© 2002
The Nugget Newspaper
Sisters, Oregon
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The contents of the on-line edition of The Nugget represent a selection among the stories that appear in the weekly print edition.

Letters, letters, letters
The Nugget welcomes contributions from its readers, which must include the writer's name, address and phone number. Letters to the Editor is an open forum for the community and contains unsolicited opinions not necessarily shared by the Editor. The Nugget reserves the right to edit, omit, respond or ask for a response to letters submitted to the Editor. Letters should be no longer than 300 words. Unpublished items are not acknowledged or returned. The deadline for all letters is noon Monday.

To the Editor:

I want to thank The Nugget for the good coverage of the Cache Mountain fire.

I would also like to point out that in addition to the support provided by the the Black Butte Ranch firefighters, there was also continuous effort and support provided by the Sisters-Camp Sherman firefighters.

Your reports talked mainly about the BBR firefighters. The only note I saw in the paper about the Sisters Fire Department was "BBR firefighters, assisted by Sisters personnel and crews ....."

Also, the paper reported "...despite a firestorm that BBR Police Chief Gil Zaccaro described as 'absolutely horrendous,' Black Butte Ranch firefighters made a stand on Fiddleneck Lane, saving two houses only a few yards from those that were destroyed -- houses that were believed lost."

I do not want to take away anything from the great job the BBR firefighters did. However, I do think it newsworthy to let those in our community know that the Sisters-Camp Sherman firefighters were there on the scene also. (See this week's story).

There was a team there that was first on scene to some properties that were burning up to the foundations. These Sisters firefighters made do with the equipment they had, which was limited due to the urgent need to respond. These teams were able to save two homes which were in imminent danger of being destroyed.

Again, I do not want to take away from any of the work done by all of the firefighters that day and this past week. I do think however, that the Sisters firefighters did not get the recognition they deserved for risking their lives to save all that could be saved at Black Butte Ranch.

I know the lack of recognition was not intentional and this story was meant to cover all local firefighters, but I just wanted our community to know that is was a very successful team effort, not only by Black Butte Ranch firefighters, but also by the Sisters-Camp Sherman Fire Department.

Thank you Sisters Fire Department, and all firefighters, and thank God everyone is okay and the fire damage was not any worse to BBR.

Sincerely,

Jan Liming (the wife of one Sisters volunteer firefighter who was glad to see her husband come home, especially after I heard the "up close and personal" stories).

* * *

To the Editor:

This fire year will result in more acreage burned in Oregon and other western states than any year in recent memory. A large majority of the burned acreage will be on US Forest Service and BLM holdings.

Before the "fuzzies" (read enviros) got so influential, the federal agencies would be planning for salvage, replanting and site protection before the final embers cooled. While the Forest Service is already putting rehabilitation teams into the field to do the planning to salvage, plant, and rehabilitate the burned areas, I am willing to bet that less than 10 percent of the burned acres with timber on them, of merchantable size and volume, will be salvaged by the federal agencies.

For the private forested landowners, I am also predicting that they will have 99 percent of their land salvaged and reforested in less than two growing seasons.

The fuzzies will fight every federal salvage effort, claiming that too many "green" trees will be cut, the soils will be compacted, that the wildlife needs the snags, and a hundred other excuses to stifle any salvage by the Forest Service and BLM.

Delay is their strongest ally since much of the timber that is salvageable will be worthless if not logged as soon as possible.

The federal policy and review procedures also work against timely salvage.

So why are we spending almost $1 billion dollars this year fighting forest fires? Let the fires burn (except for protecting lives, homes and other structures), don't replant and let nature take its course with these forests.

We could save a lot of money. Nature will eventually reforest those areas, but in the next 100 to 200 years there will mostly be brush fields out in those burned areas, not stands of young trees.

There will be plenty of snags for cavity nesters and it is a natural process, isn't it?

On the other hand, if the people in the U.S. want a balanced use of the forests in public ownership, they ought to demand that Congress institute some salvage laws that let evaluation, planning and implementation be done in a manner similar to emergency operations for floods, earthquakes and other disasters.

Otherwise, we might as well turn the national forests into national parks (we wouldn't need a Forest Service) and get used to importing more of our wood products.

Carlton S. Yee, Ph.D., RPF

* * *

To the Editor:

The City of Sisters appears to have an adversarial relationship with every other public entity in the area

They fight with the library, the schools, and CATS. They haven't picked a fight with SOAR as far as I know.

There is an election for city councilors coming up. Let's vote in some folks who play well with others.

Bruce Berryhill

* * *

To the Editor:

To all firefighters -- I wish to give you all an e-mail hug for protecting the Black Butte Ranch area.

I have a very personal interest in the area, as my Dad is spending the summer at Black Butte RV Resort.

What makes it even more of interest to maybe some of the firefighters, he is a retired Forest Service Supervisor from California and I am very sure he was contemplating any and all avenues of the area he was in, for protecting others in the same area.

Thanks for giving your all and bringing a resolve to this problem with as little loss as possible.

Thanks to all of you... keep safe

Toni Eade

* * *

To the Editor:

The Nugget staff is to be congratulated on its excellent website coverage of the Cache Mountain fire.

The information was current, concise and exactly what we needed. No other media source was able to provide such up to the minute reporting.

We may be a small town, but The Nugget did a big job. You have my vote for the 2002 excellence in newspaper reporting award! Thank you.

Jane Moore

Editor's note: Several Sisters community members provided valuable information and excellent photographic coverage during the fire. The Nugget wishes to particularly thank Bruce Merrell for information on tanker operations out of the Redmond Airport and Steve Rodgers for his outstanding front page photograph in the July 31 edition.

* * *

To the Editor:

To share a burden and to help ease the pain is a gift.

There is a gifted community in Camp Sherman and Sisters. Your love , laughter and compassion and tears have helped ease our loss.

Will and I were always going to write a book on love, hugs and snuggling. This community has already written it.

There are no words to express our thanks.

Love your family and friends as you have loved us and hug a tree in Will's memory.

Chris Bone and Family

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