Dr. Paul Houser: Curtis Knight attempted to obscure the facts – Yreka, CA – Siskiyou Daily News

http://www.siskiyoudaily.com/opinions/letters_to_the_editor/x358811225/Dr-Paul-Houser-Curtis-Knight-attempted-to-obscure-the-facts

Dr. Paul Houser: Curtis Knight attempted to obscure the facts

By Dr. Paul R. Houser, Associate Professor, George Mason University

Siskiyou Daily News

Letter to the Editor

May 31, 2012

Washington — For critical decisions such as dam removal, it is important to seek truth. Here I respond to Mr. Curtis Knight’s May 23 attempt to obscure the facts.

1) Mr. Knight claims that my allegation has evolved. My Feb. 24 scientific misconduct allegation is in writing and has not been modified, and my interviews have closely followed the written allegation. I have provided opinions when asked, but these do not represent changes in the allegation.

2) Mr. Knight claims that my suggestion of a less-extreme option of removing 1-2 dams was bizarre. This suggestion was made in the context of advocating exploration of a wide range of options to meet the objectives. Also note that the dam removal proposal is also only a partial solution, as it excludes the removal of the Keno and Link River dams.

3) Mr. Knight alleges that I am biased because I was paid by dam removal opponents. I have not been paid for my allegation or public speaking, and I do not hold financial interests in the Klamath Basin. Since the story went public, my philosophy has been to accept all interview and speaking requests.

4) Mr. Knight claims that I am not a fisheries biologist. This is correct, but I have earned a PhD in hydrology and water resources, and have a 25-year scientific career, with many awards and over 100 referred publications. I do have extensive experience in water research, observation, modeling, management and fisheries.

5) Mr. Knight claims that I am offering a “politically-driven opinion in place of science-driven decision making.” I have stated that I do not favor or oppose dam removal, and that my motivation is to be a champion for scientific integrity. Politics has no place in scientific integrity.

7) Mr. Knight states that the dams offer no irrigation function, degrade water quality and offer no flood control functions. A recent hydrograph analysis shows that the dams help to regulate downstream flows and are actively used to help improve flows and temperature regimes for downstream fisheries. A 2006 PacifiCorp study shows that the dams help to improve water quality by increasing residence time and settling. By working with irrigators and fishery managers, the dams could be used even more effectively to enhance water quality, fisheries and agriculture. Unfortunately, these facts, as well as creative solutions, are not being actively considered.

8 – Mr. Knight objects to my statement that dam removal is an uncontrolled experiment. If an experiment has more than one variable changing, or if there is no control, then it is uncontrolled. In the case of the proposed dam removal, there is no control and multiple independent variables are changing, so it is by definition an uncontrolled experiment.

9) Mr. Knight criticizes my assertion that scientists are often biased based on who they are paid by. I assert that funding is only one of the issues that cause science to be biased. The very questions and hypotheses that scientists study are often formulated to arrive at a predetermined outcome. For example, in 2010, California Trout commissioned a study to “estimate the economic benefits” of the KBRA. As one would expect with such a charge, the resulting report collated a number of economic benefits, while ignoring potential impacts to agriculture, land valuation, power production, etc. A better question could be asked that would give the public a real answer to the economic impact of dam removal. Unfortunately, scientific integrity issues run even deeper than this simple example. Decision makers often use science to support predetermined decisions rather than using science to help inform decisions. Decision makers, scientists and peer-reviewers may have conflicts of interest, and biased media reports can skew public understanding.

10) Mr. Knight concludes that dam removal is the preferred alternative for the Klamath River because the peer-review says it is. The panels conclude that removing the dams without addressing the water quality issues, reducing disease, enabling free migration to the upper basin, preventing hatchery salmon from not overwhelm spawning grounds, reducing predation to sufficiently low levels, accounting for climate change, addressing reductions in fall flows, and mitigating long-term sediment impacts, has a low chance for success.

Further, there are significant conflicts of interest in the peer-review panels, and the evolution of the expert panel reports from their draft to final forms highlights some significant outside influences.

The outcomes of dam removal on this scale and in this unique environment have significant risks and uncertainties. A positive outcome is not guaranteed and a tragic outcome is possible. Decision makers need to be aware of these risks and uncertainties, and account for them in their decision-making process. By only reporting the positive aspects of dam removal without the uncertainties and additional needed mitigation, the meaning of the science is perturbed, which may lead to poor decisions.

