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About The independent. (Vernonia, Or.) 1986-current | View Entire Issue (March 8, 1995)
Page 2 The INDEPENDENT, March 8,1995 The INDEPENDENT * Serving the upper Nehalem River valley. Published twice monthly on the second and fourth Wednesdays of each month, by Public Opinion Laboratory Ltd., 1206 S ta te A venue, Vernonia, OR 97064, as a free new spaper. Editors and Publishers, Dirk & Noni Andersen, (503) 429-9410. r\ R eporters w o n ’t, and shouldn’t tell all Several times recently, The INDEPENDENT staff has been asked to reveal discussions that took place in executive sessions of one public body or another. Our response is that we won’t discuss privileged in formation but, perhaps we should clarify our reasons. Oregon’s Public Meetings Law allows the public to attend almost every meeting of elected and appointed officials. The exceptions are spelled out and include discussion of pending litigation, labor relations, per sonnel and other more-or-less sensitive matters. The media, however, are allowed to attend execu tive sessions that are closed to the general public. The reason for the exception is that the background information is necessary in order to understand action later taken or not taken by a public body. This is a privileged exception and an important one. Technically, we can report what happens in ex ecutive sessions if the presiding officer fails to tell us otherwise, but we won’t. That is the policy of this newspaper and it will re main that way because trust is more valuable in this business than an occasional “scoop.” So, if anyone out there wants information from an executive session, don’t come to us because we won’t tell. » • ’ * . . * • ' . • A • \ a i’ mark ! Hatfield is correct; amendment a sham It has been instructive to watch U.S. Senators in Mark Hatfield’s own party as they weep, wail, gnash their teeth, thrash about and threaten the Oregon senator for having the temerity to stand on principle and vote against the so-called balanced budget amendment. Listening to them speak of betrayal, one would al most think Hatfield had committed some heinous crime and, in a way, he did. His crime won’t be found among law enforcement statutes and he’ll never be arrested for it, but he is guilty . . . guilty of telling the truth about another ploy designed to make people think Congress is trying to balance the federal bud get. He is guilty of telling the truth when he says Congress can balance the budget whenever it wants to—without an amendment—but won’t because its members lack the courage to make the necessary hard choices. He is guilty of telling the truth when he says an amendment that can be suspended by a three-fifths vote of Congress is the same as no amendment. Most of all, he is guilty of refusing to pander to the political gratification of his peers. Think about it; if Hatfield acts like that, voters might expect their own representatives to tell the truth! Thank you, Senator Hatfield, for telling the truth and standing by it. Maybe it will become contagious. / / / TKOOOttT VtO M te 60/ a /G . MO. . i f err om rve ÌL GMUMR. I a /P IP J>k£> THe<A Job (V TWfi iKSTfr-Ace T»**** kVouuû & £- a J o i & v o j P# a . AnaA/p/nfeA/r1.1. [ The loWlRepert By Rep. TimJosi Oregon Representative, District 2 A year ago the Oregon Department of Fish & Wildlife was petitioned by several environ mental groups to list the coho salmon as a threatened or endangered species due to its rapidly declining population. Last week the agency presented their decision to the legisla ture to not list the coho as threatened or en dangered, but to continue listing the Colum bia River and South Coast coho salmon gene pools as sensitive species and to add the North Coast coho gene pool to the same list. A sensitive species is one whose popula tion is declining in such number, due to the quality or quantity of its habitat, that it is in danger of qualifying as threatened or endan gered. ODFW is charged with the responsibili ty of taking, supporting and recommending ac tions that will maintain or improve the specie’s status. The agency’s approach is based on several factors. In order to be listed as threatened, a species must become endangered within the foreseeable future within all or a portion of its range; an endangered species must be threat ened with extinction within all or a significant portion of its range. Biologists have identified six major coho gene conservation groups in Oregon which have been grouped together into three gene pools. While many groups of coho salmon within each gene pool are indeed showing sig nificant declines in population, other groups within the same pool are not showing decline. For instance, a major river may not have coho in three quarters of its tributaries, while the Get fox out of hen house; recall Hugo To the Editor: In regard to the letter, (The IN D E P E N D E N T, Feb. 22, 1995,) headed, “County work ers support Hugo,” bearing 23 signatures. I believe that I know the reason behind the loyalty expressed, however < other tributaries are thriving. Also, on some river systems there is relatively little decline in coho populations, while the next stream down the coast may be totally barren. While the overall population of the coho is declining, the number of adults returning to their spawning grounds has not shown a sta tistical trend downward, due in large part to the restrictions on pre-spaw ning harvest. Once the young coho return to the ocean they are subject to a variety of adverse ocean con ditions, such as water temperature and preda tors, which affect significant growth in num bers of returning spawners. Coho survival in fresh water is influenced by such things as harvest management prac tices, hatchery management policies, forest practices, hydroelectric projects, fill and gravel removal, water quantity and quality, and the overall health of the watershed in which it is bred and returns to spawn. Because the state has already implement ed action plans that will lower ocean harvest amounts and significantly decrease the risks encountered in their freshwater cycle, ODFW felt the state should hold off an additional two years to see what kind of impact these mea sures will have on the coho populations. If, at that time, there is no significant improvement, the agency will reexamine the listing status. If we act as a community now to save our wild coho, hopefully that will not be necessary. Rep. Josi may be reached at; State Capitol Room H491 Salem. OR 97310 Phone; (503)986-1402 FAX; (503)986-1575 E-Mail; RepJosi America On Line misplaced. Had I seen the ex p re s s e d w ill of C o lum bia County voters so perverted as to result in a twenty year sa la ry raise to me I m ight also be loyal. I hope this would not be tru e as th e re are only two paths that we each must trav el. The upper path is one of integrity and honor. “Honor!” an almost forgotten phrase, isn ’t it? But som ething our fo re fa th e rs held most p re cious. Something they lived by and died for. The lower path is one of compromise, dishonesty and confusion. “C olum bia County has a fox inside its chicken house!” An self confessed fox caught with feathers still clinging to its whiskers. Please see page 3 .»ri
