NEWS ROUNDUP

NOTE: Click on the highlighted areas in orange to go to the article, study, report, etc.

Aspen fire property claims hit $80M No one can measure the misery and sentimental loss caused by last summer's Aspen fire, but a not-for-profit insurance information agency has pegged property claims at $80 million. The Arizona Insurance Information Association surveyed insurance companies about claims made on losses on Mount Lemmon, said James Frederikson, executive director of the association. "We are pretty confident of that number," he said. The estimate includes claims for loss of personal property, real estate and living expenses for displaced residents, he said. Living expenses are commonly paid to policyholders in such catastrophes for up to a year. But the $80 million does not include the estimated $16.3 million reportedly spent by the U.S. Forest Service to fight the blaze that swept across nearly 85,000 acres of the Santa Catalina Mountains for nearly four weeks beginning in mid-June. Nor does it account for damage to the forest, wildlife, picnic areas, fences or roads, he said. It does not count the millions lost in electrical equipment and radio towers, he said...Forest Service team in court over disbanding Five Forest Service whistleblowers are finally getting their day in court, eight years after their elite task force that investigated corporate timber fraud was disbanded. In the early 1990s, the newly created unit squared off against what critics say was a deeply entrenched industry practice of pinching a few extra trees from federal timber sales, with total losses to the public reaching an estimated $100 million a year. The Portland-based unit covering Washington, Oregon, California and Alaska landed some big convictions, including a $1.7 million judgment for corporate theft of trees in Oregon. The Forest Service disbanded the Timber Theft Task Force in 1995 and reassigned some investigators to arrest environmental protesters instead, said Tom Devine, the attorney for the whistleblowers. Members suspected pressure from the timber industry prompted that decision, and filed a whistleblower lawsuit...It's final: No basis for cutoff The National Research Council is sticking by its story: There was no good scientific basis for the water shutoff of 2001. In its final report about coho salmon in the Klamath River and suckers in Upper Klamath Lake, the Council reaffirmed preliminary findings from January 2002 and made numerous recommendations for helping to restore suckers and salmon and get them off the list of endangered species. The council released its final report Tuesday, and the chairman of its study committee, William Lewis, held a press conference about it. The panel reiterated that there is no evidence of a "causal connection" between water levels in Up-per Klamath Lake and the welfare of its suckers, or that higher flows on the river help salmon. It also found that there was no scientific evidence to support lowering the bar for the lake level and flow targets set in the biological opinions by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the National Marine Fisheries Service in 2002...Law Expert: Klamath a Conflict of Cultures, Not Just Science As stakeholders in the Klamath Basin react today to a long-awaited scientific report on the region's threatened and endangered fish, an environmental law expert at UC Davis says science alone cannot determine how limited water resources should be allocated among competing demands. Law professor Holly Doremus writes in the current issue of the journal Ecology Law Quarterly that, beyond the scientific analyses, the Klamath conflict represents a clash of cultures requiring value choices. "Society must choose between farming and fish, or find a way to accommodate both," write Doremus and her co-author, professor Dan Tarlock of the Chicago-Kent College of Law. Calling the Endangered Species Act a "weak catalyst" toward sustainability, Doremus says the Klamath experience confirms the act's limited ability to change long-established water allocation patterns. While the legal tools to address the Klamath Basin's water woes exist, the authors say, they are fragmented and scattered under the authority of a variety of federal and state agencies...Grizzly conflicts down 50% this year An adult grizzly was killed by a hunter Saturday night west of Meeteetse, the third in a month. While the total is about normal, the count for human-grizzly conflicts is about half last year's, wildlife officials said. "Three (deaths) is pretty close to average" during elk hunting season, said Mark Bruscino, Game and Fish bear management officer. Compared with 2002, he said the conflicts this year are about half last year's count of 212. Bruscino credits better food conditions, particularly the whitebark pine nuts that are holding the grizzlies at higher elevations and out of hunters' camps...Washington Monument to get barriers Construction will begin soon on landscaped vehicle-barrier walls to thwart terrorist attacks on the Washington Monument, the National Park Service said yesterday, but plans for a tunnel leading to the monument were put on hold. "For security of the Washington Monument, a vehicle-barrier system has final approval," said Vikki Keys, acting superintendent of the Park Service. "Work will soon go forward." But the National Coalition to Save Our Mall said the vehicle-barrier walls are unnecessary and ruinous to the scenic slopes that lead up to the monument...Drive to close historic Yosemite lodge begins Rep. George Radanovich, R-Mariposa, made progress Tuesday in his effort to dismantle the historic LeConte Memorial Lodge, a much-admired Yosemite National Park building that he has never visited. Radanovich's legislation to erase the national historic landmark from Yosemite Valley won easy approval Tuesday from the House subcommittee he chairs. A lifelong resident of Mariposa County, Radanovich said the right opportunity has never presented itself for him to enter the storybook-style cottage. "To be honest, it's either never been open when I've been there, or I haven't had the time to visit," Radanovich said Tuesday. The Sierra Club opens the 99-year-old building between May 1 and Sept. 30 each year, offering classes, lectures and music to some 15,000 visitors annually. Radanovich said he has targeted the building for closure because the Sierra Club opposes his efforts to restore more public campsites in the park. Radanovich chairs the House national parks, recreation and public lands subcommittee, which approved his Yosemite bill by voice vote after about five minutes of discussion. He suggested that he is open to a trade: keeping the LeConte lodge in exchange for more park campsites...Cascade fire is just latest agency error, residents say Heber Valley residents say the wildfire near Cascade Springs that blackened nearly 8,000 acres of forest and cost $2.5 million to douse is the latest