Hi Friends, This is my very first Facebook status update. It involves an email exchange with my state senator, Ginny Burdick here in Oregon. Please read the last 2 lines of her response very carefully. I will probably get audited by the IRS for this, but I think it is important enough to let citizens know just how arrogant our government masters have become. Mark Dear Senator Burdick, Please vote against SB838 It’s supposed to help the environment by preventing people from panning for gold recreationally. In particular it illegalizes dredges, which are little lawnmower engines with a pump attached. They pump a few hundred gallons per minute max. This type of recreational dredging is already highly regulated and only a few rivers have gold in them anyway. The problem with the bill is that it will invalidate federally granted claims. People who have these claims will sue the state of Oregon if the bill becomes law, and they will win. All you will accomplish is make a bunch of lawyers on both sides rich. SB838-1 is a better alternative. SB838 is in the ways and means committee currently. If you are on that committee or know somebody who is, please have them vote against it. If it reaches the floors in the senate or house, it will pass because it sounds like a nice environmentally correct thing to do (the effects would really be about 0). Please save us all a bunch of lawyer fees. Thanks Mark Milroy Tigard Dear Mr. Milroy, Thank you for your email. I appreciate hearing your comments and thoughts on the issue of suction dredge mining and protection for Oregon’s waterways. As you likely know, suction dredge mining is one of two placer gold mining activities commonly found in Oregon. It occurs in streams where deposits of gold may be found, and often in the same watersheds that have historically supported strong salmon and trout fisheries. In 1970, Oregon voters approved a citizens’ initiative that created the Oregon State Scenic Waterways program. The program, last updated in 1988, originally contained all or part of six rivers but has grown through additional initiatives to include 19 rivers as well as Waldo Lake. Essentially, the program designates Oregon’s most treasured rivers as ‘Scenic Waterways’, which allows for the protection of water quality and quantity at a levels necessary for recreation, fish, and wildlife. The designation is intended to preserve waterways for all while respecting private property rights and protecting property values. The Scenic Waterways program does not prohibit construction of new structures on private property, restrict the existing water rights along scenic waterways, nor allow public use of private property without landowners consent. This needs to change. Sincerely, Senator Ginny Burdick.
Posted on: Fri, 12 Jul 2013 17:03:46 +0000
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