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About The Blue Mountain eagle. (John Day, Or.) 1972-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 2, 2015)
A4 Opinion Blue Mountain Eagle Wednesday, September 2, 2015 Shouting match won’t solve the forest’s problems Lightning may have sparked the Canyon Creek Complex ¿UHVEXWPDQ\ORFDOUHVLGHQWV see a larger culprit in the hands-off management of the national forests over the past IHZGHFDGHV They decry the erosion of traditional forest activities, the environmental challenges that shut down commercial activity and local economies, and the result: vast tree stands clogged with tinder-dry underbrush and ODGGHUIXHOV Throw in climate change and Smokey Bear’s admonition WRGRXVHHYHU\¿UHHYHQWKH natural cleansing ones, over the past 50 years, and the VWDJHKDVEHHQVHWIRUDPDMRU FRQÀDJUDWLRQ,QVRPHZD\V the Canyon Creek Complex ZDVLQHYLWDEOH To the families ousted by the ¿UHVWKLVLVDSHUVRQDODQGOLIH DOWHULQJGLVDVWHU+RZHYHUWKLV KRUUL¿FHYHQWDOVRFDQEHVHHQ as an opportunity to draw wider attention to the state of the forests and the need for active PDQDJHPHQW7KHH\HVRIWKH state, and even the nation, are RQWKHVHFDWDVWURSKLFZLOG¿UHV Americans are watching as their treasured forests and wild ODQGVEXUQWRDFULVS The harshest critics castigate federal land managers for inaction, but we don’t see it TXLWHWKDWZD\,URQLFDOO\WKH &DQ\RQ&UHHN¿UHVDUHUDJLQJ on the very forest that’s at the center of attention nationally for its unusual efforts to break the stalemate in the woods and KHDOWKHODQG In industry and political circles, the spotlight is on the region’s accelerated restoration program and the Malheur National Forest’s 10-year VWHZDUGVKLSFRQWUDFW%XWWKH rollout of large forest rehab SURMHFWVLVLQLWVLQIDQF\7KHVH tools, which arose out of nine hard years of labor by broad- based collaborative groups, haven’t yet had a chance to VKRZWKHLUZRUWK7KHEDFNORJ and breadth of work to be done LVWRRJUHDWWRSURYLGHD¿[LQ a year, or two, or even three — and in the meantime, there will EHPRUHVWRUPVDQGPRUH¿UHV A pendulum-like shift in IRUHVWSUDFWLFHVLVLQSOD\MXVW not fast enough to prevent this GLVDVWHU7KDWGRHVQ¶WPHDQWKH process is worthless, only that WKHMRELVLPPHQVHDQGZLOO WDNHWLPH The question for this deeply saddened community: Do we focus on the next steps toward large-scale change in our forests, or do we rail at the DJHQFLHVDQGSRLQW¿QJHUVDW those who disagree with us? Do we contribute our voices to the collaborative efforts, or do we throw potshots from the sidelines? We believe a shouting match won’t solve the forest’s problems or salve our FRPPXQLW\¶VSDLQ,QUHDOLW\ there is no better choice than to get involved, to be part of a sincere quest for change — to be part of the solution for the IXWXUH Budget meter is running IRU2UHJRQZLOG¿UHFRVWV By Hillary Borrud Capital Bureau SALEM — Oregon has yet to EXUQWKURXJKLWV¿UH¿JKWLQJEXGJHW despite ongoing catastrophic wild- ¿UHVDURXQGWKHVWDWH In what now appears to have been a prudent decision, lawmakers and a committee of forest landown- ers agreed earlier this year to more than double the amount of money budgeted for the Oregon Depart- PHQW RI )RUHVWU\ WR ¿JKW ¿UHV WR D WRWDORIPLOOLRQDQQXDOO\ “I’m pleased we did it,” said 6HQ %LOO +DQVHOO 5$WKHQD D member