Image provided by: The Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs; Warm Springs, OR
About Spilyay tymoo. (Warm Springs, Or.) 1976-current | View Entire Issue (May 8, 1987)
3 SlMIXW TYMOO WAHM SPRINGS, OKKCON 97761 May 8, 1987 Pi Data predicts low summer flows The Natural Resources Depart ment has been monitoring the snow pack on the reservation since I974. The data is collected at four differ ent sites. Two of these sites are reached by ground equipment and the other two sites monitored from the Tribal plane. The depth of the snow at each site is measured and the water con tent determined for that area. This data is then compiled and com pared to the Hows that occur in the streams and rivers of the Reserva tion. From the snow pack data it is possible to make a prediction of the flows that may occur in the fol lowing summer months, (table I). A chart of the average water content for all four sites for the years I974 through I986 against the water content for this year was developed. This indicates that we have approximately 87.5 percent of the average water content that occurred in the last thirteen years. A flow monitoring station was installed on Shitike Creek at Thompson Bridge in I974 and the data compiled on a continuous basis. It is possible to compare the data from this station with the snow data pack and make a fair prediction of the type of flows that can be expected for the months ol July. August and September. The data from these graphs pre dicts the following: The mean flow for July 1 987 will be approximately 80 cfs August will be approxi mately 54 cfs and September will be approximately 47 cfs. The flow monitoring station on Bridge was established in I973 and data has been compiled continu ously since then. In making a sim ilar comparison of data from this station it is possible to predict the flows that can be expected for the months of June, July, August, and September The data from these graphs pre dict the following: The mean flow for June I987 will beapproximately 350 cfs. July 1 987 will be approxi mately 267 cfs, August 1987 will be approximately 245 cfs and Sep tember I987 will beapproximately 247 cfs. A stream of major concern to many is Mill Creek. A flow moni toring station was established on this stream at the B24I road cross ing in late I983 and data compiled on a continuous basis since that time. Due to the short period of data records it is difficult to make a similar comparison of snow pack and flows as was possible for Shi tike Creek and Warm Springs River. But due to the concern of water users on Sidwaltcr Flat a predic tion of flows was made using a three year average flow and a fact that approximately 90 percent o( this average will probably be pro duced this year. This method of prediction is not as accurate as the one utilized for Shitike Creek and Warm Springs River but will be in the "Ball Park." From this data it is possible to predict that the flows in Mill Creek will be inadequate to meet those of the anadromous fish and the water users on Sidwalter Flat. Response found to be "disappointing" the Warm Springs River at Culpus Spruce budworm under attack Portland, March 30 Spruce bud worm infestations in northeastern Oregon will come under attack in a 300,000-acre joint Forest Service Oregon Sate Department of Forestry aerial spray project scheduled to begin in June. "This will be the largest effort in the Pacific Northwest to employ a natural insecticide in the treatment of spruce budworm," said Jim Torrence, Regional Forester of the Pacific Northwest Region, USDA Forest Service. Naturally occurring insecticide Bacillus thuringiensis or B.t., will be sprayed from helicopters and airplanes onto the infested trees. The effectiveness , of treating In festations on an operational basis with B.t., which is harmful only to the larvae of some moths and butter flies and only for a short period of time, was evaluated in 1985. Over 1 50 Forest Service employees from the Pacific Northwest Region and other regions throughout the west, and several Oregon State Department of Forestry employees, will be involved in this summer's spray project, which will be head quartered in John Day. The Project will begin in June and run through mid-July. The spruce budworm is the larvae of a small moth that feeds almost exclusively on the new growth of Douglas-fir and true fir species. The insects feed on trees of all sizes. Damage is mostly visible in the summer months when the needles killed by the feeding insects turn a reddish brown color. Repeated heavy feeding for several years can cause some topkill and mortality in trees and will weaken them, making them more susceptible to other