Legislative Defense Manual

PANDA Legislative Defense Manual 2013
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PROPOSED EXPANSION OF WATER AUTHORITY WOULD EXTEND FEDERAL CONTROL TO VIRTUALLY ALL U.S. LANDS

EPA Science: Supporting the Waters of the U.S. 2013 September 17
Reposted from EPA Connect, the Official Blog of EPA’s Leadership
By Nancy Stoner and Lek Kadeli

One of the great environmental success stories of our time is the Clean Water Act. Forty years ago, the condition of U.S. rivers, streams, lakes, coastal areas and other water resources was a national concern.

Things started to improve after the newly-established U.S. Environmental Protection Agency was given direction “to restore and maintain the chemical, physical, and biological integrity of the Nation’s waters” through major revisions to the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (now the Clean Water Act).

But over the past decade, court decisions have created uncertainty about the Clean Water Act’s protection of certain streams and wetlands from pollution and development. In particular, the confusion centers on questions surrounding small streams and wetlands—some of which only flow after precipitation or dry up during parts of the year—and what role they play in the health of larger water bodies nearby or downstream.

This week, EPA’s Science Advisory Board released for public comment a draft scientific report, “Connectivity of Streams and Wetlands to Downstream Waters: A Review and Synthesis of the Scientific Evidence.” This draft report synthesizes more than 1,000 peer-reviewed pieces of scientific literature about how smaller, isolated water bodies are connected to larger ones and represents the state-of-the-science on the connectivity and isolation of waters in the United States.

Read more…

Water War ramps up!

Oregon

Key Contacts

From the Oregon Liberty Coalition:
Forward to your Family and Friends in Oregon and Washington.

Please consider making a comment on the Oregon Spotted Frog, even if you do
not live in any of the Counties, the comments can be made anonymously.

The Action by the WildEarth Guardians is clearly a Cloward and Piven tactic to overwhelm the USFWS with claims to force a rushed decision as over 400 species have been ruled by a court order for a fast tract to designate habitat.

It is concerning that State land is being controlled by Bureaucrats in Washington where the jurisdiction should be the State and County by duly elected
Representation.

Let your voice be heard!

From: Mary Geddry 
Sent: Wed 10/16/13 6:06 PM
  
http://mgx.com/blogs/2013/10/16/krieger-wrong-blame-salem-fiscal-crisis/

Light Pollution Fight Advances One City And Park At A Time

Government overreach?

But this movement came to a temporary halt earlier this year when voters in coastal Bandon, Ore. repealed their city’s brand new outdoor lighting ordinance.  Referendum organizer Rob Taylor argued the regulation was “a huge government overreach.”

“We were trying to tell people that this is a matter of safety and security,” he says. “Or even if it didn’t give you more security, but it gave you the perception of security, we believe that was the right of the individual to choose for their own property.”

Taylor described his preferred path forward in a post-election letter-to-the-editor. “People who want ‘Dark Sky’ compliance can use public cooperation, personal communication and more education to achieve their desires.  Only now, they cannot use the force of government to make other people comply with those rules, so everyone should be happy,” he wrote.

Statewide measures to regulate against light pollution have repeatedly failed in the Washington and Idaho legislatures too. Currently, city councilors and planning commission members in Cannon Beach, Ore. are debating whether or not a “dark sky” ordinance is needed in their town. A similar law just took effect in nearby Seaside.

The National Marine Sanctuary Foundation

Marine Sanctuary Committee Port Orford City Hall 555 W. 20th St 3:30 pm on Thursday, October 17, 2013  Discussion on establishing a fish sanctuary for  The National Marine Sanctuary Foundation Related Information:  www.nmsfocean.org  www.alliancefisheries.com   Bait and Switch? Fishermen's Difficult Relationship with the Monterey Sanctuary  Statement of Dave Danbom on the Potential for the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary to Regulate  Fishing  Sincerely, Rob Taylor

National Marine Sanctuaty Article & Letter 2013 File Size: 1392 kb File Type: pdf Download File Port Orford Links: www.portorford.org http://www.portorford.org/pdfs/2013councilmeetings/CA10-17-13.pdf

Oregon: Transfer public lands from feds?

State Forests Management Superior to Federal Forests
for Job Creation, Revenue Production, Local Economies and Fire Prevention

“[Washington state] lands generate an average of $168 million annually, support construction of public elementary, middle school and high schools statewide, facilities at the state’s universities, and other state facilities and institutions. In comparison, the U.S. Forest Service is responsible for managing over 9 million acres of forest land contained within seven different national forests in the State of Washington, yet harvests just 2 percent of the new growth, yielding a four-year average of only $589,000 in revenue,”  said Natural Resources Committee Chairman Doc Hastings (WA-04).  “Rather than offering all-too-familiar rhetoric of how complying with one federal law or another ‘costs too much,’ it’s time for the federal government to adjust how it does business, and honor its own statutory responsibilities to manage the forests, including allowing sufficient timber harvests, that benefit forested counties and their schools, as well as improve declining forest health and reduce the threat and soaring costs of catastrophic wildfire.” 

“Over the last few decades we’ve seen our National Forest System fall into complete neglect—what was once a valuable asset that deteriorated into a growing liability. I believe our forests and public lands are long overdue for a paradigm shift,” said Subcommittee on Public Lands and Environmental Regulation Chairman Rob Bishop (UT-01).“It’s time for the federal government to cease being the absentee landlord of over 600 million acres of land in this country that it controls and start leveraging those lands in a way  that benefits rather than burdens the taxpayers and communities who are forced to play host to the federal estate.”

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