Monday, June 18, 2018

Liz Writes Life 6-19-18


June 19, 2018

Liz Writes Life

Suckers

There is more on the hypocrisy and fraudulent science regarding the sucker fish. This fish is being used by government agencies and the Klamath Tribe to destroy the growing of food and the science being used has been proven a flat-out lie. This is dire, folks. It is immediate and in our face.

The Siskiyou Co. Supervisors will hear from Siskiyou Co. Ag. Commissioner, Jim Smith, this morning at the supervisors’ board meeting. Jim will explain the potential impact to agriculture in both the Klamath Basin and Siskiyou Co. (mostly Tulelake area) if the Klamath Tribe’s injunction to stop irrigation water to farmers happens during a hearing on July 11, 2018. The judge will decide if irrigation water will be shut-off completely to hundreds of farmers – for the single reason of preserving extremely high lake levels for sucker fish as petitioned by the Klamath Tribes’ complaint filed on May 23, 2018.

There are several aspects playing out to achieve this devestation. One is the Klamath Tribes and their control of water rights; the other is the “political” science on the sucker fish, which claims the suckers need more water in lakes and reservoirs to survive.

Years ago, before Jim Smith was our Ag. Commissioner, he worked on a science project that proved the sucker fish populations improved when the fish were in low-level water areas. This science is not being utilized by gov. agencies or the Klamath Tribes.

Also, our county was hoping to use the fact that suckers are swimming in the Copco and Irongate reservoirs and as such must be protected, so if the Klamath dams were removed it would destroy the suckers’ habitat. Now a CA. Santa Rosa Democrat Assemblyman has launched Assembly Bill 2640 that will allow the “take” by CA. Dept. of Fish and Wildlife, which is the killing of the sucker fish and contrary to ESA laws.

Last week, Ray Haupt, who is chairman of the board, signed a letter of opposition to Assemblyman Wood. I want to quote this letter, because this will explain the frustration by the county regarding suckers, agriculture and the Klamath dam destruction.

“The Siskiyou County Board of Supervisors is writing this letter to express our opposition of AB 2640 Protected species: Lost River sucker and shortnose sucker limited take authorization; which would permit the California Department of Fish and Wildlife to authorize the take or possession of suckers resulting from impacts associated with the removal of the four Lower Klamath River dams.

“In late May 2018, the Klamath Tries filed a lawsuit in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California seeking to shut down the Bureau of Reclamation’s Klamath Project, which supplies water to over 200,000 agriculture acres and hundreds of family farms in northern California and southern Oregon. The substance of the Tribes’ complaint is that the Lost River and shortnose suckers are in great peril and at extreme threat of extinction by diversion of water from Upper Klamath Lake to support farming. As part of this lawsuit, the Tribe is requesting the assigned Judge to order an injunction on lake elevation levels, above the Biological Opinion thresholds which are currently being met while irrigation is occurring; which would completely shut down Klamath Project irrigation if ordered.

“The Lost River sucker and shortnose sucker are listed as endangered species under the federal and California Endangered Species Act. They are also a fully protected species under California law, which means that their take is prohibited by law with narrow exceptions for scientific research, efforts to recover the species, and where conservation and management of the species is provided for in a natural community conservation plan, approved by the Department of Fish and Wildlife.

“At the same time that the Tribe is seeking an injunction which would shut down farming and ranching in the Klamath Project to purportedly save fully protected suckers, AB 2640 is positioned to grant a legislative waiver of these protections, for a project that would permanently eliminate reservoir habitat above the dams currently occupied by both sucker species, and would result in the extirpation of the species in that portion of their range. In light of the precarious status of the species and a dearth of information regarding its contemporary distribution and abundance, as well as the prominent role of the State of California as an advocate for dam removal, those concerned about the fate of the suckers should question if the State has a greater interest in dam removal than the survival of the endangered suckers; by attempting to side-step law rather than abiding by it, as every other, entity, landowner, or project proponent is required to do.

“Due to the issues outlined above, we urge you to reconsider AB 2640 by not allowing its passage, and rather require that State law is met and abided by.”

This is an important challenge against the CA. Dept. of Fish and Wildlife’s authority to “take” a federally ESA-listed specie. Our supervisor board is ferreting out points of law to stop these overwhelming hypocrisies. I pray that right will prevail and farmers will obtain their legal irrigation water in July.