PNP comment: Hum, biased writer Jeff Barnard fails to make any mention of federal whistleblower Paul R. Houser Ph.D. who questioned the science and process being utilized by the Dept. of Interior and was fired on Feb. 26, 2012. On Feb. 29, 2012, DOI Secretary Ken Salazar admitted publicly that he could not made a decision on the Klamath Agreements. Salazar does NOT have that authority at this time. Yes, Congress has not provided any funds for the destruction of Klamath dams.

At this point, the Hoopa can jump up and down and scream with the best of the Greenies, but the corruption is beginning to be exposed.

And oh yes, salmon are NOT “struggling” and the water is pure and clean. Last year a bumper crop of chinook returned to the Scott, Shasta and Klamath Rivers. This year, those who know, have predicted another bumper return. This article is nothing but FEAR tactics. Don’t fall for it! — Editor Liz Bowen

http://pioneer.olivesoftware.com/Olive/ODE/HeraldandNews/

Hoopa Tribe petitions feds to speed up dam removal 

Attorney: Agreements are bogged down in Congress 

By JEFF BARNARD

The Associated Press

May 31, 2012

     The Hoopa Tribe has petitioned federal authorities to restart the bureaucratic process in hopes it will speed up removal of four Klamath River dams.

   Tribal attorney Tom Schlosser said Tuesday the current dam-removal agreement was hopelessly bogged down in Congress and going back to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission offers the best chance to enforce the Clean Water Act and open up the river for struggling salmon and to improve water quality.

   “They (FERC) are in a position to move this thing off dead center, and nobody else is,” Schlosser said. “It’s just stranded.”

   PacifiCorp, the Portland-based utility that owns the dams, says it wants to stick with the current plan.

   “We are already collecting millions of dollars from our customers for dam removal costs,” said spokesman Bob Gravely. “We are not going out and spending millions of dollars in effect on relicensing. That’s what they are trying to do.”

   The tribe, whose reservation is at the junction of the Klamath and Trinity Rivers in Northern California, has opposed from the beginning a pair of agreements, the Klamath Basin Restoration Agreement and Klamath Hydroelectric Settlement Agreement, signed at the Oregon Capitol two years ago to end a century of water battles in the Klamath Basin.        Besides laying out terms for removing the dams, which provide power for 70,000 customers of PacifiCorp, the agreements lay out how water will be shared between irrigators and fish in times of scarcity.

   Schlosser said the agreements grew out of a desire to provide reliable irrigation water for farmers, and failed to set out hard goals for the ecological restoration of the Klamath River Basin. He said in order to renew its license to operate the hydroelectric dams, PacifiCorp would have to spend millions of dollars to build fish ladders over them and clean up toxic   algae growing in the reservoirs.

   Interior Secretary Ken Salazar was supposed to decide in March whether dam removal was feasible, but had to put that off because authorization to make the decision and $800 million for environmental restoration have been blocked in Congress.

http://pioneer.olivesoftware.com/Olive/ODE/HeraldandNews/

Basin irrigation officials say idling will save 10,000 acre-feet of water this summer 

By JOEL ASCHBRENNER

H&N Staff Reporter

May 31, 2012

     A three-pronged plan to mitigate a moderate drought is in place and now Klamath Basin irrigators are just waiting on the weather.

   Irrigation officials unveiled a plan this week to save about 10,000 acre-feet of water by paying farmers and ranchers to leave their crops or pastures dry later in the growing season. There also are plans to pump groundwater and store water above Upper Klamath Lake to ensure producers can irrigate late in the summer.

   “I think everybody is doing all they can to stay within the law and   make this irrigation season work for everybody,” said Ross Flemming, a Klamath Irrigation District board member and Henley-area farmer who grows potatoes, hay, grain and sod.

   The severity of the drought could change with the weather, but Bureau of Reclamation officials predicted earlier this month irrigators on the Klamath Reclamation   Project would face a water shortage of about 70,000 acre-feet, roughly one-sixth of their annual demand of about 400,000 acre-feet.

   This will be the first year the Klamath Water and Power Agency has offered partial season land idling, said KWAPA executive director Hollie Cannon. Waiting to idle land until late in the season will ensure that those who sign up from the program will be able to produce some crops from their land, he said.

   For alfalfa farmers, who cut the perennial forage crop several times throughout the summer, it may mean they get one fewer harvest this summer. For ranchers with irrigated pasture, it may mean they have to feed their herd hay earlier in the season.

