A new BLM plan will guide management of more than 1 million acres of public land in western Colorado for the next 20 years.

By Summit Voice

SUMMIT COUNTY — The Bureau of Land Management is one step closer to finalizing a new management plan for more than 1 million acres of public land in western Colorado.

The draft resource management plan covers public land primarily in Mesa and Garfield counties, with small amounts in Montrose and Rio Blanco counties. All the documents relating to the draft plan, as well as public comment information, are online at this BLM website.

Under the formal federal environmental review process, the agency’s draft version evaluates and discloses the environmental impacts of several alternatives. The BLM’s preferred alternative is touted as balancing resource protection with other uses, including energy development.

Here’s the agency’s description of the preferred alternative:

“Alternative B seeks to balance resources among competing human interests, land uses, and the conservation of natural and cultural resource values, while sustaining the ecological integrity of certain key habitats for plant, wildlife, and fish species. It incorporates a balanced level of protection, restoration, enhancement, and use of resources and services to meet ongoing programs and land uses. Goals and objectives focus on environmental, economic, and social outcomes achieved by strategically addressing demands across the landscape.”

The BLM also crafted an option focused more on environmental sustainability:

“Alternative C emphasizes non-consumptive use and management of resources through protection, restoration, and enhancement, while also providing for multiple uses, including livestock grazing and mineral development. This alternative would establish the greatest number of special designation areas, with specific measures to protect or enhance resource values within these areas. Goals and objectives focus on environmental and social outcomes achieved by sustaining relatively unmodified physical landscapes and natural and cultural resource values for current and future generations.”

The final plan could end up being a combination of the various alternatives, depending on public comments received from the public and other stakeholders.

“We’ve worked hard with our partners to craft a wide range of alternatives for public review and comment,” said Katie Stevens, acting field manager for the Grand Junction Field Office. “We only revise these plans about every two decades, so this is a really important opportunity to make your voice heard about how public lands are managed in the Grand Junction Field Office.”

BLM will host three public open houses to provide the public an opportunity to learn to navigate the document, ask questions, and provide written comment on the Draft. The public can stop by anytime between 4:30-7:30 p.m. at the following locations:

·         Jan. 29; Collbran Auditorium, 102 Main St., Collbran

·         Jan. 30; DeBeque Community Center, 381 Minter Ave., DeBeque

·         Jan. 31; Clarion Inn, 755 Horizon Dr., Grand Junction

·         Feb. 5; Gateway Community Center, 42700 Hwy 141, Gateway

·         Feb. 7; Fruita Civic Center, 325 Aspen Ave, Fruita

For additional information including how to provide comments or view a copy of the Draft RMP, visit http://www.blm.gov/co/st/en/fo/gjfo/rmp.html.

The formal 90-day public comment period will begin when the Notice of Availability publishes in the Federal Register, which is currently scheduled for Jan. 25, 2013. Hard copies and CDs will be available after this date as well. The comment period will close on April 25, 2013.

“We welcome all thoughts and comments, but specific comments that go beyond simply stating a preference or position will be particularly useful in helping us refine this Draft into a Proposed RMP,” Stevens said.  “Tell us what you think of specific aspects of the alternatives – and why.”

Before including address, phone number, e-mail address, or any other personal identifying information in your comments, be advised that your entire comment, including personal identifying information, may be made publicly available at any time. While individuals may request BLM to withhold personal identifying information from public view, the BLM cannot guarantee it will be able to do so.

2011-

September rolled around quickly during 2011, and I found myself unable to get out and hunt for the first two weeks of our four week season here in Oregon. Finally by midway through the third week I was headed out the door early in the morning, and I was loaded up with better than a weeks worth of backcountry supplies and I was headed into a brand new area. The first night was slow, but I rolled out my bivy sack and hit it hard first thing again in the morning, remaining optimistic for the week ahead.

