Washington truckers watch as California moves to ban diesel trucks, Capital Press 9/30/22. "The California board on Aug. 25 unanimously voted to ban new gas- and diesel-powered vehicles that weigh less than 8,500 pounds beginning with 2035 models. Less than a week later, the board’s staff released a report justifying banning all trucks and vans over 8,500 pounds..."

Losing a huge opportunity for the Klamath Watershed by Siskiyou, Klamath and Modoc County Commissioners, Capital Press 9/29/22. "...We have seen decades of random acts of restoration in our watershed already. Tens of thousands of acres of agricultural land have been taken out of production. Projects have been built and then abandoned. Dikes that once protected productive farmland have been blown up to flood that farmland and create habitat for endangered species. That project — like others that have been tried over the past 20 years — has, by all accounts, failed miserably..."

Water shutoff leaves Klamath farmers scrambling to save crops, Capital Press 9/16/22. "...farmers say Reclamation kept changing the end-of-season water elevation needed for suckers in Upper Klamath Lake....Normally, the “absolute minimum” elevation is set at 4,138 feet above sea level. Reclamation added a buffer of 4,138.15 feet above sea level, which it later increased to 4,138.62 feet...Paul Simmons, executive director of the Klamath Water Users Association, said the changes were “far above any level ever claimed to be necessary for endangered sucker species,” while cutting off access to another 45,000 acre-feet of water for irrigation..."

Ruling invalidates Klamath irrigators' injunction, H&N 9/9/22. “Any number of tribal and non-tribal parties can sue the government to take water away from irrigators, but irrigators can’t sue to protect their own interests in water.”

Ducks Unlimited awarded $2.6M for pumping stations in Klamath Basin (refuges), Capital Press 8/31/22. "Jeff McCreary, western region director of Ducks Unlimited, said the refuges today are historically dry. He called it a "crisis situation." KBC NOTE: Our refuges and farms are "historically dry" because the Bureau of Reclamation withheld from farmers 40,000 acre feet of our legally stored irrigation water in 2021, and presently shut off our water to Klamath Project farms while keeping in Klamath Lake 1 1/2' of our stored water ABOVE biological opinion mandates for suckers. The lake is 3' higher than it was historically before we built and paid for the Klamath Project.  Klamath Lake and Klamath River are presently full. When water goes to the farms, it then fills the refuges then is diverted OUT of the Klamath Basin and into Klamath River.

Water dispute should be decided in court
"As with all government activities, the Klamath Project should be operated in accordance with law, not illegal shut-off orders, illegal water diversions, nor thuggish federal extortion tactics."
< by Klamath Irrigation District Executive Director Gene Souza, Herald and News 8/27/22
KBC Explanation: Bureau of Reclamation encouraged farmers to fallow their land this season because there would not be enough of our stored water for crops. Thousands of acres were fallowed. There is abundant water. On August 19: The Blackmail: the Bureau illegally told our water districts that if they did not shut off water to their customers, they would not allow any irrigator to be paid for fallowing their land.

FERC Staff Issues the Final Environmental Impact Statement for the Lower Klamath and Klamath Projects, FERC 8/26/2022. "...The primary issues associated with license surrender and removal of project works are: potential effects on aquatic biota, including Chinook salmon, Endangered Species Act-listed coho salmon and suckers, and other fish and wildlife species; adequacy of measures proposed to restore vegetation on formerly inundated lands; effects on riverine and reservoir-based recreation; effects on local property owners due to effects on waterfront access, wells, firefighting/prevention, slope stability, reservoir aesthetics, and property values, as well as effects on traffic, emergency response times, air quality, and noise during construction; effects of dewatering on culturally important sites and removal of historic project features; and socioeconomic effects on disadvantaged communities...."

Third cattle kill by wolves discovered near Doak Mountain (14 miles from Klamath Falls, Oregon), H&N 8/26/22.

OSU Paper calls for fewer cattle, more wolves to 'rewild' the West, Capital Press 8/14/22. "Some 110,000 square miles of federal land in the West should be closed to cattle and restocked with wolves and beavers, according to a paper by Oregon State University scientists and others...They propose reducing the amount of federal land grazed in the West by 29% — equal to the size of Nevada — and also limiting logging, mining, oil and gas drilling and off-road vehicles...The proposal identifies blocks of federally owned land in Oregon, Washington, Idaho, California, Nevada, Montana, Colorado, Arizona, New Mexico, Wyoming and Utah for the rewilding network... (including)  the Blue, Klamath and Cascade mountains in Oregon; the Sierra Nevada mountains in California and the Northern Rockies in Idaho."  

McKinney fire kills scores of fish in Klamath River, LA Times 8/10/22. “...the dissolved oxygen in the river plummeted to zero...It looks like probably everything in the river died.







 

KBC NOTE: In 2002, during the Biscuit Fire, there was a fish kill on the Klamath River. At a science forum in 2004 in Klamath Falls, "Tamara Wood, USGS, studied water quality--the dissolved oxygen dynamics in UKL. She studied wind speed, temperature and oxygen. They found that in 2002 the oxygen into the lake was turned off by the weeks of heavy smoke from the forest fires." However, in 2002, the Tribes, environmental groups and government agencies have blamed Klamath farmers for the fish dieoff. That lie has been used to downsize agriculture, shut off our irrigation water, help convince FERC to allow hydroelectric dam destruction, put more than historical amounts of our stored water into Klamath River, force irrigators into making compromises of our water rights.

"During July, 10 cattle deaths in the Fort Klamath area were attributed to the Rogue Pack." Another wolf-caused death discovered in Fort Klamath area, H&N 8/8/22.