August 13, 1998 9
Warm Springs, Oregon
Partners in Prevention: How well is your home protected from wildfires?
Bv Karla Tias
This past month has been a busy
one when it comes to fire, as you all
know we have all been running here
and there chasing fires that have
been started by lightning and various
other causes including arson or
human caused fires.
Human caused fires are usually
started by careless cigarette
smokers, people playing with
fireworks or people intentionally
setting fires. Remember it is against
the law to throw cigarettes out of
car windows and fireworks should
not be used at all this time of year.
If someone is caught doing any of
these things and it starts a wildfire
they could be held responsible to
pay all of the cost for putting the fire
out, that gets really expensive
paying for the man power and
equipment that is used.
Fire precaution levels have
changed again to a "very high," this
means all burning permits are
suspended with the exception of
ceremonial and sweat house fires.
If you plan to have a ceremonial or
sweathouse fire, you need to call in
to Fire Management or Fire & Safety
to let them know.
No matter what the cause is we
all need to take the same precautions
to make sure lives and property stay
safe. You should not wait until a
fire has burned close to your home
or is burning towards your home to
begin fire prevention. Go through
this checklist to see how well your
home will defend itself if a fire
burns nearby.
If you have any questions please
call Fire Management 553-2413 or
Fire & Safety 553-1634.
WILDFIRE PROTECTION PROBLEMS
ru no
DRIVEWAY Too rurrow or iteq) to back fire engine in -or-
Branches overhang driveway -or-
Down-dead fuels line driveway '
DRIVEWAY Dead-end & longer than 200 feet from road I
ROOF Combustible I
(Asphalt shingles or wood shakes)
ROOF Wood shakes , , i
(Wood shakes are such i Urge fire problem that they are
"double weighted" in this table)
TREES Overhang roof
TREEBRUSH LLol thinned in area within 30 of structure
VEHICLES Parked outside within 30 of structure.
SLOPE More than 20 anywhere within 30' of structure
SLOPE More ,han 40 anywherc within 30' of smJC,ure
DECKSTILT Not enclosed underneath (to ground)
POWER LINE Overhead within 30' of structure.
I of YES Number of YES checked
l I WILL DEFEND ITSELF WITH LITTLE HELP FROM FIREFIGHTERS
i WITH HELP FROM FIREFIGHTERS, MAY BE VERY DEFENSIBLE
1 WITH HELP FROM FIREFIGHTERS, MAY NOT BE DEFENSIBLE
WILL NOT LIKELY SURVIVE EVEN WITH THE HELP OF FIREF1CHTERS
WILDFIRE PROTECTION SOLUTIONS
Widen driveway to at least 20 to allow fire engine access DRIVEWAY
- - Trim branches for 28" wide and t4' tall pathway
-1- Rem0ve dead fuels from pathway and trim ladder fuels 6 above ground
Z- Construct circular driveway with two accesses from road DRIVEWAY
Replace wmbustible rwfvwth non-combustible roof such utile or metal ROOF
Replace wood shakes with non-combustible roof as soon as possible! ROOF
r Trim or remove trees from near house to remove overhang 1111:8:5
Remove trees from within 30' of structures, thin to 100' from siructures TREEBRUSH
Park all vehicles away from structures, at least 30' -or- park in garage VEHICLES
Thin and remove treesbrush to 200" on downhill side of structure SLOPE
Thin and remove treesbrush to 400' on downhill side of structure SLOPE
Enclose underside of decks with solid sheeting DECKSTILT
- Run power lines underground near structure POWER LINE
OTHER EFFECTIVE MEASURES:
Stack woodpiles at least 10' away from structures Keep vehicles in garage
lnst.ll reflective address sign end of driveway Keep garden hoses at.ached .0 spigots
Keep gutters & roof clean of combustible materials Keep house ladders against roof
New Warm Springs extension agents fill vacated positions
' . . . - .ru: i tu0 rrr,i.n w T herds. That has been the ni
New Home Economics Extension
Agent, Bernadette Handley , has been
in Warm Springs since July 6, 1998.
She is originally from Placid Lake,
the mountain regions of New York.
She most recently moved here from
Oregon City where she spent one
year, before that she was in Austin,
Texas for one year
Handley received her Bachelors
Degree in Dietetics at Rochester
Institute of Technology in New York.
She is a registered dietician working
on her Masters through Oregon State
University.
She has been a food service
director in long-term care nursing
homes, a clinical dietician in a
hospital and a teacher at a junior
college. She was managing food
service departments, so this job as an
extension agent is different for
Handley. "Part of what I was looking
for was continuity and interaction, I
wasn ' t getting that working with staff.
I wanted to be part of a community
and feel what I was doing and see
what I was doing," says Handley.