The next morning I found myself working around a rocky ridge above a great basin, in some wet and nasty weather. Creeping through the rocks, I called intermittently and glassed heavily. As I rounded a corner in the rock, I heard hooves moving in a patch of timber just above me. I dropped down and sipped and arrow on the string and back against my face. As I waited I could see elk-colored bodies coming my way through my sight. The herd bull slipped out into the open first at a mere 25 yards. He froze up with his shoulder behind a massive pine tree, and locked in on the spot where they had heard me working along the ridge. After a long stare down, he wheeled around and took off in an instant leaving me no shot. I watched as they blew out of the basin and downhill several thousand feet into heavier timber. The bull was a heavy, dark horned bull, but i figured my chances were slim in getting back on him, and being in a new area I wanted to keep getting a feel for some other pockets that might hold elk herds.

The next two days I played with another herd with a very solid 330+ inch bull, which I called well within bow range twice all while he managed to elude my shooting lanes. I spent the rest of the week working this herd of elk, but in the end they gave me the slip and I never notched a tag.

2012-

Septmeber 2012 came around in good timing, with weather that was hot and dry. However, this time I was headed out on opening day for a week long hunt. Opening morning I found myself working into a drainage 12 miles deep from the truck in hopes of locating some big bucks. I managed to find a decent 5×6 bull the first night which I called in after what ended up being a 2-hour, full-blown, screaming match. The next day I found myself working a nice basin, but at around 11 am, the entire drainage I was in filled with smoke from a close wildfire. I ended up moving out back to the truck to play it safe, and I relocated to the spot which I had hunted for a week in 2011.

Once again my first day was slow, well at least in terms of the elk. A couple of great bucks turned up well above the tree line, but in a spot with poor approaches on all sides. Walking away from these two was tough, but it seemed like the best call at the time. By now it was mid week and things were getting closer to the homebound end of the trip. I returned to the basin which I had hunted for most of my time in 2011, and sure enough, like clockwork the same old bull showed himself. Just as if he never missed a day in the year long absence, he pushed his cows out of their usual bedding spot and headed into the high country benches for feed.

That night was one of the most exciting nights of elk bowhunting I have had to date. Having so much history with this bull, I circled above the herd and dropped into place. The elk did their part and before I knew it there were cows well under 20 yards on both sides of me in the patches of alpine fir. The next 45 minutes or so I was held up in my one spot, waiting for an opportunity, however the bull hung up just far enough back that he never caught up to me enough before dark settled in.

The next day I reluctantly packed up and headed home. I wanted to give the elk some time after bumping them the night before while trying to get out of the middle of the herd as dark set in. I knew I would be back in just over a week, so I let them have some space, knowing few people if anyone knew where this bull was deep within the wilderness.

10 days later I was back at my trailhead, I was loaded up, this time with enough supplies for 12 days. I started my several hour trek that would put me most of the way into elk country before dark, allowing me to close the rest of the distance before light the next morning. About 2.5 hours into my hike at around 5:30 PM, something changed my plans.

Moving up the mouth of the drainage, I heard a small, squeaky bugle. At first I thought, “Hunter.” I was sure at first that it wasn’t really an elk, but I thought I would throw out a short locator bugle to make sure. The ensuing response had me ducking for cover, as a bellowing, heavily grunted bugle echoed out the timber not more than 300 yards below me. I immediately ducked back and started to glass. Cows started to emerge along the edges of the timber, but I could not see the bull. Meanwhile the satellite bull that had squeakily bugled to get this whole thing started piped off again.

I thought this might be the same bull that I laid eyes on my first morning of my 2011 hunt at a mere 25 yards. I backtracked and worked my way to a strip of timber that dropped into the larger piece the elk were working. Moving along the edge of the timber, I slowly worked my way down along the creek flowing in the bottom. Things were starting to get heated between me and the bull, but I still hadn’t seen him. Finally, I caught the back half of the bull on the other side of the creek slightly upstream from me. He was pushing away so I knew I needed to do something to turn him.

