Spjlyay Tymoo, Wqrro Sprink Oregon 5eptemheii62001
Pe5
Ctijtd from page I
, WSFPI has an agreement with the
tribes providing the enterprise wit
first right to the timber harvested oil
the reservation,
Currently, tribal and WSFPI o
ficials arc reviewing thia agrcemc
and may revise the document. T
original agreement was implement
in 1992, and expires at the cnd,f
this year, providing the opporruAy
for the WSFPI and tribal official to
. , re-visit provisions of the agrcceent
Because VC'SI PI has the firjight
to timber harvested on the nerva
tion, the annual allowable h, as
adopted by Tribal Counctf i an
important figure for the nl. The
annual allowable cut is thtflumbcr
of board feet of timber tbc har
vested from reservation tibcrland
during the year. ,
For the coming yuf, Tribal
Council has set the ailowJlc cut fig
ure at 37.6 million boarfeet across
the 14 forest planning frits on the
reservation.
For the current yea the figure is
52 million board fc indicating a
fairly substantial ruction from
2001 to 2002 in tW allowable cut
level.
Calica said that fc annual cut of
37.6 million boarJect represents a
sustainable harveslevel for the res
ervation timbcrlaO. The figure was
developed after Jailed research into
the conditions othe forest, he said.
(See related ttorfn this page.)
People at tl WSFPI mill were
not happy upofhearing word of the
37.6 million bp! feet allowable cut
level. John Kpia, manager of the
WSFPI mill.jud the figure seems
quite low, ccfidering that the res
ervation incises over 300,000 acres
of forested ttd. (
"We're bng forced to purchase
off-reservatin timber," Katchia said.
'To do thaind make money at the
same time going to be very chal
lenging."
The mimow has an annual con-
nJWfPt9W?i,ot ,loS;iuirem,ent
f rate,, of J million board , feet per
year. In oler words, the mill needs
to procesihat amount of timber to
operate cinpetitively in the market.
; With Je allowable cut for 2002
, set at 37.injllion bjard feet, WSFPI
will havffto purchase a significant
number i logs - ptrhaps 25 percent
of its too - from off the reservation.
For ne current year, the allow
able cutjn the re srvation was about
; in line ith the nail production rate,
so the rjill did nk rely much on off-
reservaion logsysaid Potts.
Last year, tip mill added a new
saw for large ugs, and efficiency in
overall prodction greatly im
proved, said Htts. For these reasons,
WSFPI in 200 did purchase a higher
than usual niiber of off-reservation
logs.
Howeverfprior to the year 2000,
. WSFPI pJchased only minimal
numbers ologs from off the reser-
i.u mim HIMII w nil" i wm 1 1 " '-" " " ' 1 " ' t 1 " "' "" "J""" - - """"
HI. ,
ft-" T.T' il
I l , 1, . , i I
i I i
. . 1 IrT
Tribes' forest planner
explains harvest level
-4
K k
.. . - jh. Tgr- , ... - -jJf;. ,
. ik. --..-.
til."
!i i . . .. ... '
IV j .''a.'Jv.
' '' '. " ' ' Photos by Dave McMechan
The photo at top is of mill superintendent Katchia at log debarking machinery; and above, a saw
operator prepares logs for further processing inside the mill. ' '
' , i '' i i 1 '. ir: ii
vation; instead, the mill relied almost
entirely on the allowable cut on the
reservation.
Past cut levels
The numbers regarding past cut
levels tell the story of the changes in
forest management on the reservaT
tion. For a number of decades' prior
to the 1980s, the cut level was in the
range of 50 to 55 million board feet
per year, said Calica. ,
Then in the 1980s the annual har
vest levels doubled. In one year more
than 130 million board feet, includ
ing salvage, were harvested from the
reservation.
Concerned about over-cutting
and the unsustainability of the har
vest level, the Tribal Council in the
1990s brought the allowable cut
back to the range of 50 to 55 million
board feet. The Council set these fig
ures at the recommendation of for
esters working for the tribes and for
, the Bureau of Indian Affairs.
; For the year 2002, the Council
has set the cut level at 37.6 million
board feet, showing the on-going if
not increased concern for
sustainability of reservation timber.
So, in looking to the future
WSFPI for the first time is facing the
need for a prolonged reliance on off
reservation logs. This presents a se
rious, but by no means insurmoun
table challenge, said Potts.
Some factors are working in
WSFPI's favor, including the recent
closure of the Ochoco mill in
Prineville. This and the closure last
year of a mill in the Mt. Hood area
should free up additional logs for the
WSFPI mill, said Potts.
