we up here on Crucher's Bench enjoy the coming of spring, including the arrival of our hummingbirds.  Many have feeders and plant attractive flowers.  here is some more information

Here is a nice link to Oregon's Department of Fish and Wildlife with pictures and sounds of our local hummingbirds

http://www.dfw.state.or.us/species/birds/hummingbirds.asp

and this new study

Hummingbird Study Reveals 22-Million-Year-Long History That Continues To Evolve And Produce New Species

By Kukil Bora

on April 04 2014 3:50 AM

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There are 338 recognized hummingbird species in the world, but that number could double over the next several million years, researchers said. Reuters

A new study has revealed that hummingbirds, the smallest on Earth, have a complicated history of evolution spread across millions of years and continue to evolve today, producing various diversified species.

As part of the study, researchers constructed a new family tree of the hummingbird, revealing that the tiny creature with the fastest heart on the planet originated in Eurasia about 42 million years ago before taking over South America 22 million years ago. The bird then spread rapidly across the South American continent, evolved to develop iridescent colors and subsequently moved northward to occupy North America and the Caribbean.

source:http://www.ibtimes.com/hummingbird-study-reveals-22-million-year-long-history-continues-evolve-produce-new-1567407

FEDERAL JUDGE ALLOWS PRIVATIZATION OF ALL RECREATION ON ALL NATIONAL FORESTS

ouch, not liking this

FEDERAL JUDGE ALLOWS PRIVATIZATION OF ALL RECREATION ON ALL NATIONAL FORESTS

Ruling says concessionaires are exempt from the requirements and restrictions in federal recreation fee law.

In a ruling handed down March 28, 2014, Judge Rudolph Contreras of the DC District Court wrote that Forest Service concessionaires are not subject to the restrictions on recreation fees that apply at agency-managed recreation sites.

The ruling essentially means that private companies operating under permit on National Forest land can require everyone to pay a fee for doing anything, anywhere within their permit area.

The ruling concludes a lawsuit filed by several individuals and a watchdog organization, challenging the Forest Service policy of allowing concessionaires to charge fees that the agency is not allowed to charge under the limitations in the Federal Lands Recreation Enhancement Act.

source of this post is http://forestpolicypub.com/2014/03/30/federal-judge-allows-privatization-of-all-recreation-on-all-national-forests/

Interagency Workgroup Seeks Public Input in Energy Corridor Review

(WASHINGTON, D.C.) – An interagency workgroup consisting of the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), the U.S. Forest Service (USFS) and the Department of Energy (DOE) is seeking the public’s assistance with an ongoing review of Federal energy corridors (Section 368 Corridors) in 11 western states: Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming.

A Request for Information (RFI) was published in the Federal Register on March 28, 2014 soliciting information for consideration in developing the Section 368 Corridor Study and provides the foundation for an initial Regional Periodic Review of the Section 368 Corridors. The RFI is an important step for the BLM, USFS and DOE’s efforts to determine if Section 368 Corridors should be modified to better serve public interests. The public comment period will be open for 60 days.

The corridors were designated in 2009, as required by Section 368 of the Energy Policy Act of 2005. To resolve a lawsuit filed by several non-profit groups that challenged the corridor designation decisions, the agencies and the plaintiffs entered into a settlement agreement. This RFI seeks to gather information relevant to specific provisions set forth in the settlement. The RFI can be found at http://corridoreis.anl.gov.

The information sought by the RFI covers two major areas: (1) a Section 368 Corridor Study, and (2) Regional Periodic Review of Section 368 Corridors.

Section 368 Corridors Study

1. Advances/Updates in GIS Data. Because the original corridors were designed with data available prior to 2009, the Agencies are interested in obtaining new GIS information that may affect the location of Section 368 Corridors.

