NEWS ROUNDUP

Game warden access an issue again A newly elected lawmaker said she'll offer a bill in the 2007 South Dakota Legislature that would require game wardens to ask for permission before going on private land. Rep.-elect Betty Olson, R-Prairie City, said officers could still enter private property if they have a reasonable suspicion of wrongdoing or get a tip about it. But she says game wardens should not be allowed to just drive onto someone's land to look for hunters who may or may not be doing something illegal. The right of game wardens to go onto private land comes from a policy called the open-fields doctrine. Legislators have tried to repeal it twice in recent years. "I'm hoping that ... both houses will decide that Game, Fish and Parks (should) show the common courtesy of asking before they trespass," said Olson. Gov. Mike Rounds and administrators with the GF&P have weighed in heavily in opposition to limiting access to private property for law officers, which probably played a large role in the bill's past failures, according to state House Majority Leader Larry Rhoden....
Group to gov: Don't 'interfere' The Equality State Policy Center on Tuesday criticized the governor's office and Wyoming attorney general, saying they're interfering with efforts to regulate negative impacts of water discharged from coal-bed methane wells. Last week, Gov. Dave Freudenthal's administration blasted a citizen board known as the Environmental Quality Council for proceeding with rulemaking that could force state regulators to tighten controls on coal-bed methane water. The Powder River Basin Resource Council brought the request on behalf of its rancher members, whose lands are being damaged or flooded by poor quality water. To date, many ranchers have found no regulatory relief as state agencies claim the problem is another agency's responsibility, or that no agency has the authority to address it....
Spaceport inks deal with ranchers The state has entered into long-term agreements that will allow New Mexico's spaceport to co-exist with ranching operations in the area. The New Mexico Spaceport Authority has finalized agreements with two Sierra County ranching operations, giving the yet-to-be-built Spaceport America, 45 miles north of Las Cruces, access to 18,000 acres of leased land. Bar Cross Ranch and Lewis Cain Ranch will each be paid more than $600,000 as an initial payment in return for access to the land by the spaceport. The ranches are owned by Ben and Jane Cain and Phil and Judy Wallin. The ranchers currently lease 90,000 acres from both the state and federal government, said New Mexico Economic Development Secretary Rick Homans....
Off the forest -- for now A homeless man, found guilty in November of letting his horses damage forest vegetation and shed their waste near waterways, was sentenced last week to nine months' probation, ordered to keep his livestock off national forests until next fall, and pay $105 in court costs. Terrence “Terry” Amrein, 60, had faced 18 months in jail and $15,000 in fines for offenses arising from his camping with horses in the Bridger-Teton National Forest. And throughout his latest legal drama, Amrein has put the justice system on trial. Dressed in a brown three-piece suit and shiny black boots last week, Amrein accused officials, present and past, of selective prosecution, even persecution. But it was Lubing’s verdict on Amrein’s “penchant for challenging authority” at trial that inspired the defendant’s continued rhetorical examination. “It’s true,” Amrein said last week. “I do identify authority that is incorrect or corrupt. And I feel that it’s a duty of an American citizen to call that out.”....
Clean Water Act faces legal challenge CropLife America (CLA) and Responsible Industry for a Sound Environment (RISE) have filed a legal challenge seeking to broaden the scope of the recent Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) final rule that clarifies when pesticides can be applied without first obtaining a Clean Water Act (CWA) permit. “The EPA rule, while a step in the right direction, only applies to aquatic uses and forest canopy applications of pesticides,” said Jay Vroom, president and CEO of CropLife America. “Our challenge to the EPA is to expand the rule to all pesticides, including production agricultural uses of beneficial crop protection products and other essential uses of pesticides.” CLA has maintained that FIFRA - the primary law governing the application of pesticides -effectively regulates pesticide applications on, over and near “waters of the U.S.” Further, CLA takes the position that FIFRA regulation is sufficient to ensure the safety of all pesticide uses, not just those subject to EPA’s new rule. Labeling requirements under FIFRA are imposed to protect human health and the environment. This position was supported by others in the agricultural community and by public health officials in the two rounds of public comments solicited by the EPA on this issue....
