A4
BAKER CITY
Opinion
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news@bakercityherald.com
Thursday, September 1, 2022 • Baker City, Oregon
EDITORIAL
River Democracy
Act and private
property
It means a lot when a river gets the federal designa-
tion of “wild and scenic.” Stirring views will be pro-
tected. Water quality gets armor around it. People can
savor that the waterway will be preserved. Wildlife
gets a better chance to thrive.
The River Democracy Act would add 4,700 more
miles of wild and scenic waterways to Oregon. Ore-
gon Sens. Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley, both Demo-
crats, have led the legislation.
The act has inescapable appeal. But there are also
questions about what it will mean for property owners
in the designated area and adjacent land.
The concise answer: The federal agencies that ad-
minister wild and scenic rivers have stated in the past
that the government may
“The language is
take action to protect
intended to ensure that river values. But there is
the designation of any
also clear language in the
new segments doesn’t
River Democracy Act that
affect private property
should allay many fears.
rights whether the
Now we’ll go through a
detailed answer. Feel free
landowner lives within
to skip to the bottom if
the boundaries of the
segment or outside of it.” you don’t want to wade
through details.
— Hank Stern, Sen. Wyden’s
How does the federal
spokesperson
government regulate wild
and scenic waterways? We found some good answers
in two places on the rivers.gov website — a document
prepared by federal managers of wild and scenic rivers
and a search tool.
The document says the wild and scenic act “neither
gives nor implies government control of private lands
within the river corridor” and that “management re-
strictions would apply only to federal lands. … The
federal government has no power to regulate or zone
private lands under the Act; however, administering
agencies may highlight the need for amendment to lo-
cal zoning.…”
So what happens when the federal government be-
lieves the uses of private land are incompatible with a
wild and scenic river?
“Should some proposed or actual use clearly
threaten the values the river was designated to pro-
tect, the river managing agency would work with a
landowner to explore ways to avert the threat through
local zoning, state provisions, land exchanges, or pur-
chases on a willing-seller/willing-buyer basis. Con-
demnation would be a last resort, would only be fea-
sible if funding were available, and is prohibited on
some wild and scenic rivers by their enabling legisla-
tion,” the search tool says.
Since condemnation was mentioned, here is a rel-
evant section of the River Democracy Act … “may
not acquire any private land or interest in private land
within the detailed boundaries of a covered segment
without the consent of the owner.”
The River Democracy Act also explicitly states
that nothing in the act affects private property rights,
which may help some landowners relax. Wyden’s of-
fice helped clarify what that means.
“The language is intended to ensure that the des-
ignation of any new segments doesn’t affect private
property rights whether the landowner lives within
the boundaries of the segment or outside of it,” Hank
Stern, Wyden’s spokesperson, told us.
Wyden and Merkley have written the River Democ-
racy Act to add more protection to Oregon waterways
and to protect private property rights.
But yes, of course, the federal government would
take action if it believes river values are threatened.
YOUR VIEWS
Americans need to stand
united for freedom
Paul Harvey was an icon
of reasoned thinking of
whom many young Ameri-
cans are unaware. He passed
on in 2009 and since then,
our country has fallen to the
depths of which he warned.
In Paul Harvey’s words, the
playbook is simple and the
outcome is obvious if America
fails to respond to the ideo-
logical/sycophantic liars who
wage war within our coun-
try against the God-given
Republic that we have been
so blessed to receive from
the thoughts of this nation’s
founders.
The Socialists of today are
neither creative nor brilliant.
They simply know how to pla-
giarize or use historical ideas
in a way that is the opposite of
the original good intentions of
true American patriots. Being
contrary and divisive is their
continuous narrative/mantra.
Years ago while in high
school there was an individ-
ual in my class who was just
downright smart in an educa-
tional sense. (Likable, athletic,
the whole package.) Just one
problem though! He needed
attention. To get it, he became
a divisive renegade who acted
contrary to rules, authority,
and even became a thief in his
craving for notoriety.
intent is the complete denigra-
tion of America?
This is the time to stand as
a united, freedom-based soci-
ety in firm opposition to the
divisive, destructive intentions
of those seeking power and
control over our God-given
rights. We Americans expect a
future of national peace which
is inclusive of the freedoms
that ensure common respect
of others and the ability to live
in harmony with one another.
May His countenance be
upon us here in Oregon and
throughout America.
Danny L. Johnson
Halfway
COLUMN
California dreamin’: Ban on gas,
diesel cars would be a gift to China
BY DERRICK MORGAN
C
alifornia is at it again.