In coming years WSFPI should
be able to purchase logs from the
Deschutes and Mt. Hood national
forests, and from the Yakama Reser
vation, among other sources, Potts
said.
, "We are confident that we will
find logs on the open market off the
reservation that will fulfill our
needs," he said.
Cllarter school...
ntinued from page 1
Chatr schools provide innova-
tive anymore flexible ways of edu
cating itudents within the public
schoolystem. The Oregon Legisla
ture aipted the charter school law
in 19'
Fiff percent of the teachers at
charts schools must be certified,
but thj other 50 percent do not need
teach certification.
Tre arrangement would allow a
persoj of the local community who
is exf rt in a certain subject to teach
at thj charter school, without re
quirip the person to become a cer
tifieiteacher. ! instance, tribal members who
havknowledge of traditional lan
guafs and culture, or of the tribes'
govt nment arid history, could teach
at fe charter school.
rie Tribal Council last week met
wirfjoni Gilles, program specialist
wit the Oregon Department of
Edlcation. Gilles, a former princi
pal a charter school, said that the
Warn Springs proposal fits perfectly
will trie spirit ot tnc cnarter school
legislation.
Charter schools, she said, "are de
signed to provide alternatives, be
cause children don't all learn the
same way."
A charter school in Warm Springs
would be unique in that no other
reservation in the state has such a
school, Gilles said.
A charter school is created
through an agreement with' the
school district. Funding of the char
ter school comes from the state, ad
ministered through the school dis
trict. As with regular public schools,
charter schools are funded by the
state on the basis of the number of
enrolled students. State funding for
a public charter middle school is 80
percent of the amount per student -provided
to the non-charter public
middle school.
For a charter high school the
amount is 95 percent of the amount
per student provided to the non
charter public high school.
The local community can choose
to make up the difference in fund
ing by contributing to the charter
school. ' "' '' ' ''
This may not ' be necessary,
though, because charter schools,
with up to 50 percent non-certified
teachers, can be less expensive to
in the community, people gave sug
gestions on how the existing elemen
tary school buildings might be used
after the new elementary school
opens.
operate than regular public schools, . fThere were three main sugges
said Gilles. - ' 1 V Hons, said lulie Ouaid. director of
The annual allowable cut of tim
ber on the reservation can lw a point
of controversy.
Some tribal members today feel
that the cut level of the 1980s were
too high, and that ihc comparatively
low cut level set for next year is a
consequence of past years of over
cutting. The Tribal Council last month
tct the 2002 allowable timber cut on
the reservation at 37.6 million board
feet.
The numlar could increase by up
to 2.5 million board feet, if forest
managers determine that some of the
ponderosa pine management group
should also be harvested. There is
no scheduled harvest for this man
agement group. Instead, some pine
could possibly be harvested as sal
vage, or in order to improve the
health of the forest.
The 37.6 million board feet to be
cut next year is a fairly significant
reduction from the 52 million board
feet of the current year.
For perspective on the board-feet
numbers: The Warm Springs Forest
Products Industries mill in one year
processes 48 million board feet of
timber.
Allan Derickson, the tribes' for
est planner, recommended to the
Tribal Council the allowable cut for
next year. Derickson explained that
for next year, specific cutting levels
are set in each of the 14 planning
units of the reservation timberland.
This will be the first time that
such levels have been established for
the various units, which represent
different watersheds on the reserva
tion. The reason why the 2002 allow
able cut level is below that of last
year in part has to do with the pon
derosa pine ground on the reserva
tion, Derickson explained.
A full explanation of the situa
tion, he said, requires a brief over
view of 'the"history of timber har
vesting on the reservation.
Back in the 1940s and '50s, which
were the early years of commercial
timber harvests on the reservation,
the focus was on taking trees that
were seen as otherwise being wasted.
These often included older trees,
ones that had blown down, or trees
that were unhealthy from disease or
fire.
Harvest levels steadily increased,
and in the mid 1960s the tribes en
tered the lumber market, with the
establishment of Warm Springs For
est Products Industries. The WSFPI
mill is at the site of the old Jefferson
Lumber mill.
Into the 1970s the focus of reser
vation forest management remained
on the harvesting of older trees, and
the planting of new ones that some
day will be ready for harvesting.
The rate of growth in younger
forests is faster than that of old
growth, which creates the incentive,
from the harvesting perspective, to
convert the old stands of trees to new
stands.
On the reservation this manage
ment approach peaked in the 1980s,
when over 100 million board feet
were being harvested annually..
