Written by Steve Kadel, Pilot staff writer
October 28, 2011 11:06 pm
Local residents strongly supported banning future mining along the Chetco River during a forum Wednesday afternoon at the Best Western Inn.
The session, hosted by the U.S. Forest Service, was intended for testimony on a proposal to prohibit mining near the river for five years – with the possible exception of existing claims.
Thirteen people testified in favor of the ban. No one spoke against it.
Some proponents mentioned mining’s threat to clean water because the Chetco provides drinking water for Brookings and Harbor. Others noted the presence of salmon in the wild and scenic river, a declining resource among West Coast rivers.
Many said the river not only improves the quality of life for local residents, but brings tourists who contribute to the Curry County economy.
Jim Wegener said he moved to Harbor three years ago from the San Francisco Bay area specifically to be near the river.
“The true value of the Chetco River is its pristine beauty,” he said.
Yvonne Maitland added that mining operations “will have a cumulative and negative effect on the condition of the river. Gold mining is in direct conflict with the purpose of the federal ‘Wild and Scenic’ designation.”
She urged the Forest Service to consider “the greater public good” by protecting the Chetco.
Entomologist Marius Wasvauer of the Chetco River Watershed Council said suction dredge mining such as that proposed on the Chetco River would damage aquatic life that fish depend on for food.
Tim Palmer agreed that mining would threaten food sources for fish, and added that mining would flush silt downstream to destroy salmon spawning beds. He said the river is pristine because there are no towns or dams upstream.
“This is a unique situation on the West Coast,” Palmer said.
“We are so fortunate to be so close to something so wild and beautiful,” said Stormy Lake.
Ann Vileisis, president of the Kalmiopsis Audubon Society, cited a study for the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife that estimated $4.5 million was spent for freshwater fishing trips in Curry County during 2008.
“It’s a matter of economics and qualify of life for local people,” she said.
At issue is an application the Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest submitted to the Bureau of Land Management. It requests the Secretary of the Interior to ban mining along 5,610 acres along the Chetco from where it exits the Kalmiopsis Wilderness to the Siskiyou National Forest boundary.
That 17-mile segment is in the upper portion of the river. The ban would extend inland for a quarter mile from the river’s banks.
As of Aug. 1, the Department of the Interior placed a two-year moratorium on new mining while the larger issue is processed.
Alan Vandiver, Forest Service district ranger in the Gold Beach office, said existing mining claims would not be covered under the potential ban. However, for mining activity to take place on those claims, owners would have to get Forest Service approval.
Vandiver said that approval would only be given if the Forest Service verified that the discovery of a valuable mineral deposit had been made.
Eleven people have mining claims on the Chetco, he said, although it’s unclear how many total claims are involved.
Besides Wednesday afternoon’s public testimony forum, a similar session was held that night.
Written comments supporting or opposing the potential ban may be given to the Bureau of Land Management state director at: Oregon/Washington State Director, BLM, P.O. Box 2965, Portland, OR 97208-2965.
The deadline to submit comments is Nov. 30.
http://www.currypilot.com/201110281...- ... etco-River
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Sorry to be the bearer of crappy news but the cancer is spreading fast now as Idaho dead 100% also already as kalif-John
tons a au 2 u 2-John
and miners 