insect and disease agents. If the trees were not treated, this seven year budworm outbreak would con tinue and valuable timber would be lost. Entomologists had proposed a spray program last year, but funding was not available. A similar project is planned in Yakima County, Washington, where 57,000 acres near Rimrock Lake will be treated. " " The response by Forest Service officals "was disappointing and condescending," said Paul Dewey, president of the Sisters Forest Plan ning Committee. He felt the reply to the appeal filed January 9 by the citizen's watchdog group opposing logging in the Wizard 1 imbcr sale was inadqucate. The sale, which involves 3.9 million board feet of timber on Forest land north of Camp Sherman on the Metolius River in Central Oregon, is bordered also by the Jefferson Wilderness area and the Warm Springs Reservation. Ap proximately 1,118 acres are desig nated for logging. Logging in this area could have a detrimental effect on fish and wild life as well as impact a prime recreational area, the committee asserts. Forest Service timber planner R udy Hefter, however, feels the completed envionmental assess ment on the area provides sufficient data to justify logging. The concern by the committee is not logging itself, said spokesman Dewey, but the culumative effect of Forest Service logging practices in the Metolius Basin. Dewey stated, "The problem in the basin is not logging. The problem is clear cutting and logging roads. The Forest Service is also not paying enough attention to fisheries, elk habitat and visual qualities of the area." "The Forest Service," said Dew ey, "has failed to correct the prob lem of poorly engineered roads Sale removed After public concern regarding the proposed timber sale at Antoken Creek, the 2,785 acres involved were removed from the commercial forest base by Tribal Council resolution April 6. Tribal members residing near the sale area expressed feelings that aesthetic, cultural and big game value would be impacted by the sale. The removal of this sale from the commericial forest base reduces the allowable cut by 886,000 board feet effective January 1, 1988 to a new total annual allowable cut of 79,7 1 4,000 board feet for the Warm Springs block. which cause erosion and contrib ute to sedimentation in tributaries in the Metolius. "Two or three-year-old growth pine in the midst of an acre of vounc trces"as a visual goal is also unacceptable, said Dewey. "The basin is a premiere recreation area and this kind of planning does not contribute to a good visual experience." Dewey continues. "The Forest Service cannot keep on planning sale after sale after sale in the Metolius area without some plan to deal with cumulative effects... Because of the Basin's topography, with its many roads and streams, virtually every activity has some effect on the Metolius River." The "we're taking care of it " attitude of the Forest Service "de creases our confidence." explained Dewev. There are numerous un resolved concerns regarding envi ronmental impact involved in the Wizard Timber Sale that only a complete Environmental Impact Statement can address. The Sisters Planning Committee has until May 15 to respond to the Forest Service reply. Since the initial appeal, "we've come up with documentation"rcgarding degrad ation of wildlife habitat brought phnnt hy hiinu " ;, V. . r V - 1 . J Spityay Tymoo photo by Shrwctyt The Warm Springs reservation borders the proposed Wizard Timber Sale in the Metolius Basin. Yaw goes to D C. New ce personne, Madras High School student igh Nicole Yaw was selected to attend the Young Leaders conference April 25-29 in Washington D.C. Delegates for the conference were selected by United Way of America groups who paid for the travel and expenses. Involving youth more actively in their communities was the purpose of the conference. ' Workshops at the conference dealt with leadership development and community problem-solving. VS Water meaSUreS approved Conference attended The Joint Committee on Water Policy approved two water policy measures April 18, one to fight water waste and the other to launch new watershed improvement pro jects. A new Watershed Enhancement Board would be created to supervise and finance local streambank and watershed improvement projects designed to increase stream flows. Senate Bill 23 now goes to the budget writers of the Ways and Means Committee. This bill was initially drafted after water experts testified that watershed management projects' such as plantings, fencing, crop ping patterns and grazing schedules could increase the late summer flows in heavily used Eastern Ore gon streams. Water conservation is encouraged by