I found a spot out in front of where I had last seen him that look as if the elk had used to cross the creek in the past. Getting directly across from the bull, I let him have it. Everything I could muster up from grunts to chuckles and whatever else were present, as I attempted to call him every nasty name in the elk-language book. It worked.

No response elicited itself, but almost immediately I could hear him come crashing across the creek, closing the 75 or so yards of brush that had been between us. I hit my rangefinder on two or three spots, eased back my bow to my sweet spot, and waited. Another 15 seconds or so and I could see tines emerging from below me. As he came out into the open, I knew immediately which bull he was, and I knew he was the same bull that had eluded me a year earlier when I stepped into this area for the first time.

The bull put his head down and pulled some grass into his mouth as he paused behind a small sapling I had ranged at 37 yards. I started to get jumpy for a second as he stood covered by the last tree for thirty yards, but then I caught myself. I pulled my focus back in on my peep and sight guard, settled the 40 yard pin into the pocket and waited for that last step. Then I squeezed.

The arrow cut through fast enough that I never did find it, but as he turned to run blood was already hitting the ground before his back legs could even push off. I backed out and let him sit for 35 minutes. On the return to the location of the shot however, I spotted the bull not 40 yards from where he had been hit. He was out cold. The change in angle was just enough as I approached that I could see the bull laying on the ground where I could not see him as I backed out.

Archery Elk 2012

I spent until 11:30 that night breaking him down, and then climbed into my bivy. I was too exhausted to eat dinner so I saved that for the morning. The next two days were long, as any elk packout would be if you were doing it solo. Thursday evening found me exhausted, but with all smiles after the marathon of just over 48 hours of work. In the end I was headed home with a great bull, and I had settled the score with a bull that previously bested me.

2012 Archery Elk

Click the small map to view the map in PDF format. The blue Squares are the SITLA land sections.

Oil and gas drilling leases are proposed for BLM lands near the Dinosaur National Monument visitor center. Photo courtesy NPS.

By Summit Voice

SUMMIT COUNTY — Obama administration officials claim that they want to tackle global warming, but at the same time, they continue to push ahead with new fossil fuel development projects, including several proposed lease sales in Colorado totaling about 115,000 acres.

The oil and gas drilling lease sales include lands bordering Dinosaur National Monument, as well as in the North Fork Valley, near Paonia, and conservation activists are not happy about the new trend of leasing in areas valued for recreation and agricultural uses.

“Helen Hankins has forgotten the purpose of her office,” said Ellynne Bannon, Checks and Balances Project spokesperson. “She continually puts oil and gas company interests ahead of the public she represents. Hankins’ leasing plan will leave the North Fork communities and businesses impacted by these leases out in the cold. ”

“And, where is this new trend of oil and gas companies setting up next to national parks and monuments coming from? National parks create 258,000 jobs across the country and contribute $31 billion to local economies,” Bannon said. “Director Hankins can’t continue sacrificing the livelihood of Americans who don’t happen to work for oil and gas companies. Dinosaur offers visitors rafting, hiking, bicycling and fishing opportunities. Those activities are job-creators and generate real money for the region.”

Monday, December 17 is the final day for public protests on the BLM’s proposed new Colorado lease sales. The February lease sale includes more than 20,000 acres in the North Fork Valley, and three leases that border Dinosaur National Monument.

Hankins’ decision to move forward with the North Fork leases, despite an earlier delay due to extensive public concern, is the latest example of what conservationists say is a skewed and unbalanced approach to public land use. And, the leases near Dinosaur are the latest in a disturbing pattern of approvals for oil and gas drilling near America’s national parks and monuments.

The North Fork leases were originally scheduled for sale this past August, but BLM deferred the sale after receiving 3,000 public comments on its plan, the majority of which opposed the drilling. In November, the BLM announced it will move forward with the lease sale, despite continued strong opposition from residents and business owners in the region.

