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10A • January 27, 2017 | Cannon Beach Gazette | cannonbeachgazette.com Clatsop County opts out of timber suit Commissioners heard ‘overwhelming message’ from public By Jack Heffernan EO Media Group A $1.4 billion lawsuit pit- ting Oregon timber counties against the state will no longer include Clatsop County. The Clatsop County Board of Commissioners voted 3-2 Wednesday, Jan. 18, to opt out of the class-action suit that in- cluded 15 counties throughout Oregon. The suit claims the state Department of Forestry has not maximized revenue from timber harvests on land the counties turned over to the state to manage. Hundreds of people, both in person and in writing, have offered opinions to the coun- ty since it was included in the suit filed by Linn County last year. Out of the 19 people who spoke during the comment session Wednesday night, 11 voiced their support for opting out. “The overwhelming mes- sage from public testimony EO MEDIA GROUP/FILE PHOTO Clatsop County has opted out of a $1.4 billion timber lawsuit against the state. has been in favor of balanced forest management and against the Linn County lawsuit,” Scott Lee, the board’s chair- man, said. Commissioners Sarah Ne- beker and Kathleen Sullivan joined Lee in voting to opt out of the lawsuit. One of the most common issues both commis- sioners and opponents of the suit raised was that, should the state lose in court, county residents could be affected by higher state taxes. The fear of higher taxes stems from how the state could pay the counties back for the lost timber revenue. “There is no free money here, as far as I can see,” said Nebeker, who also expressed concerns about the future ramifications on state forestry policies. “I do not think this is a good or wise way to change such far-reaching rules and practices.” Linn County Linn County, with finan- cial aid from a number of pri- vate timber industry groups, filed the lawsuit against the state in March, claiming it had failed to meet an agreement to maximize timber profits. In October, a Linn County Cir- cuit judge’s ruling gave the lawsuit class action status, meaning 14 other counties — including Clatsop — and 130 taxing entities could par- ticipate. Commissioner Lisa Clem- ent, who voted against opting out along with Commissioner Lianne Thompson, said while she was concerned with the potential rise in state taxes as a result of a successful law- suit, she saw the timber issue as a legal, not political, issue. Clatsop County’s roughly 147,000 acres of forestland represented 23 percent of all land included in the suit. Sher- iff Tom Bergin, Warrenton Fiber’s Martin Nygaard and people who work in the local timber industry were among those who urged commission- ers to remain in the suit. Both Nebeker and Sullivan said the lawsuit favors Linn County’s interests more than those of Clatsop County. “(The lawsuit) assumes that Linn County and Clatsop County agree with the great- est permanent value rule,” said Sullivan, who earlier in the meeting was sworn in for her first term as a commis- sioner. “While not perfect, the forest management plan is working.” Thompson said that while she “hated” the lawsuit itself, she wanted Clatsop County to have a say in how its forests are managed. “What I’m interested in is how best to control the out- comes,” she said. Lee disagreed. “Why would we join a lawsuit that demands maxi- mum timber harvest over all other interests if we don’t sup- port that position?” he said. Should the counties win the lawsuit, Clatsop Coun- ty might have received $262 million. The county budget, by comparison, is roughly $57.6 million. Other taxing districts, such as Clatsop Community Col- lege, would receive some of the money should they decide to remain in the lawsuit. County Manager Cameron Moore said it was unlikely the county would consider filing a separate lawsuit against the state. Moore said it’s not entire- ly certain what the board’s decision will mean for the county or the lawsuit. “I don’t think anyone will know what the exact impact of Clatsop County’s decision will be for at least a year,” he said. Linn County Commis- sioner Roger Nyquist said the decision Wednesday night is between the board of com- missioners and its constitu- ents and it will not hamper the lawsuit going forward. “Clatsop County must be in a much better financial situ- ation than the rest of us, which is a good thing,” Nyquist said. “I don’t know how they go to the voters now and ask for more money.” Haystack lecture speaker speaks on China’s shrinking coastal wetlands By Nancy McCarthy For Cannon Beach Gazette It’s not easy to fill in a wet- land or a coastal tideland in the United States. Federal laws aimed at protecting wetlands make sure of that. But in China, very few regulations exist, according to Roy W. Lowe, a volun- teer working with the World Wildlife who was the featured speaker for January’s Haystack Lecture Series. “Anyone can fill a wetland anywhere at any time” in Chi- na, Lowe said. As a result of the lack of regulation in China, massive construction of new cities, ports and industrial areas on former wetlands bordered by the Yellow Sea is destroying the habitat that millions of mi- grating birds depend on, Lowe said. “They are all declining very precipitously,” Lowe said. “There’s a huge decline.” Birds such as the bar-tailed godwit, which flies nonstop from New Zealand to the Yel- low Sea – a distance of 6,800 miles – in nine days are being threatened. When they reach China, they depend on the wet- lands for food to replenish the fat