Railroad boom hits environmental, 'not in my backyard' snags Across the interstate from his ranch, the Union Pacific (UP) railroad wants to build a six-mile switching yard, part of an effort to improve its national freight service. And, this month, local officials rezoned some 10,000 acres from development sensitive to heavy industrial. They envision businesses springing up around the new yard. Burgeoning business is pushing railroads into the middle of sticky environmental disputes. On one side are environmental groups, ranchers, and landowners concerned about potential chemical spills and air pollution. On the other side are rail companies stretched to the limit - barely able to provide communities with goods. Their strategy - with national implications for reducing oil usage - is to carry more of the containers now moved by long haul truckers. But, to do this they need to build more rail yards in places such as Picacho. With large open spaces in shorter supply and business booming, railroads are locked into disputes over land use - even in what used to be the wide-open West....
Fire crew boss charged in deaths The former boss of a government firefighting crew was charged with involuntary manslaughter in the deaths of four U.S. Forest Service firefighters during a 2001 blaze, federal prosecutors said Wednesday. Prosecutors said Ellreese N. Daniels was grossly negligent in failing to order his firefighters out of harm's way as flames advanced on them. He was also charged with lying to investigators in the aftermath of the tragedy, which took place near Winthrop in July 2001. Daniels was not immediately arrested. He was scheduled to appear in court on Jan. 4. His attorney, Tina Hunt, did not immediately return a call for comment. The four firefighters were trapped in the Chewuch River Canyon with 10 other firefighters and two campers. The others were uninjured, but the four firefighters -- two men and two women -- died when the blaze swept over them as they set up their fire shelters on a rocky slope. A Forest Service investigation concluded that fire bosses had ignored numerous signs of danger, repeatedly underestimated the fire and allowed their only escape route from the dead-end canyon to be cut off....
Forest Service veterans worry about precedent The possibility of being held personally liable for actions during wildland fires has loomed over firefighters ever since four local firefighters died in the Thirtymile Fire. The prospect became reality Wednesday when federal manslaughter charges were filed against former crew boss Ellreese Daniels. U.S. Forest Service veterans believe it was the first time criminal charges had ever been filed in connection with wildland fire deaths, and said it could worsen a growing sense among firefighters that their homes, jobs and pensions aren't worth the seasonal thrill of knocking down flames. "I would think this is going to have a real chilling effect on the folks that are out there, the boots on the ground," said Jim Furnish, a retired headquarters official who led the Thirtymile fatality investigation for the Forest Service. Retired Forest Service fire investigator Dick Mangan is even more blunt, suggesting that federal prosecutors took their sweet time examining every one of Daniels' actions -- a luxury he didn't have in the midst of a 9,300-acre blaze. "Sometimes we have a decision space of 30 seconds, a minute, two minutes -- and you don't always get it right," said Mangan, a three-decade Forest Service veteran who has since served in active operations and safety posts....
Legislation Aims to Address Fire Fighting Within Growth Policies A home in the woods, with the peaceful chatter of pine squirrels and the occasional deer feeding on your flowers is a Western dream. However, protecting these dream homes has become a nightmare for the government agencies charged with fire management. Look to any Western state and the problems are similar – too many homes on the fringes of communities where wildfire is as natural as the sunrise. This often means firefighters have to put more energy in saving homes than fighting the fire. It's been a growing problem for decades. Come January, the Montana Legislature will be faced with legislation dealing with homes in the urban-wildland interface. As the legislative session looms less than two weeks away, a handful of bills are popping up that address growth and development in the interface and would change dramatically the way state and local governments deal with an already difficult problem. The essence of the bills is that counties would have to address the interface in their growth policies, subdivision regulations and eventually zoning. They would have until July of 2009 to get this done and if they failed to meet that deadline, they would lose access to the state's general fund for fire fighting costs....
