Press release from the U.S.D.A.:
The Stanislaus National Forest will be hosting two open houses on Friday, December 13 from 2 p.m. to 7 p.m. and Saturday, December 14, 9 a.m. to noon at the Stanislaus National Forest Supervisor’s Office (19777 Greenley Road, Sonora, CA 95370).
“We invite the public and stakeholders to the open houses to provide an opportunity to visit with staff regarding the Rim Fire proposed Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) project details, and the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) process. It offers those with questions on how to comment prior to the end of the public comment period that begins on December 6, 2013, and ends on January 6, 2014,” Maria Benech, Rim Fire Recovery ID Team Leader said.
A deer hunter — not pot growers, as some politicians with an agenda publicly stated — started the Rim Fire that burned through over 237,341 acres of land in the Stanislaus National Forest and Yosemite National Park before firefighters finally got the upper hand. The 402 square mile fire blazed through more than $127 million of taxpayer money just fighting it. It began in the steep hills of the remote Jawbone Ridge area to the east of Groveland on August 17, 2013 and quickly spread out of control. Losses are estimated to be in excess of $50 million.
Press release from the USDA:
Dan Lungren and John Van de Kamp have penned an opinion piece in the L.A. Times about the Hetch Hetchy Valley. They’d like to see the valley restored and the dam removed. I’m too young to remember what the valley looked like, but I’m of the opinion that it’s too late, and California has already wasted too much of the taxpayer’s money doing idiotic things like re-electing mistakes for governor and investing in high speed rail that nobody – except those getting rich off kickbacks – wants.
Well, I’m no scientist, but I could have told you that without having to embark on any years-long study. Anyone who is even remotely familiar with how cattle graze and where toads live knows that cattle don’t graze in marshy water areas and toads don’t forage in dry meadows. Duh.