in a series of mistakes made by officials who oversee public lands in the area. Longtime residents -- who came with grim faces and folded arms to a public hearing Wednesday at the Heber Senior Center -- told an internal review team the U.S. Forest Service should have looked at the history of the area before they started the prescription burn on Sept. 23. The fire was supposed to clear 600 acres of deadwood and undergrowth. One by one, they told the team that a decision to take sheep and cattle off the rangelands was the first mistake. Forest service and land-management officials also underestimated the canyon wind patterns and ignored conditions that exist because of a five-year drought. "I've lived over here many years," said Reed Bezzant, a former mayor of Midway. "Some of those people involved should have known better. To start a fire with this drought? And to expect a 10-foot road to be an adequate firebreak? I question their judgement." Bezzant and fellow rancher Calvin Giles say if the sheep and cattle were still allowed to graze on forest property, the undergrowth wouldn't be so dense and problematic. Bill Young, a Wasatch County councilman, said it is difficult to understand why a prescribed burn was attempted five days after a statewide fire restriction was lifted. "What changed? What was different?" Young asked. "I didn't see any cooler temperatures or more moisture here." About 60 people showed up to ask questions and voice opinions. The agitated crowd convinced the review team to answer questions in front of everyone at the meeting rather than in private meetings at "listening stations" set up around the room...Panel approves Breaks bill The House Resources Subcommittee on National Parks, Recreation and Public Lands on Tuesday approved a bill to remove private property from the Missouri River Breaks National Monument. Democrats criticized the bill, HR 1629, but did not attempt to block its approval. The legislative process gives them several more opportunities to stop the measure. It must be approved by the full Resources Committee, passed by the House of Representatives, passed by the Senate and eventually signed by President Bush. The bill's sponsor, Rep. Denny Rehberg, R-Mont., said he would do what he can to get the bill to president's desk...Colo. river law could snag fishing guides' customers: Landowners up in arms over trespassing anglers When Don Menk stormed down to the riverbank of his property several weeks ago with a .22 rifle in hand to confront anglers casting in his trout-filled eddies, it was the latest in a growing list of skirmishes over Colorado's confusing river-access laws. The state has long struggled with clashes between property holders, who have rights to the rivers that run through their land, and recreational rafters and anglers, who float through that land and flout those property rights. The current interpretation of state law says rafters can drift through private property and anglers can even cast for fish as they cross private land - but they can't get out of their boats nor can they touch bottom because property lines extend to the middle of rivers. "The law is basic. The interpretation is complicated," Gunnison County Undersheriff Rick Besecker said...VeriPrime Launches National Animal Traceability System The first broad-based national traceability system for beef was implemented today by VeriPrime, Inc., a Wichita, Kan. firm committed to ushering in the next generation of food safety. This traceability system will encompass approximately two-thirds of the nation's beef cattle supply in VeriPrime's membership. With the help of feed yards and federally-accredited veterinarians in this patent-pending system, VeriPrime has begun recording and storing data on groups of cattle raised in the US. VeriPrime services are available to all 800,000 cattle producers in America. Retail grocers and restaurants may access VeriPrime's safety-enhanced beef products through a licensing system. VeriPrime is a member-owned, member-directed organization of producers, feedyards and retailers dedicated to implementing the next-generation food safety system. "Traceability is the backbone of our services," said Scott Crain, DVM, VeriPrime founder and CEO. "Responsible food safety and animal welfare initiatives hinge on this industry's ability to identify, track and trace-back through the use of reliable livestock data."...Appeals court affirms Pork Checkoff unconstitutional The 6th Circuit Court of Appeals has affirmed a federal judge's ruling that the mandatory Pork Checkoff program is unconstitutional and should end. The court rejected USDA's argument that the Pork Checkoff is government speech, and found that the program "compels [hog farmers] to express a message with which they do not agree." "Hog farmers voted it down, now two federal courts have decided the mandatory Pork Checkoff is unconstitutional and is entirely invalidated," said Hampton, Iowa hog farmer Mark McDowell, an Iowa Citizens for Community Improvement (ICCI) member and Campaign for Family Farms spokesperson. "This is a big victory for family farmers and for democracy in America." Ag Secretary Ann Veneman said she was disappointed in the news. "I am disappointed that the US Court Appeals did not overturn the lower court's ruling. USDA regards such programs, when properly administered, as effective tools for market enhancement," she said in a statement...Cowboy High-Style Decorating The New York Times reported on a new home fashion and lifestyle trend known as "Cowboy High Style." It is has become popular with fifty-something baby boomers who were influenced while growing up by television programs like Roy Rogers and Gunsmoke. Many are building rustic log cabins in Wyoming and Montana -- some made from recycled materials. They are accessorizing their surroundings with antler lamps, animal hides, cowboy hats, saddles, and Indian artifacts. However, the spirit of the trend seems to run deeper than cowboy and Indian imagery. Architects and interior designers are using inspiration from the agrarian culture along with the lifestyle and values of old ranchers to influence their new home designs. There is even a magazine to promote this trend called Cowboys and Indians...Wild West show aims to bring history to life Atop a white horse, a Buffalo Bill Cody impersonator tips his white hat to the grandstand. A cast of gun-toting cowboys and cowgirls, Indian hoop dancers, trick ropers and stagecoach drivers lines up behind him. A voice bounces across the arena, "Ladies and gentleman, I present to you the congress of roughriders of the world." Tonight is the last chance to see a revival of Buffalo Bill Cody's Wild West Show at the Arizona State Fair's grandstand. Scottsdale entrepreneur Alan Jacoby is using the venue as a test site for the Wildest Wild West Show, which he hopes to promote in other states. Just like Cody, Jacoby one day wants to take the show abroad...