“Colorado BLM Director Helen Hankins refuses to consider the North Fork’s economy as it exists today,” said Brent Helleckson, owner of Stone Cottage Cellars. “Instead of taking a balanced approach, the Colorado BLM continues to rely on a 25-year-old plan for the area that fails to provide any community-wide planning or consider the robust winery, agricultural, and tourism businesses the North Fork has today.

“Wineries bring millions of dollars into the North Fork Valley every year. Any public land decisions here, including decisions to lease lands for oil and gas drilling, must address effects on the wineries, farms and other businesses that call North Fork home,” Helleckson said.

The state of Michigan owns 4.6 million acres, a treasure trove of forests, parks and open spaces that supports the economy and provides a bountiful outdoor playground. In a special message on energy and the environment this past week, the Republican governor said there’s much to appreciate about the extensive public holdings. But they’ve been acquired in piecemeal fashion with too little consideration about what to do with them, he said.

“We’ve protected a beautiful place here, or a particular river or lake there, but we’ve never stepped back and tried to think holistically about what we do own, what we should own, where – and most of all, why,” he said.

Michigan needs what the land provides – tourism and logging jobs, minerals that heat homes and build cars, quiet places to spend vacations and habitat for wildlife, Snyder said. What’s lacking, he said, is a coherent plan for achieving goals such as environmental protection and economic development that sometimes appear to conflict.

The Department of Natural Resources hopes to develop a public lands management strategy by this spring, Director Keith Creagh said. Groups as diverse as the Sierra Club and the Michigan Forest Products Council, which represents pulp mills and industrial land owners, will be watching closely. Few would disagree with the need for a smarter approach, but opinions differ on what that means.

One flash point might be Snyder’s proposal to “rebalance our land portfolio” by purchasing some properties and selling off others. Most of the state’s forest acres were once failed farm plots that government seized when private owners failed to pay taxes. Because they weren’t purchased to achieve environmental or economic goals, it may not make sense to keep all of them, he said.

Meanwhile, Michigan’s extensive networks of public trails could be even better if the state could acquire land to fill gaps and link different pathways, Snyder said. If about 200 miles were added to the system in the right places, hikers and bikers could follow a continuous course from Detroit’s Belle Isle to the western Upper Peninsula and the Wisconsin state line.

Such an approach is nothing new for nonprofit groups that buy or sell land for particular purposes, said Rich Bowman, government relations director for the Michigan chapter of The Nature Conservancy, on whose board Snyder previously served.

“But there are some folks who believe the state can never own too much and should just buy everything it can,” he said. “On the other side, there are people with an ideological objection to government ownership of land who will resist any proposals to acquire more.”

Legislation enacted this year would appear to rule out large-scale purchases for now. Sponsored by Sen. Tom Casperson, an Escanaba Republican, the measure limited the amount of land the state can own to 4,626,000 acres until the Legislature approves a management plan. That’s only about 20,000 acres above the current total, although the law allows exceptions for parcels that would meet needs such as conservation easements and trail connections.

Opposition to state land ownership sometimes comes from local governments, particularly in rural areas where it erodes the property tax base. The Upper Peninsula and northern Lower Peninsula together have four national forests and wide stretches of state forests, all of which are exempt from local taxation.

The federal and state governments are supposed to make offsetting payments to their local counterparts. But cash-strapped Michigan has sent less than it owed in recent years. Pending legislation would recalculate the state’s obligations and require them to be met in full. That’s only fair, said Ben Bodkin, legislative affairs director for the Michigan Association of Counties.

“I love to go and recreate up north, and I have a responsibility to pay for it so the county can send the sheriff or an ambulance if I need it,” he said.

Only about 30 percent of the land in Luce County in the eastern Upper Peninsula is subject to local taxation and being shortchanged by the state makes matters worse, county treasurer Debbie Johnson said.

“If a private landowner decided they didn’t want to pay their full tax bill they’d lose their land, but the state doesn’t,” she said. “If they can’t, maybe they should sell a little of their land.”