   “We want as many irrigators receiving water as possible because that’s what creates the economy here,” Cannon said.

   The partial-season land idling program will involve at least 8,000 acres, Cannon said.   During a more acute drought in 2010, irrigators left more than 43,000 acres dry on the 210,000 acre Project as part of a full-season land-idling program.

   In addition to land idling, KWAPA plans to pay irrigators to pump 40,000 acre feet of groundwater. The agency also has contracted with Reclamation to store about 13,000 acre feet of water in diked areas near Agency Lake above Upper Klamath Lake for irrigators to use late in the summer.

   “Between those three, we think we will be very close,” to covering the predicted water shortage, Cannon said.

NetRight Daily » Maybe it’s time we dam up government interference in the economy

http://netrightdaily.com/2012/05/maybe-its-time-we-dam-up-government-interference-in-the-economy/

by Rebekah Rast 22 Comments and 8 Reactions

NetRight Daily

May 1, 2012

You give them an inch and they’ll just keep fighting for more inches, says Steve Cheyne, a local Klamath River farmer and board member of the Bucket Brigade.

He is referring to the many environmentalists and government agencies pushing for restoration of the Klamath River in Oregon and also for the removal of four dams within the river.  Once publicized by environmentalists as the Everglades of the West, Klamath River has been a lawsuit hotspot since the 1960s, if not before.

Water in Klamath River is heavily in demand — by farmers, fisherman, ranchers, tribes, and of course, fish. Everyone wants more water and as fighting over water rights worsens an agreement needs to be reached.

The problem is the U.S. Department of Interior would like to make the decision for the people who live off the water of the Klamath River— instead of the citizens themselves coming to their own agreement.

Like his Bucket Brigade group, Cheyne is not supportive of the current Klamath Basin Restoration Agreement, but he does acknowledge that it is a good first step to fixing the water issues.  However, he is very much opposed to the part in the agreement that proposes the removal of four hydro dams in the river — a part that the U.S. government heavily favors.

Government agencies, as well as environmentalists, are hoping the removal of the dams will result in more salmon runs upstream.  The Klamath Restoration Agreement website states, “Dam removal will essentially re-open over 600 miles of historic river and stream habitat for salmon, steelhead, and other fish species.”

However, as Cheyne puts it, “How do we measure success? If we get salmon upstream, is that a success? There’s just not enough information.  We have no idea what is normal activity for salmon runs; we need to set some goals.  It’s like driving in your rearview mirror and not looking at what’s coming ahead.”

But government science out of the Bureau of Reclamation touts the positives of dam removal and the beneficial impact it will have on the river and those who depend on its water.  However, this dam removal agenda was made clear long before any scientific analysis  was done.

One scientist who was tasked with reviewing the government’s science is Paul Houser, an associate professor at George Mason University, in Virginia. In September of 2011 he was asked to review a press release and scientific summary from the Bureau of Reclamation, which highlighted the impact of the removal of the four dams from the Klamath River.

“It was quite biased,” Houser told Americans for Limited Government (ALG) in a recent video interview.  “It came up with conclusions that were one-sided, that were focused on really the positives of dam removal.  But it didn’t tell the whole story about the risks and the uncertainties of dam removal.”

When Houser gave his boss his review of the material, the retaliation began and in February 2012, his position was terminated.

Houser filed integrity allegations against his government department.  “My boss told me after I made my disclosure that we really should be supporting the secretary and the secretary wants to remove the dams,”  Houser noted.  “He [the Department of Interior Secretary] already made that decision prior to the science being funded and so the science was really being funded just to support dam removal.”

It is this kind of agenda-driven science that appeases a few and ruins the livelihoods, resources and futures of many.

While the people of Klamath River sort out an agreement on water usage, Cheyne would like the government to get out of the way. “We need federal congressional representatives to say, ‘We need to let their people that live there fix their own problems and those who live across the country, shut the hell up.’ ”

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
NOTE: In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. section 107, any copyrighted
material herein is distributed without profit or payment to those who have
expressed a prior interest in receiving this information for non-profit
research and educational purposes only. For more information go to: http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml

This information and much more that you need to know about the ESA,
the Klamath River Basin, and private property rights can be found at The
Klamath Bucket Brigade’s web site – http://klamathbucketbrigade.org/index.html –
please visit today.

