The INDEPENDENT, May 5, 2011
BLM announces fee-free days
The Bureau of Land Man-
agement (BLM), in conjunction
with other agencies within the
Department of the Interior, will
waive recreation-related fees
for visitors to the National Sys-
tem of Public Lands on the first
day of summer, June 21; Na-
tional Public Lands Day, which
is scheduled for September 24;
and the Veterans Day holiday
weekend, November 11-13.
These fee-free days also apply
to areas managed within the
BLM’s National Landscape
Conservation System (NLCS).
“While the American public
has entrusted us with the man-
agement of their public lands,
we can’t do it alone,” said BLM
Director Bob Abbey. “One key
component that assists us in
caring for the natural and cul-
tural resources found on public
lands is stewardship, and waiv-
ing fees a few days out of the
year may help some folks, who
might otherwise not have the
opportunity, to experience their
public lands and develop a
passion for them as others
have.”
Site standard amenity and
individual day-use fees at BLM
recreation sites and areas will
be waived for the specified
dates. Other fees, such as
overnight camping, cabin
rentals, and group day use, will
remain in effect. More details
about fee-free days and activi-
ties on BLM-managed public
lands are available at http://
www.blm.gov/wo/st/en/prog/Re
creation/BLM_Fee_Free_Days
html.
2011 Spring Fishing Guide is out
Local fish biologists are pre-
dicting some great fishing in
2011 and anglers can see just
what they’re saying about hun-
dreds of water bodies through-
out the state in the 2011 Spring
Fishing Guide.
Published by the Oregon
Department of Fish and Wildlife
every April, the Spring Fishing
Guide describes available ac-
cess for boats and bank an-
glers, water levels, recent regu-
lation changes, best time of
year to fish, where to target
your efforts, and tips on gear,
lures and techniques for hun-
dreds of rivers, streams, lakes
and reservoirs.
The guide was released just
before the early-season trout
opener on Saturday, April 23.
ODFW already has been stock-
ing dozens of lakes, ponds and
reservoirs with legal-sized and
larger trout and anglers should
expect some very productive
days on the water.
While many lakes, reser-
voirs and some streams
throughout the state will be
open to trout fishing on April 23,
several other rivers and
streams won’t open until May
28 in order to protect young
salmon and steelhead smolts
that are still migrating to the
ocean. Anglers should check
the 2011 Oregon Sport Fishing
Regulations for details.
ODFW seeks volunteer for board
The Oregon Department of
Fish and Wildlife is seeking
three candidates to represent
sport fishing, commercial
trolling and seafood processing
on the Fish Restoration and
Enhancement Program Board
(R&E Board). The application
deadline is May 27, 2011.
The R&E Board was created
is funded by a surcharge on
sport and commercial fishing li-
censes
and
commercial
poundage fees. The R&E
Board reviews grant proposals
from various organizations and
agencies and recommends
funding for fish restoration and
enhancement projects through-
out the state.
The seven-member citizen
Board is made up of three sport
fishing representatives, three
representatives from the troll,
gillnet and seafood processing
industries and one public-at-
large representative.
Board members, who are
appointed to four-year terms by
the Oregon Fish and Wildlife
Commission, meet three or
four times each year in various
communities throughout the
state to review project funding
applications, hear public testi-
mony, act as liaisons between
the program and the public and
to conduct other program busi-
ness. Board-related business
expenses are reimbursed.
To obtain an application,
Gary Vonderohe at 503- 947-
6259 or by e-mail at gary.r.von-
derohe@state.or.us.
Page 15
Power of the People
By W. Marc Farmer, General Manager,
West Oregon Electric Cooperative
It’s time to get salmon
out of the courtroom
paid for by people like you: consumer-owned
utility customers that buy power generated by
the Federal Columbia River Power System. Con-
tinued litigation only increases the cost of this
plan to consumer-owned utility customers and
delays implementation of the plan’s measures
that are beneficial to salmon. In fact one third of
your wholesale power bill now goes to fish is-
sues and has been for over ten years. Enough is
enough on drawn out studying, litigating, and
paying. It is time for Judge Redden to make a re-
sponsible decision based on sound science and
move forward.
We are nearing a critical
decision point on the latest
salmon plan for the Feder-
al Columbia River Power
System (FCRPS). This
plan, the 2010 Supplemen-
tal Biological Opinion (BiOp), is designed to pro-
vide strong protection for salmon and steelhead
affected by the FCRPS. Coming up on May 9,
U.S. District Court Judge James Redden will
hear oral arguments, which
ought to be the final hearing in
this case.
Judge Redden should ap-
prove this plan and allow
salmon managers to begin im-
plementing it. After more than a
decade of litigation, the region
has a salmon plan that is more
comprehensive than any be-
fore it, in this BiOp. The plan is
the product of an unprecedent-
The name you
ed collaboration of federal
trust for:
agencies, the states of Mon-
tana, Washington and Idaho
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and the sovereign tribes of the
Colville, Shoshone-Bannock,
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Warm Springs, Umatilla and
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Yakima. It is based on the best
available science and has
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been reviewed and approved
by an independent panel of sci-
entists. Two Presidential Ad-
ministrations have also ap-
proved it, including current Na-
tional Oceanic and Atmospher-
ic Administration director, Dr.
Jane Lubchenco – a well-
known and respected marine
ecologist and environmental
scientist.
And, the plan is supported
by a 10-year funding agree-
ment of over $1 billion dollars.
Additionally, the plan incorpo-
EE US FOR
rates adaptive management of
the hydrosystem that allows
new scientific information to be
applied as it becomes avail-
able.
Why is this important to our
community? The dams at issue
in this salmon plan provide our
community with clean, renew-
able hydroelectric power. In
addition, these dams offer resi-
dents of the Northwest multiple
benefits including a valuable
transportation system and irri-
gation source. The bulk of the
salmon plan being litigated in
Judge Redden’s court will be
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