Oct. 23, 2018
Liz Writes Life
These warm temperatures -- after
several early morning frosts during the past month -- sure confuse the plants,
especially the perennials. And it frustrates me as well. I really am done with
the garden; and the vegetable and annual flowers are freeze-dried, too. But,
there are several perennial plants, like the tansy, mums, asters, blooming
sweet William, snapdragons and newly-given-to-me hydrangea that would
appreciate some extra water.
Last week, I looked ahead on the
weather predictions and NOAA claimed there would be 20 to 50 percent chance of
showers this coming week. Now, it doesn’t! Don’t know where that rain went?
Darn it!
Veterans
We are getting more support for the
Veteran’s Parade that will be held on Sat., Nov. 3, 2018 in Etna at 11 a.m.
Chip Port left a message that he plans to load-up his tank and bring it over
for the parade. Dave Harrison, an Army veteran, will serve as grand marshal and
the Jackson Street Marching Band will participate and play for us.
It is easy to enter in the parade,
just call me at 467-3515. Veterans: We need you! Michael Stapleton will have a
low-trailer with bales of hay, so it is easy to load-up and participate in the
parade.
LaMalfa
There was good news for farmers
growing food in CA., OR., WA., and ID. last week. President Donald Trump signed
an order directing federal agencies to deliver water more efficiently and
consistently in the Western States.
Our Dist. 1 Congressman Doug LaMalfa
said, “The President’s announcement is an immense relief for the farmers and families
of the San Joaquin Valley and communities across California.”He added
California agriculture has suffered for many years, because of the actions of
environmental extremists and overzealous bureaucrats regarding the beneficial
uses of water. Productive land has gone fallow and farmworkers have lost their
jobs due to government agencies taking water from agriculture.
“Communities across California have
also been devastated as senseless government regulations have mandated that
billions of gallons of water be flushed out to the ocean and wasted,” said
LaMalfa.
This executive action will demand
that biological opinions of animals listed in the Endangered Species Act must
be updated and reviewed in the timely manner as described in the ESA. Many of
these biological opinions have not been updated for years. Trump’s order is also
expected to aid the farmers in the Klamath Project.
This executive action also
prioritizes building critical projects to expand water storage in our state so
that we can store more water during wet years for use in dry years. LaMalfa
works diligently in trying to get more water storage in California.
Please vote for LaMalfa for Congress!
On the state-wide propositions in the
upcoming Nov. 6, 2018 election, there is one I forgot to mention, last week. It
is really important, cuz it is about changing the most recent gas tax that the
Democrat-controlled CA. State Legislature passed. Our gas prices are
ridiculously high and this newest gas tax is outrageous. I am voting “yes” on
Prop. 6 to repeal this gas tax.
In reading the Prop. 6 description,
it makes it sound like the state will lose $5 billion for road repairs and
public transportation. Right now, I don’t trust our state government to spend
that tax money correctly. But, if Prop. 6 passes, it will make certain fuel
taxes and vehicle fees be voted and approved by “we the voters,” instead of the
state legislature. The only other two propositions that I am giving a “yes” are
7 and 11.
Locally, I hope that Measure L passes
to provide better maintenance on the eight historic cemeteries in Yreka and
Shasta Valley. Unfortunately, I don’t live in the Shasta Valley Cemetery
District and won’t be able to vote, but would be willing to pay the proposed
parcel tax of $7 per year to preserve and take care of our local cemeteries.
FERC
To finish catching-up from the Sept.
Scott Valley Protect Our Water meeting, Ray Haupt, our Dist. 5 Siskiyou Co.
Supervisor, said the county continues to fight to save the Klamath dams. He
said the Klamath River Renewal Corp. released its "definite plan" for
removal of the four hydro-electric Klamath dams. The county went over the huge
document with a fine-toothed comb and came up with many questions and
challenges. Ray keeps asking KRRC how much the dam removal costs will actually
be and if the non-profit KRRC has sufficient funds to cover those costs.
Another question is: Will KRRC pay homeowners in the COPCO area when they lose
their well water. Also, the tremendous amount of sediments trapped behind the
dams have tested positive for arsenic, nickel, iron, DDT and DDE. How will KRRC
deal with that environmental hazard?
Because
KRRC has released its "definite plan" and is asking to have the dams
re-licensed into KRRC ownership, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
(FERC) is now the agency that will make decisions. Ray said that FERC is of the
position that a new Environmental Impact Statement is required, because the
biological opinions on ESA-listed species like the sucker fish is out of date.
And
when FERC makes a decision, it will own that decision -- including unintended
consequences and liability costs. Siskiyou County became an intervener in this
legal process and FERC must respond to KRRC's definite plan and all
interveners' and their challenges, so the county is deeply involved. Challenges
and concerns by other interveners, like the Siskiyou Co. Water Users Assoc.,
must also be addressed by FERC.
So, no
matter what you might hear, Klamath dam removal is far from a done deal.
POW
Remember that Siskiyou County
Counsel, Ed Kiernan, will be our featured speaker at the Scott Valley Protect
Our Water meeting this Thursday, Oct. 25, 2018. He will share what his job
entails working for the county supervisors. The meeting will be held at the
Fort Jones Community Center at 7 p.m. Please bring a dessert to share if you
can.
Liz Bowen began writing ranch and
farm news, published in newspapers, in 1976. She is a native of Siskiyou County
and lives near Callahan. Call her at 530-467-3515. Check out her blog at:
LizWritesLife.blogspot.com.
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