By Matt Weiser
mweiser@sacbee.com

A pair of massive water diversion gates in the Delta near Walnut Grove has become stuck open due to a mechanical problem, posing a potential threat to juvenile salmon migrating to the ocean.

The Delta Cross Channel Gates, operated by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, are used to divert Sacramento River water into the interior of the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, and then to Reclamation export pumps near Tracy.

This time of year, the gates are normally closed on weekdays to ensure migrating salmon are not diverted from their migratory path in the Sacramento River, and opened on weekends to accommodate boat traffic.

But on Tuesday, while officials were attempting to close the gates after the Memorial Day weekend, one of the two gates could not be closed due to a mechanical problem. So Reclamation has left both gates open while it works on a fix.

“I believe as they were going to operate it to close, something seized up,” said Pete Lucero, a Reclamation spokesman. “It kind of failed in the open position. We’re working on it right now.”

Studies have shown that young salmon swept through the gates are much more likely to be killed in diversion pumps or by other threats, including pollution and invasive predators like striped bass.

Reclamation is in contact with wildlife agencies to determine if corrective actions are needed until the gates are fixed. Lucero said this could include reducing water diversions from the Delta.

Jim Milbury, a spokesman for the National Marine Fisheries Service, said via email that a “preliminary assessment” indicates a low risk of harm.

“Most juvenile salmon have already migrated past the gates,” Milbury said.

Read more here:

http://www.sacbee.com/2012/05/31/4528797/huge-gates-in-delta-stuck-open.html#storylink=cpy

PNP comment: Wow, Fox News picked up the Josephine County budget cuts in public services. The most important part is the LAST paragraph. It is in red. — Editor Liz Bowen

Published May 30, 2012

Associated Press

Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/us/2012/05/30/ore-county-releasing-inmates-amid-budget-cuts/#ixzz1wWDfGOZT

Dunsmuir Rod and Club

PROUDLEY Presents a

fun steel shoot and BBQ.

On June 30^th at 9 am,

There will be a FUN STEEL SHOOT consisting of four stations with five metal targets each.  Each participant will need a minimum of 100 rounds of ammunition, eye and ear protection.  If you have a holster, please bring it.  If you do not, you may start at a low ready position.

This is not a match!  It is strictly for fun and camaraderie.  We are trying to determine if there are enough interested hand gunners to initiate a monthly shoot. There is no point differential for caliber size. Scores are based upon time and will be posted, however, this is a self-challenge course and just for fun!!!

In the afternoon there will be a BBQ consisting of hotdogs and hamburgers, sodas and water.  $20 will cover the Shoot and BBQ.  Towards the evening there will be a trap shoot for anyone interested at $3 a round.

****This will be a “cold range”. IE:  no loaded guns will be allowed to enter the range, or be loaded until the participant is standing in the shooter’s box and given instruction to load by the range officer.  (Even if you have a CCW.)  Upon completion of the course of fire, the participant will display an empty gun.  At no time will a gun be loaded or handled unless in the designated safe area or in the shooter’s box.  Violations of safety rules may result in dismissal from the range for the day.*****

There will be a shooters safety briefing at 9 AM sharp.  So please be on time and ready for fun.  The range is located off Mott Road, east of I-5.  Once at the T-intersection, turn left (north) and following the signs to the Airport. Proceed north until the chain link fence on your right ends.  There will be a road that turns right (east).

Follow the road around the north end of  the runway until you see the sign.  If you have any questions you can contact Ed at 530.604.4155.

$20 will provide a day of fun shooting, (be four stations of five targets each for a minimum of 100 rds.) Hamburgers, hotdogs and sodas.

This will be a cold range, so don’t bring loaded guns onto the facility, even with a CCW.

Please call Ed at 530.604.4155 if you have any questions.

Kitzhaber signs executive order to redefine some S. Oregon land uses | capitalpress.com

http://www.capitalpress.com/content/ml-land-use-052912

By MITCH LIES

Capital Press

May 29, 2012

Gov. John Kitzhaber has directed the state Department of Land Conservation and Development to work with three Southern Oregon counties on redefining farmland and forestland.

The executive order makes available $350,000 in grants for Jackson, Josephine and Douglas counties to study, map and petition the state Land Conservation and Development Commission to redefine land uses.

It also directs the department to work with the counties, providing they choose to participate.

The landmark order could lead to the first regional definition of farm and forestland in the nearly 40-year history of Oregon’s statewide land-use system, said Dave Hunnicutt, president of the property rights group Oregonians in Action.