This time, the state Air
Resources Board has
issued a regulation banning
the sale of new gasoline- or
diesel-powered cars in just 12
years. Golden State motorists
would find their options lim-
ited to cars propelled by elec-
tricity or hydrogen fuel cells.
California can do this only
if President Joe Biden grants
Sacramento a waiver from
the Clean Air Act, allow-
ing the state to impose even
stricter mileage standards
and auto emissions require-
ments than those imposed
by the federal Department of
Transportation.
It’s a huge mistake. Not
only does the new regulation
bar reasonable choices in the
nation’s largest car market, it
also makes us more depen-
dent on China. And a sim-
ilar requirement could be
coming to a state near you.
The New York Times reports
that, if California’s law takes
effect, another dozen states
could adopt similar policies
this year.
The state’s drive to outlaw
the internal combustion en-
gine is fueled by its concern
about global warming. But
this ignores the fact that,
even if they eliminated all
carbon emissions in the en-
tire country — from every
source: industrial, transpor-
tation and agriculture — av-
erage global temperatures
would fall, at most, by less
than .2 degrees Celsius … by
the end of this century!
Fecklessness aside, gov-
ernment bureaucrats have
no business telling you what
car you can or cannot buy.
While some people want and
can afford EVs, they just will
not work for everyone. De-
spite recent improvements,
they still lack the range and
convenience of conventional
vehicles. A test by AAA re-
vealed that driving in 20 de-
gree weather with the heater
on reduces an EV’s range by
about 40%.
And that’s when the ve-
hicle is fully charged. But
manufacturers recommend
supercharging up to only 80-
90% capacity (and not going
below 20%) to battle battery
degradation.
Given EVs’ limited range
and their need for frequent
recharging, road trips can
be disastrous. Car & Driver
notes, “unlike a gas-powered
vehicle, an EV’s consump-
tion increases dramatically
as speeds rise…. Unlike gas-
or diesel-powered vehicles,
which regularly beat their
EPA ratings in our high-
way testing, only three of
the 33 EVs that we’ve run
range tests on to date have
exceeded their EPA highway
and combined figures.”
Range is particularly im-
portant because fueling up
an EV is not a five-minute
stop at a ubiquitous gas sta-
tion.
At best, it takes 30 minutes
Unsigned editorials are the opinion of the Baker City Herald.
Columns, letters and cartoons on this page express the opinions
of the authors and not necessarily that of the Baker City Herald.
CONTACT YOUR PUBLIC OFFICIALS
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
U.S. Sen. Jeff Merkley: D.C. office: 313 Hart Senate
Office Building, U.S. Senate, Washington, D.C., 20510;
202-224-3753; fax 202-228-3997. Portland office: One
World Trade Center, 121 S.W. Salmon St. Suite 1250,
Portland, OR 97204; 503-326-3386; fax 503-326-2900.
Baker City office, 1705 Main St., Suite 504, 541-278-
1129; merkley.senate.gov.
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Mail: To the Editor, Baker City Herald,
P.O. Box 807, Baker City, OR 97814
Email: news@bakercityherald.com
All this led to a life of
self-misery, loss of true
friends, failed marriages, and
eventually prison time. He has
and is paying the price for his
actions.
To me this exemplifies the
actions of Socialists but with
one large exception. They ex-
pect others to pay or suffer
from their actions and then
constantly refuse to accept re-
sponsibility for the social neg-
atives of their ideas or policies.
Paul Harvey was and is cor-
rect. The Devil is real and he
is at our country’s door. Do
we open the door wider? Or,
do we block the door with our
foot before it is pushed open
any further by those whose
President Joe Biden: The White House, 1600
Pennsylvania Ave., Washington, D.C. 20500; 202-456-
1111; to send comments, go to www.whitehouse.gov.
U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden: D.C. office: 221 Dirksen Senate
Office Building, Washington, D.C., 20510; 202-224-5244;
fax 202-228-2717. La Grande office: 105 Fir St., No. 210,
La Grande, OR 97850; 541-962-7691; fax, 541-963-0885;
wyden.senate.gov.
U.S. Rep. Cliff Bentz (2nd District): D.C. office: 1239
Longworth House Office Building, Washington, D.C.,
20515, 202-225-6730; fax 202-225-5774. Medford
office: 14 N. Central Avenue Suite 112, Medford, OR
97850; Phone: 541-776-4646; fax: 541-779-0204;
Ontario office: 2430 S.W. Fourth Ave., No. 2, Ontario, OR
to get a decent charge with
“don’t use it too often” super-
charging. Non-supercharg-
ing takes hours.