of the budget-writing Ways DQG 0HDQV &RPPLWWHH ³:H KDG EHHQZDUQHGWKDW¿UHVWKLVVXPPHU with the kind of moisture that was SUHGLFWHGFRXOGEHSUHWW\KLJK´ The size of the Canyon Creek &RPSOH[ ¿UH LQ *UDQW &RXQW\ DQG WKH *UL]]O\ %HDU ¿UH LQ QRUWKHDVW- ern Oregon “are well over 120,000 DFUHV DQG JURZLQJ´ KH VDLG ³$QG I think we’ve probably got another several weeks or so at least until we JHWVRPHJRRGUDLQ´ HERE TO WRITE As of Tuesday, the Canyon Salem )D[ (PDLO FLW\MG# Creek Complex near John Day had *RY.DWH%URZQ'²6WDWH FHQWXU\WHOQHW EXUQHGDFUHVDQGWKH*UL]- &DSLWRO6DOHP3KRQH /RQJ&UHHN²32%R[/RQJ zly Bear Complex had burned more )D[ :HEVLWH &UHHN 3KRQH than 68,000 acres in the Umatilla ZZZJRYHUQRUVWDWHRUXVJRYHUQRU )D[(PDLOLQIR#FLW\- National Forest and private land in KWPO RÀRQJFUHHNFRP 0RQXPHQW²32%R[0RQ- Grant County XPHQW3KRQHDQGID[ *UDQW&RXQW\&RXUWKRXVH²6 (PDLO PRQXPHQW#RUHJRQWUDLO +XPEROW 6W 6XLWH &DQ\RQ &LW\ QHW 3KRQH )D[ 0W 9HUQRQ ² 32 %R[ 0W We deserve 9HUQRQ 3KRQH &DQ\RQ&LW\²32%R[&DQ- )D[ (PDLO FPWY#RU- complete disclosure To the Editor: \RQ&LW\3KRQH WHOFRQHW In the past 20-plus years, the )D[(PDLOWRFF# 3UDLULH&LW\²32%R[3UDL- FHQWXU\OLQNQHW ULH&LW\3KRQH Bureau of Land Management and 'D\YLOOH²32%R['D\YLOOH )D[(PDLOSFKDOO#RUWHOFR 86 )RUHVW 6HUYLFH KDYH EHHQ UH- ducing cattle grazing and logging 3KRQH )D[ QHW (PDLO"GYLOOH#RUWHOFR 6HQHFD ² 32 %R[ 6HQH- on federal lands to “protect” vari- net FD 3KRQH DQG ID[ ous supposedly “endangered” spe- -RKQ'D\²(0DLQ6W-RKQ (PDLO FLW\VHQHFD#FHQWXU\WHO cies (spotted owl, bull trout, sage JURXVHHWF 'D\ 3KRQH QHW How many of these “endan- gered” species managed to live through this current inferno? We Blue Mountain have seen photos of deer burned alive and reports of herds of elk and wild horses that didn’t manage WRHVFDSHWKHILUHV The article in the Blue Moun- 195 N. Canyon Blvd. • John Day, OR 97845 tain Eagle, “Forest Service defends 541-575-0710 • Fax 541-575-1244 &DQ\RQ &UHHN 5HVSRQVH´ $XJ USPS 226-340 26), provides more questions than DQVZHUVLQP\RSLQLRQ Grant County’s Weekly Newspaper The Canyon Creek Complex John Day, Oregon was originally two separate fires, miles apart, and separated by High- MEMBER OREGON NEWSPAPER PUBLISHERS ASSOCIATION ZD\ DQG SDYHG FRXQW\ URDGV P UBLISHER Marissa Williams, marissa@bmeagle.com The newspaper account lumps E DITOR editor@bmeagle.com both the Berry Creek and Mason A DMINISTRATIVE A SSISTANT Kristina Kreger, kristina@bmeagle.com Spring fire together and lists all of E DITORIAL A SSISTANT Cheryl Hoefler, cheryl@bmeagle.com the heavy equipment, air tankers C OMMUNITY N EWS Angel Carpenter, angel@bmeagle.com deployed, as if they were not two S PORTS Angel Carpenter, angel@bmeagle.com M ARKETING R EP Kim Kell, ads@bmeagle.com VHSDUDWHILUHV1RPHQWLRQZDVJLY- C USTOMER S ERVICE R EP Lindsay Bullock office@bmeagle.com en of the exact timeline for initial attack on each separate fire, even PUBLISHED EVERY WEDNESDAY BY: though they remained individual EO Media Group ILUHVXQWLO)ULGD\$XJ The Berry Creek fire reportedly 3HULRGLFDOV3RVWDJH3DLGDW-RKQ'D\DQGDGGLWLRQDOPDLOLQJRI¿FHV was ignited first by lightning in the SUBSCRIPTION RATES (including online access) 1 year Strawberry Wilderness area in the Grant County $40.00 HDUO\ PRUQLQJ KRXUV RQ $XJ Elsewhere