“(The executive order) is a monumental order in Oregon land-use planning history,” Hunnicutt wrote on the organization’s website. “If successful, we will have the first new definition of agricultural land and forestland.”

Hunnicutt said hundreds of thousands of acres in Oregon are zoned for farm or forest uses, but can’t sustain profitable farm or forest operations.

Kitzhaber made a similar statement in his executive order.

“In some areas, lands currently planned for resource uses have little direct value to their owners for those uses,” Kitzhaber wrote.

The order stipulates lands rezoned for non-farm or non-forest uses won’t interfere with nearby farm or forest uses, won’t interfere with future urbanizations of nearby cities and won’t create unsustainable fiscal impacts on local governments and the state.

It calls on DLCD to provide a status report to the governor and the Legislature by Jan. 1, 2014.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
NOTE: In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. section 107, any copyrighted
material herein is distributed without profit or payment to those who have
expressed a prior interest in receiving this information for non-profit
research and educational purposes only. For more information go to: http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml

This information and much more that you need to know about the ESA,
the Klamath River Basin, and private property rights can be found at The
Klamath Bucket Brigade’s web site – http://klamathbucketbrigade.org/index.html –
please visit today.

http://pioneer.olivesoftware.com/Olive/ODE/HeraldandNews/

PNP comment: Looks like the museum has been taken over by the Greenies in Klamath! — Editor Liz Bowen

Herald and News

May 29, 2012

   A program examining the status of endangered sucker populations in Upper Klamath Lake will be presented at 7 p.m. Thursday at the Klamath County Museum, according to a news release.

   Studies conducted over the past decade indicate endangered Lost River and shortnose sucker still are not reproducing successfully, despite ambitious efforts to improve habitat for the species.

   Eric Janney, a fishery biologist for the U.S. Geologic Survey, will describe methods scientists have been using to estimate the total number and age   distribution of sucker in the lake, and how that information is used to determine the long-term trend for the population.

   For more information, contact the Klamath County Museum at 541-883-4208.

THIS FRIDAY  June 1, 2012

4:00PM to ~9:00PM

Please forward to your contacts!

Location at Skyline Church; 11330 Campo Road, La Mesa. CA

www.EFSDConvention2012.com and only $20/person

Will we be able to get our special suprise (Mitt Romney) live or linked in?

We won’t know for sure until the last minute!

So avoid the line at the door; pre-pay on line and pick up your ticket at the WILL CALL TABLE.

Tickets at the door CASH or CHECK ONLY!!

Don’t miss the Eagle Forum San Diego 3^rd Annual Convention – THIS FRIDAY 6-1-2012 from 4:00PM to ~9:00PM

Location at Skyline Church; 11330 Campo Road, La Mesa. CA

www.EFSDConvention2012.com and only $20/person

And here’s who’s coming to YOUR 3^rd Annual Eagle Forum San Diego Convention!

• · Brian Brown – National Organization of Marriage

The Heroic Fight Keeping Marriage Safe.  Update California and North Carolina

• · Barbara Decker – Filling us in on Agenda 21 –

Why it’s bad for every living thing in America!

• · Dinesh D’Souza – Author and Film Producer of Obama’s Film 2016

Obama, love him, hate him, you don’t know him!

• · Frank Gaffney – Center for Security Policy –

Sharia Law – Muslim Brotherhood … Are We Threatened?

• · Gabriella Hoffman – Resistance 44

Youth and Social Media

• · Walter Hoye III –

Hero of the Unborn

• · Charles Limandri – West Coast Division of the Thomas More Center

HHC Mandate Update

• · Alice Linahan – from Texas; Voices Empower

Generation Mentors – Driving the Narrative

• · Dr. Jennifer Roback-Morse – The Ruth Institute

California’s link to National Org of Marriage

• · Dran Reese – Salt and Light Council

Christian Citizens role in Government and Judges

• · Wayne Allyn Root – Root for America!!!! Motivational Speaker Galore!!!

Global economic meltdown!

• · Dr. Rick Scarborough – Vision America

What’s right with America and Why We The Churches Must Rise Up

• · Holly Swanson – Get The “Green” Out!

Just as you suspected – “Green” is actually Red – as in communism

And more; we’re still working on the special surprise.

After registering see the video invitation for you for a hint!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yMXLIWn67Bo

Woody

In God We Trust
All others we vet.