the approval of House Bill 24 to allow irrigators to profit from the sale of any water they are able to conserve through more efficient irrigation practices. This bill now goes to the Senate floor. One com mittee member expressed concern that the measure would authorize the sale of water out of the state. Gilbert Brown and Dorian Soliz, along with Delbert Frank and Mary Ann Meanus, attended the Alco hol and Substance Abuse Confer ence held in South Sioux City, Nebraska May 5-8. The conference was designed to bring elders and youth together for developing recommendations for prevention and treatment of sub stance abuse. lis . . ;. f - V . V I . v' v r F"i 'j tin-,-?, Newly hired special police officer John Halliday is '2 Wasco and the grandson of Frenchy Thomas and the son of Jeannie Thomas; Bill Chamema is a Hopifrom Northern Arizona and is the new B1A law enforcement secretary. Forestry board adopts minimum riparian rules Hatchery part of IHN research I i ' , ; . y ' : -1 '"v , ff7 f - A i . . ?- 1 I 1; ; ' ! i , . ; ' 'if'A X,' fl ..... i X 1 ,ss; w f 1 " -? J I :' 1 ; t, . : - : - yr Ai V ' ' I V ' ? . ' v 'j ' 'M ( ; Harm Springs fisheries technician aid Keith Moody assists ODFW fisheries technician L onnie F reeman during spawning and sampling for IHN virus at Round Butte fish hatchery. Infectious Hematopieitic Necro sis (IHN) is a virus that can prove fatal to fish. The virus infects the blood system of salmonids (salmon and steelhead) and has the poten tial to wipe out an entire hatchery, according to Oregon Department of Fish and Wldlife research biolo gist Brian Jonasson. The IHN virus, discovered in 1974 at the Round Butte Hatchery on the Deschutes River, never reached serious proportions and researchers are working on ways to eliminate the problem completely. Hatchery manager Bill Nyra ex plains that two years ago water supplies were changed and the flow into fish rearing ponds was doubled. The disease has decreased in fre quency as a result. However, researchers are still not certain that transmission of the disease is through water. For the past three years adult salmonids have been tested for the disease. Biologists cross pairs of fish with and without the IHN virus hoping to obtain more information. They are concerned that transmission may occur from adult to progeny. Realty seeking current addresses The Warm Springs Realty office is asking that all enrolled members of the Warm Springs reservation and the Burns Paiute reservation send in their current mailing address. Send new addresses to Bureau of Indian Affairs Realty Office, P.O. Box 1239, Warm Springs, Oregon 97761. Culture conference begins Registration begins Thursday, May 7 from 6 to 9 p.m. for the Northwest Conference on Cultural Preservation at Kah-Nee-Ta Resort. Meetings will be held Friday and Saturday ith a dinner Friday night at the Simnasho Longhouse. Restrictions on logging and re lated practices in riparian areas have increased as the result of rules adopted April 1 5 by the state Board of Forestry. The rules establish a riparian zone three times the width of a stream but not less than 25 feet or more than 100 feet wide along a fish-bearing stream. Within that zone, half of the tree canopy must be left, including nine conifers per acre if there are that many in half the zone nearest the water. The new rules provide for moni toring of their impact which has not been done on logging practices in the past. The 1987 legislature has appro priated 5171,563 for the forestry department to add two forest-practice foresters to its enforcement staff during the next biennium and to promote another forester from seasonal to fulltime enforcement. One position will also be added to the administrative staff for mon itoring duties. Conservation and environmen tal groups feel that the rules do not adequately protect fish. In other states, buffer zones provide a 200 foot zone of shade along streams or 44 conifers with a minimum of a 12-inch diameter instead of nine trees provided in the new Oregon rules. The problem, Oregon Trout executive director Bill Bakke claims, is the presence of a single member on the nine-member Oregon Board of Forestry who represents the public interest. The board, Bakke points out, appears to be serving logging industry interests. DESCHUTES SPRING CHINOOK Sherars Falls Sport Catch Percent of Total 80 1 ; 60 ---" 'mmwk t-jjjl j! iip lip i ill q I mmmmmM-fA r.r-n 1 tin -"'- , , , ,f 1 May 16 June 1 April LJ Effort May Two Week Period Beginning HU Adult Catch I I Jack Catch Graph from Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife shows how well sports fishermen do at Sherars tails during spring chinook run. i