in Oregon $51.00 What equipment and/or tankers, Continental U.S., Outside Oregon $55.00 KHOLFRSWHUV HWF ZHUH DVVLJQHG WR Outside Continental U.S. $60.00 the Berry Creek fire in the Straw- Subscriptions must be paid prior to delivery berry Wilderness and when? The article also supplies us with See the Blue Mountain Eagle on the Internet the info that “Beverlin signed off www.MyEagleNews.com on an order granting special per- POSTMASTER — send address changes to mission to use chainsaws for fire Blue Mountain Eagle VXSSUHVVLRQLQWKHZLOGHUQHVVDUHD´ 195 N. Canyon Blvd. Just when was this order signed? John Day, OR 97845-1187 After the fire was already out of Copyright © 2015 Blue Mountain Eagle control or when it was merged with All rights reserved. No part of this publication covered by the copyright hereon may be reproduced the Mason Spring fire? or copied in any form or by any means — graphic, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, The Mason Spring fire was re- taping or information storage and retrieval systems — without written permission of the publisher. portedly contained by Wednesday W 2UHJRQ DQG :DVKLQJWRQ VWDWH $Q DGGLWLRQDO ODUJH ZLOG¿UHV FRQ- tinued to burn in other areas of the state, according to an interagency ¿UHWUDFNLQJZHEVLWH Oregon relies on a unique sys- WHPWR SD\ ZLOGILUH ILJKWLQJ FRVWV Property owners with land classi- fied as forest pay a state assessment to help cover firefighting costs in addition to money the Legislature DSSURSULDWHVIURPWKHJHQHUDOIXQG The state has also purchased an insurance policy most years since 1973 to help cover firefighting FRVWV $IWHU WZR VHYHUH ¿UH VHDVRQV however, the state’s insurance de- ductible more than doubled from PLOOLRQ WR PLOOLRQ :KHQ lawmakers and forest landowners decided to purchase the policy ear- lier this year, they had to prepare to spend up to $50 million before they could tap into the $25 million insur- DQFHSROLF\ Rod Nichols, a spokesman for the Oregon Department of Forestry, said this week that the agency estimated its net spending this year at $26 mil- lion, when expected reimbursements from the Federal Emergency Man- agement Agency and other sources DUHIDFWRUHGLQ2UHJRQVSHQWDQHV- WLPDWHGWRWDORIPLOOLRQWR¿JKW WKH ZLOG¿UHV DQG ¿UH RI¿FLDOV VR far expect to receive approximately $15 million in reimbursement from FEMA and $22 million from other IHGHUDOVRXUFHV “The main thing everyone is fo- FXVHG RQ QRZ LV JHWWLQJ WKH ¿UHV RXW´ 1LFKROV VDLG ³:H FDQQRW QRW UHVSRQG WR ¿UHV VR ZH MXVW KDYH WR GRLW7KDWVDLGZH¶UHVSHQGLQJDORW RIPRQH\REYLRXVO\IURPWKRVH¿J- XUHV´ The state has to pay contractors in a timely manner, for example, to ensure they remain in business and FDQ FRQWLQXH WR ZRUN RQ WKH ¿UHV 1LFKROVVDLG $W WKH VWDUW RI ¿UH VHDVRQ WKH Oregon Department of Forestry had VHDVRQDO¿UH¿JKWHUV¿UHHQ- JLQHVEXOOGR]HUVDQGDLUFUDIW The state also had access to 188 private contract hand crews, inmate hand crews from state prisons, three incident management teams and Na- WLRQDO*XDUGKHOLFRSWHUV Oregon has since pulled in resources including additional ¿UH FUHZV DLUFUDIW DQG ¿UH PDQ- agers from other states and Ca- QDGLDQ SURYLQFHV WR ¿JKW WKH ZLOG¿UHV “Basically, the cupboard is bare, WKRXJK VRPH RI WKH ODUJH ¿UHV DUH winding down and resources are