2. Types of Projects Considered. The Agencies are focused on 100kV and larger transmission projects, and oil, gas, and hydrogen pipelines 10 inches or more in diameter that have been authorized on Federal lands. The Agencies are interested in knowing if the public thinks that there are other types of projects that they should consider in assessing use of Section 368 Corridors.

3. Method for Assessing Inter-Agency Operating Procedures (IOPs). The Agencies will assess the effectiveness of the IOPs in expediting the siting, permitting, and review process and are interested in receiving suggestions of methods for assessing the effectiveness of IOPs.

Regional Periodic Review of Section 368 Corridors

1. Additional Public Information. The Agencies have listed several studies and reports they are considering and are interested in learning if there is other publicly available information that the Agencies should consider as part of the initial Regional Periodic Review of Section 368 Corridors, including review of the IOPs.

2. New Laws and Regulations That Affect Section 368 Corridors. The Agencies are interested in learning if there are any laws, regulations, or other requirements that have been implemented after January 2009 that the Agencies should consider when reviewing Section 368 Corridors.

3. Stakeholder Fora. The Agencies are interested in learning if there are any additional fora that could be considered for stakeholder engagement during Regional Periodic Reviews.

4. IOP Modifications. The Agencies are interested in learning if there any additions, deletions, or revisions the Agencies should consider making to IOPs.

5. Comments on New IOPs. The Agencies have committed to consideration of new IOPs submitted by the plaintiffs who are parties to the settlement. The new IOPs are available at http://corridoreis.anl.gov . The Agencies are soliciting comment on these new IOPs.

Through this outreach, the agencies hope to engage government agencies, tribes, industry, and the general public in designating the location and use of Section 368 Corridors.


Read more: KCSG Television - Interagency Workgroup Seeks Public Input in Energy Corridor Review 

Clackamas County hamlet and village leaders say excluding members from elections conflicts with free speech

ODF Needs Revenue Diversification

Source:  

http://orsierraclub.wordpress.com/2014/03/25/odf-needs-revenue-diversification/

ODF Needs Revenue Diversification

The Oregon Department of Forestry is almost totally reliant on timber dollars to manage our state forests. This model of funding is failing to provide sufficient revenue for ODF. Moreover, it forces the Department to log at unsustainable levels that do not allow for adequate conservation, leaving the state susceptible to messy and expensive ESA lawsuits.

Timber harvest is a critical revenue source for the Department and provides important family-wage jobs to Oregonians. However, it should only be a part of the equation to provide solvency for ODF. The Tillamook and Clatsop forests provide a range of values to all Oregonians–clean drinking water, diverse recreation, fishing and hunting opportunities, scenic beauty, and wildlife habitat. If the Department’s revenue continues to come wholly from timber dollars, these other values will eventually be lost.

Tell Governor Kitzhaber to lead the effort to diversify ODF funding!

Mt. Hood Bicycle/Pedestrian Coalition/Special Notice

from George Wilson

MT. HOOD BICYCLE/PEDESTRIAN COALITION

IMPORTANT NOTICE:

BLM MARKET OPPORTUNITY ANALYSIS – MT. HOOD’S WILDWOOD PARK RECREATION SITE

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Recently, I was contacted by Margaret Baily-Senior Vice President/CHM Government Services. Her comments are as follows:

CHM Government Services www.chmgov.com has been engaged to assist the Oregon State BLM office with undertaking analysis which will inform their leadership in regards to the operation of selected day use and overnight facilities within the Salem and Coos Bay Districts in Oregon. One of the identified sites is the Mt. Hood Wildwood Recreation Site http://www.blm.gov/or/resources/recreation/site_info.php?siteid=221.

Currently, this site is available for individual and group day use only. As part of the CHM government survey analysis, the opportunity of expanding overnight accommodations on portions of Mt. Hood’s Wildwood Park Recreation Site is being evaluated. CHM is interested in gaining ideas and perspectives from stakeholders in the Mt. Hood/Clackamas County area regarding your thoughts on overnight accommodations at this location. Please share your comments, thoughts and ideas no later than Monday; March 31, 2014.

