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4A | NOVEMBER 12, 2020 | COTTAGE GROVE SENTINEL Cottage Grove Sentinel 116 N. Sixth St. Cottage Grove, Ore. 97424 NED HICKSON , MANAGING EDITOR | Opinion 541-902-3520 | NHICKSON @ CGSENTINEL . COM The First Amendment C ongress shall make no law respect- ing an establishment of religion or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press, or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Govern- ment for a redress of grievances. “I never considered a difference of opinion in politics, in religion, in philosophy, as cause for withdrawing from a friend.” —Thomas Jefferson (1800) USPS#133880 Copyright 2020 © COTTAGE GROVE SENTINAL Letters to the Editor Policy The Sentinel welcomes letters to the editor as part of a community discussion of issues on the local, state and national level. Emailed letters are preferred. Handwritten or typed letters must be signed. All letters need to include full name, address and phone number; only name and city will be printed. Letters should be limited to about 300 words. Letters are subject to editing for length, grammar and clarity. Publication of any letter is not guaranteed and depends on space available and the volume of letters received. Letters that are anonymous, libelous, argumentative, sarcastic or contain accusations that are unsourced or without documentation will not be published. Letters containing poetry or from outside The Sentinel readership area will only be published at the discretion of the editor. Political/Election Letters: We can all agree on appreciation for our veterans dits made predictions rang- ing from whimsy to woe. As I listened, I noticed one topic that was missing from the day’s discussion topics: Our veterans. Driving to work Wednesday morning, talk radio stations were full of the continuing discussion and debate over the Nov. 3 elections. Hosts grilled pollsters, questioned campaign strat- egists and prognosticated about what could happen in the weeks and months leading up to Jan. 20. Guests expressed either their exuberance or dismay over the results while pun- precious right to vote. I understand that this election has been as con- troversial as it is historic, necessitating a deeper con- versation about the state of our nation and its divided, From the Editor's Desk Ned Hickson Without the funda- mental right we have as a democracy to vote, there would be no election to discuss — and without the service and sacrifice made by others in defense of our nation, there would be no republic to afford us that evolving identity. But Veterans Day should be a day we put those con- versations on hold and recognize those who have protected our right to have those conversations in the first place. Generations of Ameri- cans have given their time and their very lives so that we could cast a vote and ex- ercise our right, as Amer- icans, to disagree openly with each other under the Constitution. Just for one, we should put our differences aside and agree that our veter- ans — of all eras, branch- es of service, at home and abroad — deserve our attention, respect and ap- preciation. Thanks to them, there will be plenty of time in the days ahead to disagree with one another. But on Veterans Day, we should all agree on the ap- preciation we share for our veterans. How can Oregonians assist with protecting wildlife, habitats? (Editor’s Note: Viewpoint sub- missions on this and other topics are always welcome as part of our goal to encourage community discussion and exchange of perspectives.) Oregon Hunters Association (OHA), a group of conserva- tion-minded sportsmen, urges Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW) to develop and implement a policy to enhance and conserve migra- tory habitat for big game, and all wildlife that make seasonal movements. Habitat connectiv- ity, the degree to which separate habitat patches are connected, is a crucial factor for conservation of wildlife. Increases in urban and energy development has result- ed in extensive habitat loss and fragmentation for many species in Oregon. Fortunately, advances in wildlife tracking technology have allowed wildlife managers to more accurately identify where animals move on the landscape, as well as impediments to wildlife space use. For ungulate species (e.g., deer, elk, pronghorn, big- horn sheep), migration corridors are fundamental to their life history, but until recently, these corridors were thought of as conduit between seasonal ranges rather than essential habitat. Many big game migration cor- ridors are currently obstructed by transportation infrastructure and energy development sites. There- fore, state agencies must consid- er the full extent of migratory habitat to better manage ungulate populations. ODFW is making leaps and bounds through the Oregon Con- nectivity Assessment and Map- ping Project, an innovative effort to map wildlife movement and corridors across the state. Oregon has an opportunity to ensure this new