Column - Why I Hate Christmas Christmas destroys the environment and innocent animals and birds. These have perhaps not been traditional concerns for economists. But when one takes account of all the Christmas trees, letters, packages, increased newspaper advertising, wrapping paper, and catalogs and cards, as well as all the animals slaughtered for feast and fur, this holiday is nothing less than a catastrophe for the entire ecosystem. According to the U.S. Forest Service, 33 million Christmas trees are consumed each year. Growing them imposes an artificially short rotation period on millions of acres of forest land, and the piles of needles they shed shorten the life of most household rugs and pets. All the trees and paper have to be disposed of, which places a heavy burden on landfill sites and recycling facilities, especially in the Northeast. This year, according to the Humane Society, at least 4 million foxes and minks will be butchered just to provide our Christmas furs. To stock our tables, the Department of Agriculture tells me, we'll also slaughter 22 million turkeys, 2 million pigs, and 2 million to 3 million cattle, plus a disproportionate fraction of the 6 billion chickens that the United States consumes each year....
President Bush signs firefighter fund bill President Bush today signed a House bill that will eliminate taxes on the donations given to the families of the five firefighters killed in October's Esperanza fire. Rep. Mary Bono, R-Palm Springs, praised the president in a statement. "Hopefully the signing of this bill by the President will bring some comfort this holiday season to the families and friends who lost their loved one as a result of the Esperanza Fire. Today is a proud day for Congress, who swiftly and unanimously supported this critical piece of legislation which safeguards the generous contributions made by many compassionate Americans." The bill grants tax relief to the families of the five Idyllwild firefighters for the money donated to them following the massive arson blaze....
Reforestation lags amid record wildfires As severe wildfires scorch more of the USA each year, the Forest Service is falling further behind in replacing trees lost to fire, insects and disease because of shrinking budgets and mounting costs of fighting the blazes. The Forest Service had a backlog of 1.1 million acres that needed replanting in 2005 — a combined area slightly larger than Rhode Island — according to the agency's latest reforestation report. Last year, it could replant only 153,000 acres. John Rosenow, president of the National Arbor Day Foundation, calls it "a double whammy — the high need (to replant) because of fires, and then the funds having to be diverted." The Forest Service had to borrow $200 million from other programs to cover firefighting costs this year. Most of that, $159 million, came from reforestation accounts, the agency says. Wildfires last year scorched almost 8.7 million acres, the highest total in more than a half-century — until this year's record 9.6 million acres burned. "I'll give you one word: crisis," says forest ecologist Tom Bonnicksen, an adviser to the Forest Foundation, a California-based group. "In California areas burned by wildfires in 2001, only 3.8% were reforested. That, to me, is a crisis."....
Local wilderness discussions move forward for Lolo National Forest Wilderness bills have changed since the Democrats last gained control of the U.S. Congress two decades ago. Where once statewide bills were all about locking up lands, there are now local, bipartisan bills that also include economic benefits for the local rural communities. “What we’re looking for,” said Gordy Sanders of Pyramid Mountain Lumber in Seeley Lake, “is the same level of certainty that the proponents of wilderness are looking for.” Just as wilderness proponents seek the certainty of Congressional protection, local community members are looking for guaranteed access to the timber supply, through such tools as 10-year stewardship contracts. Gordy confirmed what Rep. Denny Rehberg told the Chronicle earlier this month—that community members in the Seeley Ranger District have been quietly laying the groundwork for a community-wide discussion of a wilderness bill involving the upper Blackfoot. The overall package would also include restoration, as well as a long-term guaranteed source of timber for the local mill. “A number of conservation community folks have been involved in the discussion,” he said. ‘We’ve spent a couple of years visiting about how to make things work.”....