starting to return from them,” Nich- ROVZURWHLQDQHPDLO L ETTERS TO THE E DITOR EAGLE DIWHUQRRQ :DV WKHUH D FUHZ DQG water tenders there when the Ma- VRQ6SULQJILUHMXPSHGWKHFRQWDLQ- ment lines? Why was this fire only contained and not put out? The Eagle reported last week that, during the informational meetings, there were “whispers” blaming the homeowners for their loss because they didn’t maintain a “defensible space” around their KRPHV :KDW LI WKH 0DOKHXU 1D- tional Forest had been managed to maintain a defensible space be- tween the forest boundary and pri- vate land? I do know, in my small commu- nity, we have at least 39 HOMES EXUQHG )DPLOLHV ORVW D OLIHWLPH RI memories and are left with rebuild- ing their lives — because of mis- PDQDJHPHQW E\ IHGHUDO HQWLWLHV These homeowners and the commu- QLW\GHVHUYHFRPSOHWHGLVFORVXUH Elaine Smith Prairie City who came to help, especially Lynn 0F&RUPLFN :LOOLDP *LEEV &RG\ Cole and crew, Brian Hueckman, Leroy Titus, Sam Workman, Tra- YLV %HQQHWW DQG -RQDWKDQ %DUWRY :HFDQQRWWKDQNDOOWKH¿UH¿JKWHUV HQRXJKIRUVDYLQJRXUUDQFK 7KHFRRSHUDWLRQRIWKH86)RU- est Service, Oregon Department of Forestry, structure protection agen- cies and landowners led to the quick and successful suppression of this ¿UH+RZHYHU,DPGLVDSSRLQWHGLQ the actions of the Oregon State Po- lice troopers in converging on the vehicle I was traveling in, grabbing the wheel to steer us off the road and physically preventing us from JHWWLQJ WR WKH ¿UH WKURXJK 'L[LH &UHHN Meanwhile, the troopers allowed UHSRUWHUVDQGVSHFWDWRUVWRÀRRGWKH RWKHUURXWHWRWKH¿UHWKURXJK5LF- FR5DQFK/DQH'HVSLWHWKHIDFWWKDW WKH¿UHSRVHGQRLPPLQHQWWKUHDWRI danger along the Dixie Creek route, we were forced to detour around the troopers’ barricade of patrol YHKLFOHV DQG XQQHFHVVDU\ WUDI¿F How many owls? on Ricco Ranch Lane, eventually To the Editor: FRPLQJ RXW MXVW \DUGV DERYH WKH How many spotted owls are de- URDGEORFN 9DOXDEOH WLPH ZDV ORVW ceased during the current raging for- during which my parents desperate- HVWZLOG¿UHV" ly needed assistance to move cattle Maybe the remaining live ones WRVDIHW\SXWRXWVSRW¿UHVDQGSUR- should be shipped to Pennsylvania, vide crews with directions around along with a few forest service tech- WKHDUHD The next morning, an Oregon QLFLDQVDQGURERWV :7RRS State Police sergeant informed me Canyon City that the order to keep landowners RXW FDPH IURP WKH *UDQW &RXQW\ 6KHULII¶V 2I¿FH $IWHU VSHDNLQJ with the undersheriff, I learned that County cannot the order was to close Dixie Creek afford mistakes but not to restrict landowners’ ac- To the Editor: FHVV0D\EHLWZDVDPLVFRPPXQL- On behalf of Ricco Ranch, I cation or lack of training, but with would like to thank all the crews, UHVRXUFHV VWUHWFKHG WKLQ DQG ¿UHV equipment operators and air support EXUQLQJRXWRIFRQWURO*UDQW&RXQ- for their quick response and hard W\FDQQRWDIIRUGWKHVHPLVWDNHV The next time OSP’s assistance ZRUNRQWKH-HUU\¶V'UDZ)LUH Special thanks to Yazzie Voi- LV VRXJKW LQ ¿UH¿JKWLQJ HIIRUWV , gt, John Sanowski, Jared Lemcke hope the troopers will follow direc- and his crew for going above and tions and work in cooperation with beyond and working tirelessly to ORFDODJHQFLHVDQGODQGRZQHUV Riccola Voigt JHWWKLV¿UHFRQWDLQHG:HDUHDOVR Prairie City extremely grateful for everyone
