Board of Supervisors Discuss Wild & Scenic River Designation

On April 15, 2014 the Amador County Board of Supervisors held a public hearing on the pending state legislation designating a portion of the Mokelumne River as Wild & Scenic. I made the following statement:

“I oppose both the state and Federal Wild & Scenic designations for the Mokelumne River and urge everyone here to also oppose these designations. Those supporting this designation claim economic benefits from tourism without any substantiating information or appropriately detailed analysis of the local tourism industry. I find this position to be absolute baloney, and totally incredulous when compared with gold mining, hydroelectric power generation and myriad other uses. Precluding other uses for future generations is an act of selfishness.

An article entitled “Who Controls the Mokelumne River” on the Foothill Conservancy website some time ago stated that 11 government entities regulate the Mokelumne. While I know this is “pie in the sky”, at present, I advocate reducing this number of entities. Just like the Sierra Nevada Conservancy which commissions studies rather than build fire breaks, we have far too many people pushing paper and not enough building things. Along with our infrastructure our factories are aging. So I also oppose these designations both as restrictive regulation and as a mis-allocation of resources and capital.

Related to this issue is the release of impounded water for weekend white water rafters. I first became aware of white water rafting as a child watching a newsreel at the local movie theater. It presented this activity as an obscure, dare devil sport. Later, I witnessed the white water rafter/ river control battles during my years in Colorado. My personal observation is that the environmental lobby created the contemporary white water rafting industry. It was, so to speak, a self-fulfilling or self-serving prophecy.  On Amador Community Television many years ago I shared this observation with a Foothill Conservancy luminary, and he refused to answer.”

The polarized participants created an intense hearing and admittedly, my opinion contributed. Many were accused of lying. Civil servants doing their essential job were referred to as predatory water agencies. The Foothill Conservancy’s contention that the state designation wouldn’t lead to a Federal designation is apparently unfounded. Clearly, the market for tax free revenue bonds is probably the best it’s ever been, and the Devil’s Nose Dam is more feasible than ever. One person stated that the change in part of Highway 16 from State highway to urban street, which will negatively affect Amador commuters, was caused by uncontrolled development interests. But the opposite is true. The project originated with uncontrolled environmental government requiring an infill project to abrogate market forces. I reviewed the public transit portion of this project in a professional capacity. The work was so abysmal that I felt ashamed to have a degree in planning.

The most impassioned exchange occurred when Supervisor Brain Oneto asked Katherine Evatt, president of the Foothill Conservancy, to produce the petition she claims to have with about a thousand signatures supporting the Wild & Scenic Designation. While I wonder how a secret petition can be a petition at all, she refused. When asked, she replied that Supervisor Oneto had, in the past, called and harassed petition signers. This is a very serious accusation. I wonder what her evidence is?