learned
from State Sen. Bill Hansell that he
didn’t need expertise in everything
and needed to rely on experts for
some things, something Nash took to
heart, along with his pledge to voters
regarding public lands.
“When I took this job, I intended
to dedicate time to public and feder-
ally held lands as well as problems we
deal with on a weekly basis,” Nash
said.
He noted that more than 60 per-
cent of the county’s lands are feder-
ally held.
“I still believe that’s Wallowa
County, not another nation,” Nash
said. “We are cooperators, and all the
agencies that hold those properties
need to cooperate with us.”
According to Nash, perhaps the
biggest contribution he’s made to
the county thus far is his input on the
Blue Mountain Forest Plan Revision
and seeing some major changes in the
way that it addresses grazing.
There was more than one unex-
pected discovery along the way.
“There’s a lot of stuff:
From the complexi-
ties of the Association
of Oregon Counties and
going to Salem on a reg-
ular basis, to the differ-
ent departments within
the county and regional
departments and east-
ern Oregon counties,” he
said. “I said at the begin-
ning, and I stand by what
I said, ‘There’d be a lot
more of a lot more than I
thought there would be.”
Among the biggest
problems the county
is facing is housing,
according to Nash. He
said that affordable hous-
ing for people in the ser-
vice industry is lack-
ing, along with the
inadequate use of natu-
ral resources, including
both harvest and thinning
Steve Tool/Chieftain
of overstocked timber Wallowa County Commissioner Todd Nash recently finished
and areas that could and his first year in office.
should be grazed. Nash
and we can accomplish some things
sees a change for the better coming.
“I’m absolutely committed to see- over there,” he said. “We have great
ing those through,” he said. He added leaders in Sen. Hansell and Rep. Greg
that he didn’t think his original focus Barreto, and if we can have buy-in
has changed.
from them, we can accomplish much
“I’ve become a better listener, but here.”
I don’t think I’ve changed my focus,”
Commissioner Susan Roberts
he said.
said that Nash has put his nose to the
His hopes for change mainly cen- grindstone.
ter around the utilization of resources.
“For someone who hasn’t held
“I’d like to see within that oppor- office, there’s a learning curve,” she
tunities for young people to become said. “He’s working hard and gaining
entrepreneurs,” he said. “We can help perspective, even on the minutiae. It
them get out of the service-based takes several years to learn this job,
economy they’re stuck in. I think the and he’s working his way through.”
housing issue is a grand part of the
Commissioner Paul Castilleja
failure of having a community that is echoed those thoughts.
tourist based. When you have the con-
“He’s a good addition and he’s
version of these rentals to bed-and- doing a good job as far as I’m con-
breakfasts that provide more money cerned,” he said.
Nash, who’s never held public
to the owners, not that I begrudge
them, you end up inadvertently caus- office, said he’s not considered run-
ing a housing shortage.”
ning for state or higher office and that
After spending time in Salem, even if he seeks reelection, he’ll have
Nash concluded the supposed rural a couple of stipulations.
and urban divide between western and
“It has to be community driven a
eastern Oregon isn’t as insurmount- little bit. That’s why I jumped in here
able as some make it.
to begin with,” Nash said. “If the com-
“We have to be passionate, artic- munity doesn’t want me here, then it’s
ulate and ask exactly what we want, the last place I want to be.”
‘When I took this job, I
intended to dedicate time
to public and federally held
lands as well as problems we
deal with on a weekly basis.’
Todd Nash
Commissioner
appears in HBO
documentary
By Steve Tool
Wallowa County Chieftain
County Commissioner, local
rancher and co-chair of the Oregon
cattlemean’s Association Todd Nash
has made a name for himself as an
advocate for ranchers battling wolf
encounters with livestock. For Nash,
who has been filmed for many Oregon
news stories, the national spotlight
was a different experience.
Nash participated in the filming
of an HBO documentary, “The War
Between Cattle Ranchers And Con-
servationists Over Wolves,” released
last month.
“They interviewed me for about
five hours, and in the end, they took
out the part they wanted,” he said. “It
didn’t misrepresent me, but it didn’t
get to the crux of the matter ... ranchers
having the authority to shoot wolves.”
The newest change in the state’s
wolf management plan only allowed
ranchers to shoot wolves if they were
in amongst their cattle on ground the
cattle legally occupied. He added that
he was misrepresented saying in the
video that he had 100 head of cattle
killed by livestock.
“I told them I had lost 100 pounds
per head, and I gave them the equa-
tion I came up with, a $50,000 loss,”
Nash said.
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