Handley has some ideas she would
like to pursue but would like to
determine the needs of the
community and focus on those needs
first. She is in the process of setting
up a home economics advisory
committee to help her get some ideas
about what the communities needs
are. Because there has been an
absence since Norma left in
November Handley will decide
what's the priority and what kind of
needs were brought into the office
since then and address those needs.
She also has a food preservation class
coming up.
She has been in the community a
little bit, visited two homes, went to
eat lunch with the senior citizens.
The first two weeks of her job has
been an orientation for her, getting to
know the Extension office and the
Warm Springs area.
Her special interests include cross
country skiing, hiking, starting to
rock climb and she just started martial
arts, which has been pretty exciting,
she also loves music, and she has a
dog and a cat.
Handley concludes, "Certainly
feel free to call if theres a special
need they have or a special interest
they would like to see developed.
But, I'm really excited to be here, y
I've never been in a place where
everyones happy it's really
lb I r-
refreshing. I like the group that I
work with, really diverse. 1 m real
excited to be here."
Since the first of June Zach del
Nero has been the Natural Resources
Extension Agent in Warm Springs.
Bodie Shaw accepted the job as
Forestry Manager and vacated this
position.
Zach's job is to improve and or
optimize natural resource uses,
develop some agricultural initiatives
so that the tribal economy can be
diversified. Zach goes on to say, "At
one time there were 60,000 acres
farmed in the basin and now most of
that has erown into weeds."
He says they will look at hay
production for "winter feeds and
supplementing winter feed for the
r
V 1
If
it:''
Zach del Nero, Natural Resources Extension Agent and Bernadette
Handley, Home Economics Extension Agent.
Lost in Pace walking from Portland to Coast
There is a group of women called
"Lost in Pace" who will be
participating in the Portland-to-Coast
walk. Its being held from August 28
and 29. The starting point is at Janzten
Beach to Seaside. Each team member
walks an average of 6 miles.
The team consists of 12 members
and a driver. Those members are:
Sharon Miller, Captain, Michelle
Alvarez, Co-Captain, Earlynne
Squiemphen, Judy Budd, Lynn Fluhr,
Sara Thomas, Coleen Reed, Shirley
Earl, Jeannie Seyler, Margareta
Gonzales, Becky Hunt Lucei, Shari
Marazoo, and the driver Ann
McKenzie. Most members work at
the Warm Springs Health and
Wellness Clinic.
To help get them on there way they
will be selling raffle tickets for $ 1 .00
each or 6 for $5.00. All items raffled
off are donated by The Museum at
Warm Springs. The drawings will be
held on August 20. To purchase tickets
contact any team member. You can
also make donations to the American
Cancer Society who is also sponsoring
the walk.
The items to be raffled off are:
Wild Things bag, huckleberry T-shirt,
book by, Andy Linn "Huckleberry
Lessons", beaded key chain made by
Effie Culpus, dream catcher earrings,
and beaded zipper pull.
They'd like to thank all who gives
support to their team.
herds. That has been the number one
input right now.
He will also look at some high
value crops such as carrots or
potatoes.
Zach will be working with Culture
and Heritage Committee on an
assessment of cultural plants
huckleberries, roots, medicinal
plants. How to manage them here
and on ceded lands. He says, "there's
a whole variety that tribal members
have legal rights to, we will also
update nutritional analysis of cultural
plants."
Zach' s prior employment includes
construction work at the village pool
after the flood, Salmon Corps and
Range and Ag. He moved here to
,1arm Springs in 1996 after he
finished school at Oregon State
University where he received his
Bachelor of Science degree in Geo
Science. He then went into Master of
Science and Crop Science from
Oregon State and started on a
Doctorate.
He attended Oregon State with
Bodie Shaw, Orvie Danzuka, Jason
Smith, Mark Jackson and Brigette
Whipple. "It's great to see everyone
I went to school succeed in their
jobs."
; del Nero has a house in Bear
Springs, "which is only three hours
!from Cannon Beach." He enjoys
surfing. He also enjoys music, singing
and drumming, powwows, concerts,
mountain bikes, ice hockey, softball,
running, motorcycles and mostly
being outdoors.
' He also enjoys spending time with
his four-year-old daughter, who lives
in Philomath.
Jesus is coming,
everyone
look busy.
IF WILDFIRE STRIKES NEAR YOU:
Listen for high-low sirens warning of evacuation.
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Put vehicles in garage or move away from structures.
Remove outside furniture. Place in house or away from it.
Remove light curtains from windows. Close heavy curtains, blinds, shutters.
Close doors, windows, and vents.
Make sure garden hoses have nozzles and are turned on.
Put house ladders up to roof.
Cover windows with aluminum foil.
Fill buckets with water and place outside.
Shut off gas.
Scatter fuels (bum piles, lumber piles, etc.).
Clean roof and gutter of of debris (needles, etc).
Assemble valuables in easily carried containers (clothes baskets work well).
IF YOU' VE BEEN ORDERED TO EVACUATE:
Follow the order! Evacuate as quickly as possible as directed!