Garden

I transplanted several amaranth, cosmos and a five-leafed cucumber last week, when it was cooler. The amaranth should make it, which is a surprise as they do not like to be transplanted. The cosmos look great, but the cuc is pretty sad. I pinched off the wilted leaves, hoping it will put its energy into growing new ones.

Last week, someone asked me about the variety of plants that she noticed are doing well in the dirt-between-rocks of my wild garden. The yellow coreopsis are blooming and nearly four-feet tall. So pretty! I did add some manure, when I planted them last summer. But, I think the most important thing is to give them lots of water throughout the summer -- almost every day or every other day. Other plants that seem to do well in this poor soil are: Two varieties of Shasta daisy, tansy, comfrey, feverfew, sage, perennial asters, echinacea purpurea (coneflower), day lilies, tiger lilies, yellow moonshine yarrow, lemon balm, mints, hollyhock, four o’clocks, columbine, iris, lupine, CA. poppies and lambs ears. Also ornamental oregano spreads like wildfire and the bees love it. There are several other plants, but I can’t remember what they are. I am surprised that I remembered these!

POW

Scott Valley Protect Our Water will meet on Thursday, June 28, 2018 at the Fort Jones Community Center. Time is 7 p.m. Will have updates on sucker and water issues.

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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Monday, June 11, 2018

Liz Writes Life 6-12-18


June 12, 2018

Liz Writes Life

Garden

When the weather forecast said it would get down to 36 degrees on June 9, 2018 (really Sunday morning), I figured it was going to freeze. Yep, it did. Yep, I covered all the plants with cardboard boxes over the cucumbers and zucchini, big plastic tubs over the tall sunflower and several foot-tall tomatoes, plastic table cloths and a sheet over the tall potatoes and kitchen plastic bowels over the two shorter tomatoes and some volunteer amaranth that I wanted to transplant. Used more sheets and table cloths to cover the newly-planted zinnias and ice plants; and several blankets to cover the soon-to-be red bee balm that is four-feet tall. It looks like everything made it through. Whew!

I was out checking the plants as the sun came up and it felt like a layer of very thin ice on the coverings, so I was surprised when the begonias, cosmos and four-o’clocks near the house and under the pine tree did not get hit by the frost, cuz I hadn’t covered them. Another whew!

This year, I decided to scale-back the garden, so I didn’t have to worry about young green beans, peppers, pumpkin, cantaloupe or watermelon plants. Because the night temperatures throughout May were so warm, I really didn’t think we would get this typical cold spell. But, we sure did! Luckily, it should only be that one morning. I remember some years, when I threw the blankets and sheets over the fence to dry and left all the boxes and coverings right by the plants to do it all over again. The garden looked a mess for weeks during May and June.

POW

Much more was discussed at the May 31, 2018 Scott Valley Protect Our Water meeting. Ray Haupt, our Dist. 5 Siskiyou Co. Supervisor, reported on a number of activities. He and Dist. 3 Supervisor, Michael Kobseff, were invited to a Legislative Woods Tour hosted by Klamath Alliance for Resources and Environment. KARE was organized as a 501 c (3) non-profit in the mid-1980s specifically to share information about the importance of well-managed forests. No, this is not a Greenie group. Private forestry companies show-off their healthy forest managements, which include thinning trees.

Ray, who is a Certified CA. Forester and retired USFS District Forest Ranger, was impressed with the information shared by the KARE hosts. There was discussion on how much water trees consume (shouldn’t have so many thick forests), the deadly disease from bug infestation (again from too thick of forests and they get stressed from lack of water) to how much wood is imported into the United States, which is ridiculous since we have lots and lots of over-stocking of forests. Ray mentioned the frustration that we now have to breathe so much smoke, each the summer, from the catastrophic wildfires, instead of harvesting trees. Pure stupidity!

KARE has been holding Legislative Woods Tours since the 1980s. I was invited to attend one, when Wally Herger was our congressman. He was instrumental in inviting congressmen and U.S. senators. The Tour was impressive and truly showed how “thinning” (I call it logging) made the forests healthier. Our present Congressman Doug LaMalfa is also very supportive and helpful for the KARE Tours.

