Note: This article is a sidebar to this issue’s feature story. Here are some of the other dams under attack throughout the West: Elwha River dams, Olympic Peninsula, Washington Built decades ago, these two dams have nearly destroyed what was once, given the host river’s size, a salmon fishery nonpareil. Estimates of the Elwha ancestral […]
Dam deconstruction – what’s next?
Posted inOctober 27, 1997: Deconstructing the age of dams
Deconstructing the age of dams
In the early fall of 1991, I got a call from a cheery young man named Bob Herkert, who introduced himself as the field manager for the California Rice Industry Association. He wanted to invite me on a “good will” tour of the Sacramento Valley rice-growing region, where he said I would see two salmon-blocking […]
Posted inOctober 13, 1997: The land is still public, but it's no longer free
Leaning Into the Wind: Women Write from the Heart of the West
Whenever I fill out a form that asks me to list my occupation, I put down “farmer,” the same word I use when I’m asked my husband’s occupation. The following is a true story: The man reading the form says, “Your husband is a farmer?” “Yes, my husband and I are farmers,” I reply. “You […]
Posted inOctober 13, 1997: The land is still public, but it's no longer free
Big stink over northern pike
A battle over poisoning Lake Davis to rid it of non-native northern pike appears headed for a shoreline showdown. The courts have endorsed a California Department of Fish and Game plan to poison the lake 70 miles north of Lake Tahoe. A Plumas County ordinance is now one of the last obstacles, short of civil […]
Posted inOctober 13, 1997: The land is still public, but it's no longer free
Rafters vs. fish
River outfitters and their supporters rallied in Stanley, Idaho, Sept. 23 to say that the Forest Service had gone too far. Led by owners of The River Company, some 50 central Idaho residents protested the agency’s shutting down of the Salmon River. The agency has been periodically closing off parts of the river to floaters […]
Posted inOctober 13, 1997: The land is still public, but it's no longer free
Flattened fauna need help
For decades, Route 93 between Missoula, Mont., and Glacier National Park has earned a reputation as a dangerous stretch of highway. A bumper sticker from the 1960s reads: “Pray for me, I drive 93.” Now it seems drivers aren’t the only ones in danger. Hundreds of western painted turtles that live in pothole wetlands are […]
Posted inOctober 13, 1997: The land is still public, but it's no longer free
The Wayward West
Margaret Reeb first made headlines by saying “no.” She is making them again by saying “yes.” Last May, the deal between the Clinton administration and the Crown Butte Mining Company – the administration would pay $65 million if the mining company agreed not to mine – was thrown into question. It turned out that Reeb […]
Posted inOctober 13, 1997: The land is still public, but it's no longer free
Borrowing courage from the past
Borrowing courage from the past Where did Forest Supervisor Gloria Flora get the courage to say no to the oil and gas industry? “Mostly from other people,” she said, at the end of a long day after her decision. “I look at certain people within the agency that I’ve known, who have made an impact. […]
Posted inOctober 13, 1997: The land is still public, but it's no longer free
Federal government web site
Even the federal government has a Web site these days. Check out http://www.fedstats.gov to find out how many people moved to your state last year, how many tons of coal were burned or where the fastest-growing job market is. Easy to use, even for Luddites, the cyberspace site highlights often-requested data and offers key word […]
Posted inOctober 13, 1997: The land is still public, but it's no longer free
Environmental, Economic and Legal Issues Related to Rangeland Water Developments
Arizona State University’s Center for the Study of Law, Science and Technology hosts a symposium with 39 speakers Nov. 13-15 on Environmental, Economic and Legal Issues Related to Rangeland Water Developments, in Phoenix, Ariz. Symposium coordinator Rosalind Pearlman hopes the conference will attract staffers from state and federal environmental agencies as well as members of […]
Posted inOctober 13, 1997: The land is still public, but it's no longer free