The Wall Street Journal’s
Rachel Wolfe wrote about
her four-day road trip in an
EV. It took her three hours at
one charger to get 30 miles
of range. She concluded the
article talking about filing
up her own car and inhaling
at the gas station, remarking
that “[f]umes never smelled
so sweet.” At least she still
has a choice of what car she
wants, unlike future Califor-
nians.
Towing with an EV is
even more hopeless. Car and
Driver tested the new elec-
tric Ford F-150 Lightning
pickup. It could only go 100
miles towing a trailer. Mo-
torTrend couldn’t make it
even that far.
California is not content
to stop at light-duty vehi-
cles, either. Those who haul
goods or people, cut lawns or
show houses will be dispro-
portionately impacted. (Cal-
ifornia has also indicated it
wants to eliminate gas-pow-
ered lawn equipment, fur-
ther sticking it to landscap-
ers.) Others impacted by
eliminating liquid fuels in fa-
vor of electricity? The more
than 11 million people who
work in jobs supported by
the oil and gas industry and
America’s farmers who make
the raw material for biofu-
els. Without the vehicle-fuel
market, farm income would
97914; Phone: 541-709-2040. bentz.house.gov.
Oregon Gov. Kate Brown: 254 State Capitol, Salem,
OR 97310; 503-378-3111; www.governor.oregon.gov.
Oregon State Treasurer Tobias Read: oregon.
treasurer@ost.state.or.us; 350 Winter St. NE, Suite 100,
Salem OR 97301-3896; 503-378-4000.
Oregon Attorney General Ellen F. Rosenblum:
Justice Building, Salem, OR 97301-4096; 503-378-4400.
Oregon Legislature: Legislative documents and
information are available online at www.leg.state.or.us.
State Sen. Lynn Findley (R-Ontario): Salem office:
900 Court St. N.E., S-403, Salem, OR 97301; 503-986-
1730. Email: Sen.LynnFindley@oregonlegislature.gov
State Rep. Mark Owens (R-Crane): Salem office: 900
Court St. N.E., H-475, Salem, OR 97301; 503-986-1460.
Email: Rep.MarkOwens@oregonlegislature.gov
Baker City Hall: 1655 First Street, P.O. Box 650, Baker
City, OR 97814; 541-523-6541; fax 541-524-2049. City
Council meets the second and fourth Tuesdays at 7 p.m.
decrease by $27 billion ac-
cording to a study by the Ag
Retailers of America.
Putting all our eggs into
the EV basket would also
dramatically increase our re-
liance on China — the same
country that is building three
times more coal plants than
the rest of the world com-
bined, according to the Cen-
ter for Research on Energy
and Clean Air.
While the United States
was very recently a net ex-
porter of petroleum and has
the largest oil refining in-
dustry in the world, nearly
everything we need for EVs
goes through China.
The International Energy
Agency, which supports low-
ering emissions, has noted
that China refines 35% of the
nickel, 40% of copper, 50 to
70% of lithium and cobalt, and
90% for rare earth elements.
Graphite is produced ex-
clusively in China.
Do we really want to put
all our transportation eggs in
a basket made in China?
Biden should deny Cali-
fornia’s waiver. If he doesn’t,
then more thoughtful leaders
in Congress should block the
waiver legislatively, thereby
preserving consumer choice
for California motorists and
keeping America from be-
coming even more depen-
dent on Chinese goods.
Derrick Morgan is the executive
vice president of The Heritage
Foundation.
in Council Chambers. Councilors Jason Spriet, Kerry
McQuisten, Shane Alderson, Joanna Dixon, Kenyon
Damschen, Johnny Waggoner Sr. and Dean Guyer.
Baker City administration: 541-523-6541. Jonathan
Cannon, city manager; Ty Duby, police chief; Sean Lee,
fire chief; Michelle Owen, public works director.
Baker County Commission: Baker County Courthouse
1995 3rd St., Baker City, OR 97814; 541-523-8200.
Meets the first and third Wednesdays at 9 a.m.; Bill
Harvey (chair), Mark Bennett, Bruce Nichols.
Baker County departments: 541-523-8200. Travis
Ash, sheriff; Noodle Perkins, roadmaster; Greg Baxter,
district attorney; Alice Durflinger, county treasurer;
Stefanie Kirby, county clerk; Kerry Savage, county
assessor.
Baker School District: 2090 4th Street, Baker
City, OR 97814; 541-524-2260; fax 541-524-2564.
Superintendent: Mark Witty. Board meets the third
Tuesday of the month at 6 p.m. Council Chambers,
Baker City Hall,1655 First St.; Chris Hawkins, Andrew
Bryan, Travis Cook, Jessica Dougherty, Julie Huntington.