Creagh said the Snyder administration supports the repayment legislation and is taking other steps to mend fences with counties and townships, including a promise not to fund projects through a trust fund for land purchases and improvements without local government support.

“We’re going to be sure we’re good neighbors,” Creagh said.

© Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

After putting out one trail camera in a heavily used deer crossing I found out that several bucks have been frequenting my potential opening morning hunting spot.  Catching several legal bucks coming to their feeding area to their bedding area, I know exactly where I will be putting my tree stand.

Purchasing the stand and putting the contraption together was a different battle, as there were no real directions only a diagram and a picture to follow.

Another legal buck coming through the area.  This guy is on the harvest list…

Putting together this contraption called a two man tree stand.

Hanging the tree stand at the selected tree based on the trail camera scouting report.

Stay tuned for part three of the annual Pennsylvania whitetail hunting adventure.  Opening day starts the 26th of November and it should be a blast!

Remember the glorious burning bush on the outskirts of my neighbors’ lawn? On October 21, it looked like this:

The leaves have since given way to small red-orange berries. The color burns more brightly now that most of the green is gone.

Trail of brown leaves with fuzzy butt

“All the leaves are brown / and the sky is gray . . .” Well, not quite all the leaves. Yellow glows in the November woods. I’m not “California Dreamin’” either. I like it right where I am.

Remember the winged sumac, October’s deep magenta-red? The huge stand of it across Old County Road from Pine Hill (left) has gone incognito. Sorry, no photos of it at its peak — but it really was this red:

Gray and white and red all over, Oct. 21

Here’s what the roadside edge of the Nat’s Farm field looked like in late October:

This morning it was more subdued:

Trav and I got caught in two downpours on our walk this morning. The first was brief, the second not so. Was I wearing raingear? I was not. We took shelter in the little entryway of an unoccupied summer house, with this holly bush for company. That’s not tinsel on the left, by the way. It’s rain sluicing off the roof.

We were both pretty wet when we got home. Trav shook most of the water off. I hung my clothes up to dry.

Image Courtesy of http://www.stickbow.com/stickbow/history/ArtYoung.html

Check these links out if your interested.

Thanks Gunner for your insightful article and congratulations for filling your freezer and busting the dry spell.

-Austin

The Classic Alaskan Caribou Hunt 2012

It has been a hard hunting season for me.  We spent much of the spring preparing our cabin for moose season after not being up there for a couple of years, so the little bear hunting that we did was not successful.  An extremely wet and windy moose season prevented us from flying into our cabin, so much of our moose season was lost waiting for the weather to clear, and the rest of the season simply didn’t produce.  A late goat hunt provided a good excuse to get out for the weekend and walk through a mass of thick alder and 6” of snow falling on us in 2 hours, forcing us to fly back home to prevent getting snowed in, again with no meat to fill up the freezer.  Luckily, I managed to be drawn for a bull caribou permit.  This hunt really wasn’t shaping up either.  During an attempted moose hunt in an area where I could have taken my caribou, I put my boat into the water, and though it started, it was only running on 2 cylinders and was unable to take us to where we needed to go to hunt.  So far, the hunting season, though providing good stories and great times with family and friends, was just not filling my freezer.

When my caribou season opened back up, my grandfather, father, and I were there for opening day.  This was a Sunday, and due to the area in Alaska that we were hunting, was a road hunt, and there were a lot of people there.  We saw about 20 caribou that day, and saw many successful hunters, but just couldn’t pull our team together to score an animal.  Upon my return home, I was becoming frustrated.  I enjoy being in the outdoors, especially with my family and friends, but it was disappointing to return home and have to admit to others and myself, again, that I had not been successful.  I was fed up.  I asked a couple of friends if they could free up a Friday to come hunting with me, but to no avail, people had to work, or had relatives in town.  Monday night, during an intense bowling session, I asked my friend Sean, who had just gotten out of the Navy and was excited to enjoy Alaska again, if he wanted to go hunting that Friday.  He said he couldn’t, but that his Wednesday was wide open.  That sealed the deal.  We were to leave Wednesday morning at 3:00 am so we would arrive at our hunting grounds when the light broke.  We were too excited though, by the time Tuesday afternoon rolled around, we decided to drive up to our spot that night.