Bush signs bill banning oil, gas drilling on Front President George Bush signed a major trade and tax package Wednesday that includes a permanent ban on oil and natural gas drilling along the Rocky Mountain Front. "I'm really tickled," said Sen. Max Baucus, D-Mont., who added the drilling ban to the omnibus bill. "It's a real feather in the cap for Montana." The drilling provision makes permanent a 1997 moratorium on Rocky Mountain Front exploration and makes it easier to retire existing leases. Over the past 50 years, the U.S. Forest Service and the Bureau of Land Management have issued 60 leases for oil and gas development along the Front, though none of those is actively producing. The drilling ban signed by the president would give oil and gas companies a tax break if they sell their Front leases to nonprofit groups. That break would be equal to 25 percent of the capital received by the seller. Two energy companies agreed earlier this year to sell and donate the Front mineral leases they hold. Supporters of the ban have said a permanent solution enacted by Congress would help finalize those deals....
Editorial - Off the block: BLM ignores its mission in rush to sell leases The black-footed ferret, a smallish black, brown and gray mammal with a long tail and upright ears, has, by its mere presence, accomplished what hard-working environmental lawyers have tried with limited success. It has stopped the drilling in one energy-rich area of the Uinta Basin. Those concerned about the federal pillaging of the West's open spaces can thank these endangered creatures and an Interior Department review board that determined the BLM had illegally failed to consider the ferrets' fate when it sold oil and gas leases on the Utah/Colorado border. The board rightly suspended 15 leases covering 29,000 acres, some of the last of the endangered ferret's habitat. This is not the first time the Bureau of Land Management's seemingly headlong rush to put public land on the auction block for energy development has been curbed. But it is unusual that its parent agency would do the reining in. That fact only underscores the BLM's indefensible willingness to cater to energy companies at the expense even of its own department's rules for protecting the environment. U.S. District Judge Dale Kimball ruled in August that the BLM ignored federal environmental laws and its own findings when it sold 16 leases on land the agency itself had designated Wilderness Inventory Areas. A lawsuit was necessary to bring the BLM to heel in that case....
Swift Hiring Less Hispanics After ICE Raids, Unions Say Union leaders at Swift & Co.’s Grand Island, Neb., and Greeley, Colo., plants are reporting that the processor has been hiring fewer Hispanic immigrants to replace those caught in raids by the Department of Homeland Security’s Immigration and Customs Enforcement bureau last week. In Greeley, for example, union president Ernie Duran told the Associated Press on Wednesday that of 75 new workers hired, 30 were Caucasians, 15 were Somali immigrants, seven were Hispanic immigrants and the rest were U.S.-born Hispanics. However, Hispanic immigrants have continued to seek employment at the plant, Duran said. Almost 90 percent of the Greeley plant workforce was made up of Hispanics prior to the raids, Duran added, though he didn’t know how many were immigrants and how many were U.S.-born....
It’s The Pitts: Not A Friend In The World I was sitting in an airport terminal waiting for someone who was three hours late so I had time to read portions of the newspaper I usually never get around to. Like the front page. And the big news of the day? It seems that Americans don’t have near as many friends as they used to. We are turning into a nation of total strangers. The General Social Survey found that between 1985 and 2004 the average American went from three good friends down to two. Probably as a result of death, divorce or not returning a borrowed tool. One of every four Americans have absolutely no one to talk to. Not a shrink, spouse or relative. Some people have all the luck! It seems this country is turning into a nation of lonely hearts of bachelors, widows and old maids with no one to confide in. According to the study, people are meeting their new “friends” on the Internet and while that may be true I think I know the real reason that your average American can lose friends even faster than I can. Simply put, this nation of isolationists is going to the dogs. And cats, and birds, and horses. People are substituting their pets for the more traditional friends. Speaking as someone who has a lot of experience in this area, I must say that I see nothing wrong with this trend. In fact, I think it’s healthy....