they lost in the first leg of their journey so they can con- tinue their migration to Alaska, another 4,500 miles away. A medium-sized shorebird, called the “red knot,” feeds only on small crabs in the wet- lands when it lands in Bohai Bay on the Yellow Sea from NANCY MCCARTHY/FOR CANNON BEACH GAZETTE Roy Lowe, a World Wildlife volunteer, was the featured speaker for January’s Haystack Lecture Series Russia, on its way to Australia, Lowe said. The gobbling up of feeding grounds is becoming so seri- ous, he added, that the spoon- billed sandpiper could be ex- tinct by 2020. In all, 36 distinct species of shorebirds use the Australasian Flyway, which includes 22 countries and encircles more population than all of the rest of the world. An estimated 50 million birds use the flyway and depend on the nutrient-rich mudflats and wetlands in Chi- na for food, Lowe said. Yet two-thirds of the coastline has disappeared since 1950, con- verted to expansion of coastal cities. A former U.S. Fish and Wildlife project leader with the Oregon Coast National Wild- life Refuge Complex, Lowe made several trips to China during his career to recruit ex- change students to come to the United States. In 2014, he was invited to speak at an interna- tional workshop in China that focused on the loss of wetlands there. After retiring in 2015, Lowe began volunteering with the Paulson Institute, a Chi- cago-based think tank, which works with the Chinese gov- ernment and businesses to im- prove economic growth and environmental protection in both countries. The institute’s Global Parks project partners with the World Wildlife Fund to find ways to sustain the en- vironment. Lowe continues to travel to China to conduct small work- shops with wildlife managers. The workshops focus on de- veloping strategies to protect wetlands, a new experience for many of the participants, Lowe said. In a recent visit to the af- fected area, Lowe counted A happy place, a safe place, a learning place… 72 construction cranes along the coast. The leaders of lo- cal provinces compete for income-producing develop- ments. “It’s all about money and funding projects,” he said. “We’re trying to get the envi- ronment into that discussion.” Every month, at least 270 acres are filled in to make way for factories, cities and high rise apartments that stretch way beyond the former coast- line. At least 1.25 million peo- ple are moved every month from the countryside into cit- ies, Lowe said. “I wonder what will happen in an earthquake,” he said. “It’s scary to think about what the future holds for them.” The reclamation of wet- lands also is bound to affect China’s seafood industry, he added. In 2011, about 28 million tons of seafood, with a value of $200 billion US, was produced in the area. The shrinking coastline, oil drilling and pollution threaten that pro- duction. “We’re afraid the people in China are going to learn this lesson later,” Lowe said. Lowe’s talk was part of the Haystack Lecture Series, spon- sored by the Friends of Hay- stack Rock. The next lecture will be “How to Help Protect Over 50,000 Acres of Forest in Clatsop County” with Bob Van Dyk, policy director for the Or- egon & California Wild Salm- on Center in Portland. The lec- ture will begin at 7 p.m. Feb. 8 in the Cannon Beach Library. SUBMITTED PHOTO Salmon River estuary system. Protecting our waterways, salmon Join Lower Ne- at Salmon River have halem Watershed now quantified the Council for a presen- direct contributions tation by author and of estuary restoration scientist Dan Bottom to Chinook and Coho examining the sci- salmon populations. ence behind estuary Bottom served as a wetlands restoration fishery research biolo- Dan and the recovery of Bottom gist and project leader salmon populations, in state and federal Thursday, Feb. 9, at the Pine government for 38 years, in- Grove Community House cluding 22 years with the Or- 1225 Laneda Ave., in Man- egon Department of Fish and zanita. Wildlife Research Section in Although estuaries have Corvallis and 16 years with long been recognized as bi- NOAA’s Northwest Fisheries ologically productive plac- Science Center in Newport. es, their value as nursery He serves as a member of habitat for juvenile salmon the expert regional technical has not been fully appreci- group for the Columbia River ated until recently. The first estuary and as courtesy facul- comprehensive study of ju- ty at Oregon State University. venile salmon in an Oregon Doors open at 6:30 p.m. tidal marsh began less than for refreshments. The pre- 20 years ago in the Salmon sentation begins following an River estuary. Millions of update from Lower Nehalem dollars are spent each year to Watershed Council at 7 p.m. restore estuarine wetlands to This event is part of the support salmon recovery ef- Lower Nehalem Watershed forts on the coast and in the Council’s regular speaker Columbia River. Researchers series. We have the Sweetest Treats for your Valentine! N ORTH C OAST C HRISTIAN S CHOOL is pleased to present the following recipients the 2016 Community Champion Award Thanks to the following dedicated companies and individuals NCCS students were able to supply 10,000 meals to starving children in Haiti. Your generosity is greatly appreciated. HERO SPONSORS G ANN F ISHERIES N ISAS ” T HAI K ITCHEN F AST L UBE AND O IL C OLUMBIA H OUSE W ARMERS S AM AND A LICIA H ESS B ANK OF THE P ACIFIC P ACIFIC C ORP OF N EWPORT Special Thanks to Clatsop County Fair | August 1-5 Watch for the Fair’s announcement on their upcoming country music concert! 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