This was an exciting hunt for me for a few reasons.  I had purchased a new (to me) car last January, and I thought this would be a good time to test its fitness as a hunting vehicle.   Almost all of my hunting has been done with my father and grandfather, and I have learned an enormous amount from them, but I am always eager to try new or different modes of hunting from my normal tree stand or sit-and-wait style hunts.  Also, though I had known Sean for about 10 years, we had never been very close, so it was exciting, and a little scary, to go hunt with someone new.  Not only did I want to fill my freezer with some delicious caribou meat, but I wanted to show Sean a successful hunting experience, and I wanted everything to go (relatively) smoothly, not only for Sean, but for myself as well.

We arrived at our spot late Tuesday night in the dark, and parked my station wagon in a parking lot, pulled out our sleeping bags, laid the seats flat, and slept comfortably in the back of my car, doing an excellent job of sheltering us from the 10 degree weather and 20mph wind (though bathroom breaks weren’t that much fun.)  When the sun came up, we packed up our bags, readied our guns and other gear, and drove and drove, looking for signs of the elusive caribou.  It was a gorgeous day out, the weather not having changed from the night before, but the sky was sunny and cloud-free.  After a 45 minute drive in one direction, stopping a few times to glass a suspicious hump, we turned around and decided to head back over the area we had already looked at.  Within 5 minutes we saw a herd of about 40 caribou laying down about a mile off of the road.  Not wanting to be denied my animal, I turned to Sean and told him I thought we should go after them.  In no time we had our gear on and our guns ready.  The hiking in this area was easy, 50 foot hills here and there and low brush with game trails running in every direction.  It wasn’t long before we came upon our herd of caribou browsing at the end of a large lake.  We pulled up our binoculars and rangefinders and saw one set of very nice antlers in the herd.  I should take this time to explain that I have never been a horn hunter.  My primary goal is to fill my freezer with the meat that nature provides me, but if I have the choice, I will not turn a nice set of antlers down.  After a short stalk towards the animals, they began to notice us, and slowly move away, so Sean and I positioned ourselves for a nice, open 250 yard flat shot.  Once our bull was clear of the rest of the heard, he had succumbed to our gunfire.  We walked over to him, and decided to drag him along a frozen creek towards the road as far as we could, then get our pack frames and get him home.  Due to an unfortunate bend in the road, the end of the creek where we had drug the animal, was just over a mile and half from our car.  This meant a hefty up and down pack-out, and a wet foot for Sean when he wanted to use his boot to measure the depth of a stream (the boot wasn’t tall enough, we’ll have to return with more sophisticated instruments.)

After a long day of packing we had the caribou in my car, with the head strapped on top for the ride home.  We got thumbs-ups from the few hunters that we saw on our way out, and were happy to be heading home successful.  My car made the perfect two man hunting vehicle.  I found an excellent new hunting buddy in Sean: hard worker, no complaints, comes prepared.  And I filled my freezer.  I have done this hunt five times now, and until this hunt, none of my pack-outs were more than 300 yards.  This was further, but the meat was well earned, and that makes it taste that much better.  We had a fun, difficult, quick hunt, and ended the dry streak that had hit my 2012 hunting season.  Here’s to the next one!

-Gunner

I was mildly anticipating the arrival, telling Catherine we could climb the rock bluffs, where the view is grand and simply spectacular in autumn with the colorful foliage.  The leaves had long since fallen, but the view would still be worth the climb.

Approaching the area, I commented on the changes, and suddenly we noticed a yellow cable stretched across the surface of the gravel road and a truck with an Ontario license plate parked on the shoulder.  The cable was similar to the ones we’d seen near Kennecott’s project on the Yellow Dog Plains.  Exploration!!  My heart sank.