Forest fragmentation in the Central Rocky Mountains
Forest Fragmentation in the Central Rocky Mountains is the theme of a two-day conference at Colorado State University Nov. 12-13. From scientists to environmentalists, all-terrain vehicle drivers to timber industry representatives, everyone interested in forests is invited and no registration is needed. For more information, contact Rick Knight at 970/491-6714, or by e-mail: knight@cnr.colostate.edu. This […]
Posted inOctober 13, 1997: The land is still public, but it's no longer free
Let rivers heal
A report from the Oregon State University Department of Fisheries says that current salmon habitat and river restoration efforts will fail unless they focus on entire watersheds or landscapes, rather than on a single process or species. For such a holistic approach to work, the report says, overgrazing, pollution and too much water consumption must […]
Posted inOctober 13, 1997: The land is still public, but it's no longer free
A timber country memoir
It’s hard to make straight lines stick to the earth, writes Robert Leo Heilman in Overstory: Zero; Real Life in Timber Country, and even harder in hilly Douglas County, Ore. In his book of 32 essays, Heilman returns to this theme again and again; he likes the earth’s reluctance to bend to blueprints, whether he […]
Posted inOctober 13, 1997: The land is still public, but it's no longer free
Who will save our animals?
Greenpeace may no longer be going door to door, but another group continues its long-time canvassing, often stressing environmental issues. It distributes millions of copies of its material in about 60 languages, including Pidgin, Hiligaynon and Zulu. The July 8 issue asked on its cover: “Who Will Save Our Animals?,” with a story inside that […]
Posted inOctober 13, 1997: The land is still public, but it's no longer free
The more remote, the better
Residents of isolated Stehekin Valley, Wash., population 70, believe their community is frozen in time, and they want to keep it that way. On the northeast end of Lake Chelan, bordering North Cascades National Park and within the Lake Chelan Recreation Area, the town features a post office, hotel and bakery. But there are no […]
Posted inOctober 13, 1997: The land is still public, but it's no longer free
Least loved beasts
-A coyote danced. Perhaps not. Reason tells me that he was catching his breakfast. Voles, moles, meadow mice, ground squirrels, chipmunks, and other rodents abound in the Sierra meadows. But still, his dance was a study in grace and sinuous acrobatics: A leap to clear the grass, a pounce, a toss of the head and […]
Posted inOctober 13, 1997: The land is still public, but it's no longer free
On the road
Hitting the road could be one way to protect roadless lands. Starting Oct. 9, the Montana-based Native Forest Network is on a road trip to communities in the Northern Rockies to call attention to 10 threatened roadless areas. Among them are the Gallatin Range and Rocky Mountain Front in northern Montana, the headwaters of the […]
Posted inOctober 13, 1997: The land is still public, but it's no longer free
Mountain bikers in Moab pay to ride
MOAB, Utah – Mountain bike pilgrims who come to ride Moab’s Slickrock trail find something new these days: a tollbooth. Next to the booth, a sign reads: “Welcome to Sand Flats. All fees are used here for improvements.” A visit to this mecca of mountain biking now costs $1 per person if you’re walking or […]
Posted inOctober 13, 1997: The land is still public, but it's no longer free
Paying to play in the Sawtooths
KETCHUM, Idaho – Buying a recreation pass for the ranger district here and the Sawtooth National Recreation Area, two popular parts of the Sawtooth National Forest, is easy. The hard part is remembering to do so. For the first time ever, a walk across the Sawtooth’s mountain meadows isn’t free. On July 1, the Forest […]
Posted inOctober 13, 1997: The land is still public, but it's no longer free
Barbara Sutteer: Fees draw fire from two public-land users
Note: This article is a sidebar to this issue’s feature story. Barbara Sutteer, a career National Park Service staffer, has roots in both the Northern Ute and Cherokee tribes. She is former superintendent at Little Bighorn National Monument and now works as a tribal liaison officer for the Park Service in the agency’s Denver office. […]