At the end of the 1980s people
'Tje Warm Springs Res
emition is in a unique po
sition geographically for
natural re-
managing
sources. "
Allan Derickson
Forest planner
were increasingly concerned that the
reservation timberland was being
over-cut. In response, during the first
part of the 1990s, the tribes devel
oped an Integrated Resource Man
agement Plan (1RMP), which was
adopted in 1992.
The IRMP was the first such plan
for a reservation, and was kxjkcd on
as a model for other tribes.
Essentially, the IRMP called for
forest management that takes into
consideration timber harvests, but
also factors like water quality, fish
and wildlife habitat, and cultural
resources.
Under the IRMP, a sustainable
allowable timber cut on the reserva
tion was determined to be about 55
million board feet per year. How
ever, rather than drop sharply from
the high cut levels of the 1980s to
the new target level, the Tribal
Council decided to phase in the re
ductions over a few years.
An issue that complicated this
process involves the reservation's
low-elevation ponderosa pine man
agement group, which had been har
vested to a great extent until 1992
Initially in the early 1990s, while
developing the sustainable harvest
level number, the forest managers
included a harvest level for the pine.
The level was about 20 percent of
the total cut.
In 1992, though, an independent
study indicated that the pine ground
' on the reservation had been over-cut
The Tribal Council then adopted a
10-year moratorium on pine ground
harvesting.
However, during the 1990s and
into this year, the long-term sustain
able cut figure of approximately 55
million board feet was not adjusted
to reflect the pine ground morato
rium. For 2002, the adjustment is be
ing made, which helps explain why
the harvest level is dropping from 52
million board feet this year to 37.6
million board feet next year.
Derickson said that the IRMP
approach to forest management has
many benefits for the tribes' forest
land. "The Warm Springs Reservation
is in a unique position geographi
cally for managing natural re
sources," Derickson said.
The reservation, encompassing
many watersheds, goes from the crest
of mountains in the west down to a
major river in the east. This allows
the tribes to determine the quality
of water in the streams and the
health of the habitat for fish. Tradi
tional food gathering areas and other
cultural resources can also be pro
tected, Derickson said.
One of the main hurdles, toward
creation of a charter school is fund
ing of the facilities, that is, the build
ings where the classes are to be
taught. ''
For the Confederated Tribes, this
issue may be resolved in the fall of
2003, when the new Warm Springs
Elementary School is scheduled to
open. The new school is made pos
sible by the adoption this year of an
$8 million design and construction
plan.
The Confederated Tribes and
School District 509-J are sharing the
costs of this project
When the elementary school is
relocated to its new facilities, the
existing buildings of the Warm
Springs Elementary School will be
open for a different use.
It is possible that a charter school
could operate in the existing elemen
tary school buildings, said Olney
Patt.
Earlier this year, during hearings
-Warm Springs Early Childhood
Education. The three suggestions,
Quaid said, were a charter school, a
vocationaljob-skills teaching center,
and a place for activities of the Boys
& Girls Club.
Whatever option is chosen, the
tribes will have to work in partner
ship with the BIA, which owns the
elementary school property, said
Quaid.
The BIA leased the property to
the tribes until the time when a new
'elementary school opens, said
Quaid.
She added that the BIA very
likely would be willing to continue
allowing the tribes to use the build
ings after 2003.
Another issue, she said, is the
need for renovation at the existing
Warm Springs Elementary School
buildings. A big issue will be fund
ing to remodel the buildings for
older students, rather than elemen
tary school children, said Quaid.
Traditional leave...
Continued from page 1
Work on developing a traditional
leave policy for the tribal govern
ment began last summer.
The initiative for the project came
when elders at last year's Huckle
berry Feast mentioned the need for
such a policy to Charles Jackson,
secretary-treasurer of the Confeder
ated Tribes.
Later, Heath, working with a
committee of traditional food gath
erers and preparers, developed a draft
for review and consideration by
Tribal Council.
The new policy applies to any
tribal employee, in the employment
of the tribal government, who is an
active practitioner of a traditional
tribal religion of one of the three
confederated tribes.
Such an employee can take leave
from employment with full pay and
benefits to participate in all tradi
tional religious activities of the Con
federated Tribes, according to the
policy.
The extent of such leave, the
policy states, is dependent on the
specific role of the employee in an
approved activity and shall include
sufficient time for preparation prior
to the event and rest after the event
before the traditional practitioner
must report back to work.
Also, the policy applies to an
employee taking a Ichishkin, Kiksht
or Numu language class, with a 2
hour per week limitation.
The new leave policy requires the
employee taking leave to give prior
notice to his or her supervisor.