This Tour was a bit different. Ray said that CA. state assembly and senators were invited, instead of the federal ones, and were impressed.

Then Ray, and I think Michael, were invited on a Sucker Tour. Ha, ha, I know what you are thinking! Stop it! This was an educational trip into the Upper Klamath Basin to view sucker fish that are being raised by agriculturists and then released into the wild. This is a program instigated by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and Oregon Dept. of Fish and Wildlife.

Interestingly, when the contract was put out by the feds, the agriculture group came in with the lowest bid at $150,000, so received the contract and is doing a great job. The Siskiyou Supervisors have been reaching out to communicate with Klamath Farmers. Some of those farmers’ irrigation district leaders attended the Sucker Tour and good discussions were held.

Remember, these sucker fish are listed with the Endangered Species Act and are protected. So, this kind of a project is actually quite positive.

About that same time, in mid-May, irrigation water was shut-off by the Bureau of Reclamation to several thousand Klamath Project Farmers. Ray and Michael, along with Congressman LaMalfa and his staff, burned-up the phone lines explaining why the water was a legal delivery. After Congressman LaMalfa talked to the right people, the water was to be turned-on. But, by morning the Klamath Tribe had threatened a lawsuit against the federal agencies and the water was withheld.  

You know, farmers can’t grow crops if they don’t have irrigation water. As I wrote last week, the Klamath Basin situation is dire. Where is any compassion? And a desire for American-grown food?

Then, Ray, Dist. 1 Supervisor Brandon Criss, and Elizabeth Nielsen, the Siskiyou Co. Natural Resources Policy Specialist, made a trip to the coast to meet with the Yurok Chief and Council members. The group agreed to stay away from the politically hot-potato Klamath dam removal discussion; and actually enjoyed an informational meeting.

The Yurok Council would like to help Siskiyou Co. obtain its 60,000 acre feet of water from the Klamath River that is held in trust for Shasta Valley farmers. The Yuroks believe this is a positive replacement of water. The Shasta Valley farmers have never received this allotted irrigation water, so it might be the right time to try to get it. The county has been told that the cost to apply to obtain the water starts out at a $250,000 fee. Gulp!

Believe it or not, Ray said the Yurok Council has zero tolerance for growing marijuana. When a plantation is found on the Reservation, it is destroyed.

Ray talked about the county’s budget, which was at a $4.4 million shortfall, but has been whittled-down to $1 million short. Still not good. The county is once again, protesting the 1994 Northwest Forest Plan where the feds guaranteed $8.5 million in taxes to replace timber harvests, but is now paying the county a mere $300,000 each year. Policies that stopped harvests on USFS managed lands have drastically affected county coffers and turned good harvestable trees into detestable -- and costly -- smoke! 

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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Monday, June 4, 2018

Liz Writes Life 6-5-18


June 5, 2018

Liz Writes Life

Garden

Those rains and frost-free mornings, during the past several weeks, have been a God-sent blessing. Our tomatoes are doing well and the volunteer potatoes are two-feet high. The zucchini and cucumbers came up and I need to transplant an eight-inch tall volunteer sunflower plant

My orange Oriental poppies are in full bloom along with the purple, yellow and peach iris. I was bummed the red peonies didn’t last long, but my favorite rose bush just started blooming. Last year’s transplanted coreopsis, Echinacea cone-flower and feverfew are tall. Comfrey is blooming pretty little pink bells and the Shasta daisies and snaps are starting to pop open. Happy gardening everyone!

POW

The Scott Valley Protect Our Water meeting kicked-off last Thursday with Louise Gliatto reporting Pacific Power will begin installing Smart Meters in Siskiyou Co. this month. Ugh! Here is a phone number to call to tell the company you do not want a Smart Meter installed: 866-869-8520. There is a cost to opt-out, but we haven’t been able to pin-down Pacific Power as to how much that cost will be. Some people have been told it will cost $75 then a cost of $20 per month for a year. When Louise called, she was given a higher cost, so now we are not sure what the cost is. Check it out for yourself and be sure to put up a sign on your current meter stating you do not want the Smart Meter to replace your analog one.

Remember, there are many complaints about Smart Meters from the invisible signal causing sleep deprivation and health problems to the ability of Pacific Power to turn your electricity on and off or reduce usage during high-peek periods.

