[MCN] Dear Senator Daines (Part III)

[Derek Goldman]

Re, the lynx decision. Ten years ago, I worked on behalf of the Endangered Species Coalition to bring media attention to how a Pres. Bush apppointee, Julie MacDonald, then Dep. Asst. Sec at Interior, meddled with her own agency scientists findings and gutted the rule to protect important lynx habitat by more than 90 percent. She did this ON BEHALF of the timber industry and other industry voices that all too frequently had their interests very well represented (to put it mildly) within a Bush Administration that was eager to do its bidding. So, when Julia Altemus (MT Wood Products Assoc.) , Sen. Daines, and other extractive industry voices criticize this court decision, its important to point out that had they not undermined conservation and science via their allies in the Bush administration, they would not be in situation today of now having to wait while the US Forest Service revises lynx content in all these forest plans that were based on a faulty rule-- a rule they lobbied for. What the timber industry and Sen. Daines are complaining about is akin to a getting caught cheating on a test, and then demanding that your scores should count anyway. Sadly, who "got cheated" is our native Montana wildlife and important habitat. Rob Chaney wrote a good summary of this issue<http://missoulian.com/news/local/lynx-rule-becomes-law-of-land-but-will-the-law/article_1069fa73-5147-5091-8fe5-f1d83ff07d61.html> last week in the Missoulian.

Thanks for your work, John. -Derek

________________________________
From: Missoula-Community-News <missoula-community-news-bounces at bigskynet.org> on behalf of John Meyer via Missoula-Community-News <missoula-community-news at bigskynet.org>
Sent: Thursday, October 20, 2016 10:14 AM
To: steve at daines.senate.gov; bozone-orgs at npogroups.org; liz_dellwo at daines.senate.gov; missoula-community-news at bigskynet.org
Subject: [MCN] Dear Senator Daines (Part III)

Dear Senator Daines,

As you know, last night was community conservation night in Bozeman (Green Drinks). Many constituents were disappointed that you or your staffers were not able to attend a major event in your home town.

In particular, several members of the public asked why you are still working to fund the U.S. Sheep Experiment Station even though commissioners for MT Fish, Wildlife and Parks, USDA Secretary Vilsack, and the Interagency grizzly bear study team have all asked that sheep not be grazed in the Centennial Mountains. The lead scientist at the Sheep Station has said that eliminating grazing in the Centennial Mountains is "not that big of a deal."

If sheep were not grazed, over 16,000 acres of federal land could be opened to the public, which is now closed to hunters and all other recreationists.

Other members of the public asked why you called Cottonwood's recent win for Canada lynx "disastrous<http://missoulian.com/news/local/lynx-rule-becomes-law-of-land-but-will-the-law/article_1069fa73-5147-5091-8fe5-f1d83ff07d61.html>" and why it would "delay much needed restorative management work."

I worked to quell people's fears by telling them that Cottonwood has initiated discussions with MT FWP to develop a "collaborative" and "restorative" timber sale with the Forest Service that would allow bighorn sheep to be reintroduced to Bighorn Mountain in the Gravelly Mountains. I told the Green Drinkers that reintroducing bighorn sheep would increase hunting opportunities where none currently exist.

Before the community event, I discussed the collaborative logging project with one group that is regularly referred to as a serial litigator. They said they would not litigate the timber sale if the wood stayed in Montana and was sold as a finished product in Montana.

Senator Daines, should wood that is grown in Montana stay in Montana? Should it be sold as a finished product in Montana communities? Do you think we can get Montana voters to support the idea?

Loggers, hunters, bighorn sheep and lynx all look forward to hearing from you,










--

[https://docs.google.com/uc?export=download&id=0B8BXBsjEi27fWVlIbS11X2tocDg&revid=0B8BXBsjEi27fdHhkVDFwZHk5Q1JuRE1tWEE0QWl6d3FSNWRzPQ]<http://www.cottonwoodlaw.org>

John Meyer
Executive Director & General Counsel
Cottonwood Environmental Law Center
P.O. Box 412 Bozeman, MT 59771
John at Cottonwoodlaw.org
(406) 546-0149

The information contained herein is privileged and confidential. If you are not the intended recipient, you must delete this email and inform the sender of the error.

www.cottonwoodlaw.org<http://www.cottonwoodlaw.org>




-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://bigskynet.org/pipermail/missoula-community-news_bigskynet.org/attachments/20161020/b4e0875b/attachment-0003.html>