Arriving at the campgrounds, we immediately parked at the dam.  The water of the East Branch of the Ontonagon River was backed up, which was customary.  Periodically the water is released and the river is left to flow unencumbered for a number of years and then restricted again.  The roar of the water over the headwall was very loud.

The sight brought back good memories. Admiring the structure with the iced-up walkway, I explained where the natural channel lay and remembered how the beaver used to swim close to our canoe and slap their tails while my dad and I were fishing at night.  It almost seemed like a game to the beaver.

We returned to my truck and I drove into the campground to point out my favorite places to camp, and found equipment connected to two yellow cables.  A generator was supplying energy to the cables.  Data was being collected and stored.

Trying to make the best of the excursion, we left the campground and headed for the bluff.  As we approached the base of the bluff we noticed the cable extending up the face.   We climbed, following the cable.  Reaching the top, it continued on up the grade and we walked to another area to see the view.  My mind was not on the beauty of the landscape but on exploration. Backtracking, we picked up the path of the cable again.  It encircled the entire bluff.

We ventured to another outcropping.  To my displeasure there were other signs of human activity.  A 4-wheeler trail had made its way to the top of the bluff.  A very well used trail.  Trees were chain-sawed down.  It appeared a rather weathered bench had been removed from a different historical site and placed on the top of the bluff.  I can only assume the trees were hacked down to enhance the view.  I was totally disgusted because the beauty of the place I had visited 20 years ago was so drastically changed.  I think it would have been a good idea if this overlook had been constructed by the National Forest Service so people that did not have the ability to climb would have access, but I do not believe this was the case.  There was no care or consideration for the trees that were cut.

Catherine noticed an Eagle feather on the ground.  Tobacco was laid and I asked if she wanted  to keep the feather.  I passed it to Catherine, who asked that it be put back in place to protect the area.  I am glad for her request.  In my state of anger and frustration I was not thinking clearly.

I didn’t speak much except for occasional swearing and spouting off my disgust.  During the descent, I thought of how the Native Americans might have felt about the land they called home being confiscated by the government and exploited.  I also realized that my feelings could not possibly compare to what the Native Americans endured.  Murder of men, women and children, starvation, restriction, their culture and way of life being suppressed.  I was ashamed, and actually there is a part of me that hesitates to write this because I could never truly understand.

But I have experienced the way the government doesn’t listen, because of the greed fueling the new mining frenzy across the upper Great Lakes Basin.  Politicians are drooling and stumbling over themselves, promoting jobs regardless of irreparable destruction. Regulations are being bypassed and laws are being broken because of this greed. This so-called government for the people is taking away the inherent right of the people to have clean water.  The inherent right to have clean water is being stripped from all life.

Is this the future?  It does not have to be.

Richard Sloat
Iron River, MI

The location is South 67 degrees East – 5 3/4 miles of Kenton, T47N R36W, Section 23, Longitude 88 degrees 46 minutes 57 seconds, Latitude 46 degrees 27 minutes 12 seconds.

11-14-12 Update:

The Ranger from the Kenton District returned my phone call several days after I inquired about the exploration at Lower Dam.

The Forest Service does not own the mineral rights; consequently, according to the Ranger, they are treated like any other citizen when it comes to mineral rights owners exercising their rights to explore for minerals. Trans Superior is exploring for the mineral rights owner.  I was not told who the actual owners are.

It was explained to me if the time ever came a mine was being considered the Michigan DEQ would be overseeing the process.  I assured the Ranger that that was not in the best interest for the environment. The Ranger did say though the Forest Service has worked closely with the DEQ in the past and it seems the DEQ does consider the Forest Service’s comments relevant in reference to wetlands, endangered species etc.

The FS has known for some time about the 4 wheeler trail, cut trees and bench at the outcropping at Lower Dam.  Now that there has been public concern voiced the FS is in the process of deciding what to do.