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Show Citizens for a Responsible Central Utah Project 727 6th Avenue, Salt Lake City, Utah, 84103 Board of Directors Dorothy Harvey, co-chairperson Fred Reimherr, co-chairperson Beth Duncan David Freed Karl Heidenreich Peter Hovingh David Littlefield Dave McCormick Barbara Polich lames Talley Hartt Wixom Supporting Organizations 1445 N. 10 St. Manitowoc, Wisconsin 54220 March 11, 1979 Vern Hamre Director, Region IV U.S.Forest Service Federal Bldg. 324 25th St. Ogden, Utah, 84401 Dear Vern: I appreciate wyour writing me. The opinions you •utahcounc.i.Troutunhm.ted s t a t e about Jeff Sirmon are supported by similar statements •Rocky Moumian council of the t o l d me by Jim Kimbal. I will accept them. Federation of Fly Fishermen • Utah Member Clubs of the Federation of Fly Fishermen •Stonefly Society of the Wastach Salt Lake City, Utah •Order of the Royal Coachman Pleasant Grove Utah • Utah Audubon In 1975 the Forest Service, itself, was under severe judgment by many people concerned about wildlife in southeast Idaho. It was felt then, as I feel now, that this Agency does not marshall the full legal or jurisdictional forces available on behalf of wildlife and aquatic environments. I was informed by many knowledgeable people in Idaho of management practices which are wholly unacceptable if terrestrial and aquatic wildlife habitat is to be protected. With or without the more recent environmental legislation, viable staff recommendations which would override impacts of logging and phosphate mining were overruled or ignored. To be honest, I really don't understand that I would know about these and you wouldn't. I don't know whether the problem is in the power of the Forest Supervisors or elsewhere; whether they don't get out on the land and see what I see. I can go to some existing dozen presently or past employed Foresters who worked in Nevada, Idaho or Utah National Forests whose recommendations were right but who were overruled or penalized for promulgating them. Is the problem in the line of command? Is the problem one of the Forest Service dealing with commodities rather than with the actual land area or situation on which these are produced? From making land and resource use decisions from aerial photos? From allowing road planning to continue on the basis of having a road construction staff hold-over from an earlier need to tackle an insect infestation? In the issue of what happened to China Meadows - all the preliminary planning was laid out to protect the area and the breakdown came when the Bureau of Reclamation hauled the rip-rap for the new location of the Dam unsupervised, although the decision on the purpose of the road used was and still is faulty. When environmentalists fight hard to protect an area, such as China Meadows, they can help but be angered at later disregard of these values. Vern, I have the greatest admiration for the knowledge and |