Turn off lights, small appliances, and faucets. , "
Turn down furnace '
Turn off air conditioners and fans
Lock your windows and doors
Check on your neighbors to see if they need help. Help them if they need it.
Do not use telephones. Keep them clear for emergencies.
Listen to Emergency Broadcast System on radio.
Put livestock inside with stored feed
Place pre-assembled valuables in vehicle that you will evacuate in.
Use one car per family to evacuate.
Close windows and vents on car.
Stay calm as you drive. Obey all traffic laws.
Follow identified evacuation routes.
Check in at identified evacuation shelter.
Farm Service Agency news
The. Pnrm Service Aeencv offices
located in Prineville and Madras will
be closed August 26-28 due to
moving to the new Redmond Service
Center. The new Redmond office is
located at 625 SE Salmon Avenue in
Redmond, next to the Redmond
Airport. Our office staff will be busy
organizing files in the new office
August 31 -September 4. If you have
business to take care of that could
wait until the following week, it
would be greatly appreciated. To
better help our producers during this
transition period we will be keeping
our current office numbers initially.
You can reach the Farm Service
Agency by calling any one of these
phone numbers:
541-923-4358
541-447-5171
541-475-3869
The debt collection act of 1996
mandates that federal payments made
after January 1, 1999, shall be made
by electronic transfer (Direct
Deposit). Currently, any producer or
vendor who first becomes eligible
for a federal payment after July 25,
1996, is required to receive that
payment by means of Direct Deposit.
Producers will be required to
complete form SF-1 1 99 A, or furnish
avoided check to authorize the Direct
Deposit. Producers are reminded that
if you have a change in your financial
institution, or account number, please
notify the office as soon as possible.
CRITFC files administrative appeal
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Members of the Lost in Pace walking group are planning to participate in the annual event August 28 & 29.
The Tnlnmhia River Inter-Tribal
Fish Commission (CRITFC) last
week filed an administrative appeal
of the proposed Summit Fire salvage
project in the Malheur National For
est. The Forest Service has already
scaled back its original proposal af
ter it had been successfully appealed.
Jon Rhodes, Hydrologist for
CRITFC who has done extensive
analysis of conditions in the John
Day River Basin, said, "The bull
trout, spring chinook, and steelhead
habitat had already been extremely
degraded as a result of Forest Service
land management practices, the dam
age before the fire was so bad that
virtually all streams in the fire area
failed to meet the forest's own stan
dards for habitat conditions and state
water quality standards for tempera
ture. This project will only make
conditions worse."
The Forest Services legally re
quired to meet the fish habitat stan
dards. The proposal calls for logging
about 3,000 acres-about 4 square
miles-in steep roadless areas, recon
structing 130 miles of roads and
building six miles of new roads.
"Without question," Rhodes said.
"the proposed logging project would
do severe snort ana long term uum
age to all aquatic resources. The pro
posed actions will degrade fish habi
tat and water quality in ways that will
last for decades. This project, as cur
rently proposed, flies in the face of
efforts to rebuild salmon and steel
head runs in the middle fork ol the
John Day River. All of the salmonids
affected by this project are under
consideration for Endangered Spe
cies Act listing, proposed for listii.g,
or are already listed. They are se
verely depressed and badly frag
mented. This project will almost cer
tainly contribute to the disappear
ance of local populations of bull trout,
spring chinook and steelhead from
area streams. "While the fire did
minor additional habitat damage, the
amount o logging and the type of
logging the Forest Services propos
ing will do much more harm to water
quality and fish habitat, especially
sedimentation and water tempera
ture," Rhodes observed.
Although the Forest Service is
decommissioning 125 miles of road,
sediment generated by this activity
combined with salvage logging, new
road construction, and road recon
struction will create immediate large
sediment increases in streams already
choked with sediment at a time when
chinook, steelhead, and bull trout
can least afford it.
The Forest Service has argued that
the short term impacts of their pro
posed action on fish habitat condi
tions may be minor and that long
term impacts of their proposed ac
tion on fish habitat conditions may
be minor and that long-term condi
tions will be better as a result. In its
appeal, however, the Columbia River
Inter-Tribal Fish Commission points
out that there is extensive scientific
literature and bitter experience dem
onstrating that the proposed activi
ties will have the same devastating
effect on fish habitat that such activi
ties have always had.
The tribal salmon restoration plan,
Wy-Kcm-Ush-MiWa-Kish-Wt (Spirit
of the Salmon), contains a "coarse
screening process", for ensuring that
land disturbing activities such as log
ging, road construction, and cattle
grazing do not violate fish habitat
and water quality standards.
The Columbia River Inter-Tribal
Fish Commission serves at the be
hest of the Yakama, Umatilla, Warm
Springs, and Nez Perce Tribes who
have treaty -reserved fishing rights in
the Columbia River Basin.