information leads to sound management solutions by devel- oping agency policy to formally The Lava Butte wildlife under- pass has reduced vehicle-wildlife collisions by 86 percent. Individuals can support and help fund habitat connectivity and migration corridor projects by purchasing a specialized watch for wildlife license plate By Jim Akenson voucher at www.myowf.org/ Oregon Hunters Association senior watchforwildlife. Conservation Director Global Positioning System Lori McKinnon (GPS) wildlife tracking collars President of Coastal Farm & Ranch have become commonplace in wildlife management today, and this shift to more efficient and identify migration corridors. accurate technology will allow for This action will bolster current more precise management into conservation projects where many the future. GPS collars collect groups (including OHA) are an immense amount of ani- working to conserve and enhance mal location data on fixed time migratory habitat. schedules, and these data are ideal For example, OHA has pledged for describing ungulate resource over $114,000 and many volun- selection and utilization and mi- teer hours to the Gilchrist Wild- gratory habitat. life Underpass Project aimed at A migration policy will assist reducing ungulate mortality and ODFW and their partners in ob- vehicle collisions on U.S. High- taining additional grant funding way 97. Additionally, a migration to provide wildlife professionals policy will frame new partner- with additional GPS collars, ships between private landowners, which will in-turn, further our non-government organizations, knowledge of migration cor- and government agencies, which ridors, resource selection, and will result in additional conserva- population dynamics. tion projects and funding sources. How can Oregonian’s assist Recently, Coastal Farm & with protecting wildlife and their Ranch, after obtaining the low bid habitats? to provide fencing material, gen- By working with their local erously supported the Gilchrist wildlife biologist, watershed man- Wildlife Underpass Project by agers, ODFW commissioners and providing fencing materials at a legislators to promote continued discount below their initial low research and policy development. bid. In addition, the public can sup- OHA’s Bend Chapter has invest- port protection of wildlife, their ed hundreds of volunteer hours habitats, and mitigation from land maintaining the fence that funnels management, urban and energy wildlife to the Lava Butte wildlife development and transportation underpass on U.S. Highway 97, infrastructure projects through approximately 50 miles north of County, State and Federal public the new Gilchrist underpass. comment processes. Guest Viewpoint Election-related letters must address pertinent or timely issues of interest to our readers at-large. Letters must: 1) Not be a part of letter-writing campaigns on behalf of (or by) candidates; 2) Ensure any information about a candidate is accurate, fair and not from second-hand knowledge or hearsay; and 3) explain the reasons to support candidates based on personal experience and perspective rather than partisanship and campaign-style rhetoric. Candidates themselves may not use the letters to the editor column to outline their views and platforms or to ask for votes; this constitutes paid political advertising. As with all letters and advertising content, the newspaper, at the sole discretion of the publisher, general manager and editor, reserves the right to reject any letter that doesn’t follow the above criteria. Send letters to: nhickson@cgsentinel.com HOW TO CONTACT YOUR REPS Oregon state representatives Oregon federal representatives • Sen. Floyd Prozanski • Rep. Peter DeFazio District 4 State Senator PO Box 11511 Eugene, Ore. 97440 Phone: 541-342-2447 Email : sen.fl oydprozanski@ state.or.us (House of Representatives) 405 East 8th Ave. #2030 Eugene, Ore. 97401 Email: defazio.house.gov/ contact/email-peter Phone: 541-465-6732 • Rep. Cedric Hayden Republican District 7 State Representative 900 Court St. NE Salem, Ore. 97301 Phone: 503-986-1407 Website: www.leg.state.or. us/hayden Email: rep.cedrichayden@ state.or.us • Sen. Ron Wyden 405 East 8th Ave., Suite 2020 Eugene, Ore. 97401 Email: wyden.senate.gov Phone: (541) 431-0229 • Sen. Jeff Merkley Email: merkley.senate.gov Phone: 541-465-6750 S entinel C ottage G rove 541-942-3325 Administration Jenna Bartlett, Group Publisher Gary Manly, General Manager... Ext. 1207 gmanly@cgsentinel.com Gerald Santana, Multi-Media Sales Consultant... Ext. 1216 gsantana@cgsentinel.com Carla Skeel, Inside Multi-Media Sales Consultant... Ext. 1203 csummers@cgsentinel.com Editorial Ned Hickson, Managing Editor... 541-902-3520 nhickson@cgsentinel.com Damien Sherwood, Lead Reporter... Ext. 1212 dsherwood@cgsentinel.com Customer Service Meg Fringer, Office Manager, Legals, Classifieds... Ext. 1200 mfringer@cgsentinel.com Production Ron Annis, Production Supervisor... 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