John Hill, who is a retired electrical engineer, is speaking about the dangers Smart Meters pose at the Dunsmuir Library at 5714 Dunsmuir Ave., on Wed., June 13, 2018 from 6 to 8 p.m. The meeting is free and refreshments will be provided.

Mark Baird told us the federal judge vacated the hearing set for June 1, 2018 on the lawsuit by the Citizens for Fair Representation v CA. Sec. of State Alex Padilla. On June 15, 2018, the judge is expected to rule if the lawsuit will go forward. CFR is on pins and noodles hoping the lawsuit will continue to a three-judge panel.

Klamath project

Jim Smith, our Siskiyou Co. Ag. Commissioner, gave a slide show with a map explaining the Klamath Project. It covers over 225,000 acres of Oregon into California. I will add that the project was created to literally help feed the people of the United States. In 1902, President Theodore Roosevelt signed the National Reclamation Act to encourage the expansion of agriculture. In 1906, the newly established Bureau of Reclamation began the Klamath Project to drain wetlands, swamps and lakes for cultivation.

Jim’s grandfather was a veteran of World War I and obtained land in the Klamath Project for homesteading. Jim still owns a large farm in Tulelake area, which is some of the most fertile soil in the nation. As part of the Project, refuges for birds were established. I know that TuleLake Wildlife Refuge with 39,000 acres and Lower Klamath National Wildlife Refuge with 46,900 acres are part of the irrigation system. When water is shut-off to the farmers it is also shut-off to the refuges, wildlife and ESA-protected eagles.

Years ago, Jim was part of a project that did research on the sucker fish. It was learned that suckers do much better in a lower amount of water in the Upper Klamath Lake, which is naturally a shallow lake. But, the federal fraudulent “science” has claimed, since 2001, that the ESA-listed suckers must have lots and lots of water. So, in 2001, the Biological Opinion by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service decreed the water had to be shut-off to the Project farmers; because the water had to stay in Upper Klamath Lake for the suckers. It needs to be noted that more water has not produced more suckers.

Now, over 15 years later, the Klamath Tribes have demanded their water rights, which are to provide more water for sucker fish. This year, they have begun several lawsuits to make sure the Project farmers do not get their legal water that was decreed as part of the 100-year old Klamath Project.

So, the farmers are in a world of hurt. Many have obtained contracts with Frito Lay and other companies to grow vegetables. Then obtained bank loans, because the infrastructure for farming is broad and expensive. Project farmers received no water in April and about two weeks worth in May. Early thunderstorms actually helped out, but any crops that are still viable are in drastic need of irrigation.

Typically, Jim said agriculture is an annual $557 million economy in the Klamath basin.

Farmers in the Klamath Project grow barley, wheat, oats, alfalfa, grass hay, cereal grain, grain hay, potatoes, strawberry nursery plants, onions, mint, horseradish, micro-green lettuce, carrots and carrot plants to produce seeds.

Jim explained the multiplier of how every job in agriculture creates six additional jobs in the community. Literally, with the government and the Klamath Tribes shutting-off the water, the impact will be over a billion in economic losses!

I reported on the 2001 water shut-off. Concerned people from the Pacific Northwest, including Siskiyou Co., participated in the Bucket Brigade on May 7, 2001. It is estimated nearly 20,000 went to Klamath Falls, lined the streets and hand-over-hand delivered buckets of water from Lake Ewauna more than a mile where it was dumped into the A Canal. According to federal decree, it was illegal for the A Canal to have any water in it, so this was a direct protest to the feds. CA. Dist. 1 Congressman Wally Herger and Siskiyou Co. Supervisors participated and were the first ones to dump the buckets of water into A Canal – and were not arrested.

Life in the Klamath basin has been uncertain for nearly 20 years.

I truly believe there is enough stored water, even in natural droughts, to provide for the suckers (demanded by Klamath Tribes) and the farmers. It is behind-the-scenes politics of hidden powerful dictators that are destroying the farmers and economy. Again, when the water is withheld from the farmers, it also destroys vast acreages of the environment greatly affecting wildlife. Where is the outrage by enviros?

The situation is beyond dire and boggles any sense of understanding. 

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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Liz writes her last column

June 1, 2022 Liz Writes Life Well, I have some news – don’t know if it is good or bad? I have decided to end my newspaper column “Liz Wr...