Commissioner Bob Main who said last summer that the county needs to cut a deal with the Coquille Tribe to manage the Coos Bay Wagon Roads “right now”. Believing that management of the CBWR lands would never pass to the county, the board of commissioners passed a resolution in 2008 to support the Coquille Tribe in its efforts to take over management from the BLM and share 50% of proceeds with Coos County. Last summer the tribal attorney stated during a presentation to the commission that there was no precedent for federal lands to be transferred to a county. Now that a bill is being floated by DeFazio that does in fact give management over to the county, Main is now concerned with whether the public wants to co-manage the lands with the tribe. On Tuesday’s BOC agenda is an item submitted by Main to, “discuss putting an advisory vote on the ballot, asking if the county should partner with the Coquille Tribe on any timberlands”.
Cam Parry, who has lobbied on behalf of the tribe at Coos County taxpayer expense, tells The World newspaper the county should still co-manage with the tribe.
Under the draft bill’s current language, management of the lands would be transferred wholly to Coos County, with no mention of the Coquille Indian Tribe.
Parry said, despite this omission, he expected the tribe would still be an essential partner because the county would need money to begin harvesting.
The bill stipulates that by the third year, Coos County will need to make eight annual payments of $400,000. Coos also has to share timber revenue on Wagon Road lands that are in Douglas County.
‘The county is going to have to come up with an awful lot of money we don’t have, and that’s where a management partner would be absolutely critical and invaluable,” Parry said.
Payments on the 59,000 acres would not begin for three years and the county will have approximately $11 million in its forest reserve by fiscal year end. Parry’s claim the county needs the tribe may be highly exaggerated as are his claims the tribe has proven itself capable of making money under the Northwest Forest Plan “again and again”. While the BLM has cut 150% of its ASQ for the past three years while maintaining all compliance with the endangered species act, the tribe has publicly claimed it will not comply with the ESA.
The county, it would appear, can use its own forester to manage the lands, even under the NWFP.
Whoa! Is Fred Messerle capable of making a decision? From day one he wanted to manage by committee. Has he heard the saying lead, follow, or get out of the way. He is doing none of the above. This subject has been dicussed plenty. You serve the people Mr. Messerle; we do’nt serve you. Does Mr. Messerle fear the people who own this county that much? Does he consider us to be dummies? Perhaps the advisory vote should include a rapid route for Mr. Messerle to return to the farm full time.
Is Fred Messerle capable of making a decision? From day one he wanted to manage by committee. Has he heard the saying lead, follow, or get out of the way. He is doing none of the above. This subject has been dicussed plenty. You serve the people Mr. Messerle; we do’nt serve you. Does Mr. Messerle fear the people who own this county that much? Does he consider us to be dummies? Perhaps the advisory vote should include a rapid route for Mr. Messerle to return to the farm full time.
These clowns we have in office are painting doom and gloom for Oregon Counties if some sort of bailout doesn’t come to fruit from the federal government. Some are so desperate; they have accepted this philosophy and are willing to turn over our public lands to our local tribe at a discount to the population as a whole. I’ve seen this in the past and when it comes down to the wire, things change. It all boils down to our elected officials, state and local and how they argue our case and what we are willing to accept. Remember, SRS effects not only Oregon, but other states, so we’re not in this alone. My prediction is in the last minutes as in the past, some form of funding will be enacted to delay this until a more sustainable funding source is put in place. I could be wrong, but history shows differently.
I wonder what the headline in The World will be today.
Hellium running low for our balloons?
Or high school swimming.
Hum…….or perhaps they found a dead body, but it wasn’t the dead body they were looking for. End of story.