Please submit comments to:

George Wilson Director/Villages at Mt. Hood BOD Organizer - Mt. Hood Bicycle-Pedestrian Coalition georgewilson@wavecable.com

Margaret Bailey Senior Vice President mbailey@chmgov.com www.chmgov.com www.chmhotel.com

Personally, I feel this to be an excellent opportunity to improve cycling tourism for our local communities by providing lower cost accommodation for visiting cyclists with limited budgets who may otherwise not be able to afford more expensive lodging facilities in our area. These facilities would be close to the Sandy Ridge Bike Park, andVILLAGES OF MT HOOD TOURISM MARKETING ALLIANCE AWARDS $3000.00

GRANT TO MT. HOOD BICYCLE/PEDESTRIAN COALITION

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would also service the touring road cyclists carrying camping gear. I look forward to receiving your comments prior to Monday; March 31, 2014!

Funds from this grant will be used to create a website/database for the Mt. Hood Bicycle/ Pedestrian Coalition, and for advertising, promotion and support for the May 23 – 25, 2014 Mt. Hood Wine, Dine & Ride weekend.

A special thank you to the Mt. Hood Tourism Marketing Alliance on behalf of the Mt. Hood Bicycle/Pedestrian Coalition for your support!

The April 2014 meeting date, time and place TBA after the first of the month. We are still coordinating schedules due to the following:

o Oregon Active Transportation Summit – April 21 & 22 o Inaugural Statewide Rural Tourism & Bike Tourism Studio Gathering – April 25 o Oregon Governor’s Conference on Tourism – April 27 - 29

George Wilson Director – Villages at Mt. Hood BOD Organizer – Mt. Hood Bicycle/Pedestrian Coalition

Conservation Easement Enables Landowners to Restore Wetland, Help Protect Fish

Conservation Easement Enables Landowners to Restore Wetland, Help Protect Fish

Posted by Spencer Miller, Natural Resources Conservation Service, on March 24, 2014 at 1:00 PM

Oregon landowner Dave Budeau said he dreamed of protecting wetlands. An NRCS-led conservation partnership helped Budeau restore and enhance these wetlands, providing habitat for native fish and birds. NRCS photo.

Through conservation easements, people like Dave Budeau are able to protect and restore important landscapes, like wetlands, grasslands and farmlands.

Budeau wanted to restore and protect a wetland. When the wildlife biologist searched for a new home in 2003, his passion for wildlife and nature led him to purchase what may have seemed to some as an unfriendly plot of land for wildlife. But a conservation program helped him change that.

The recently passed 2014 Farm Bill continues to provide financial and technical assistance for farmers, ranchers and forest landowners wanting to put their land into easements. But rather than separate programs, the major easement programs offered by USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service have been bundled into one – the Agricultural Conservation Easement Program, or ACEP. One additional easement program, the Healthy Forests Reserve Program, remains separate.

ACEP streamlines the conservation easement options into two primary components: a working lands component where NRCS provides assistance to partners with farmland protection programs to purchase agricultural land easements, and a wetlands reserve component where NRCS works directly with the landowner, like Budeau, to restore and protect their agricultural wetlands.

The pasture in Marion County, Ore., that caught Budeau’s eye was dominated by one species of plant, bentgrass. Bentgrass can be invasive in the state’s wetlands, but Budeau knew the land could be transformed from a one-species landscape, or monoculture, to a wetland haven that gives sanctuary to a variety of wildlife, including a threatened Oregon fish.

“I saw signs of tufted hairgrass and other wetland indicators growing, and I knew this was the place,” Budeau said.

Tufted hairgrass thrives in moist soil and provides cover to small mammals, song birds and waterfowl.

After learning about conservation easement programs from his local NRCS district conservationist, Budeau decided to enroll 30 acres into the former Wetlands Reserve Program, one of the three programs now combined under ACEP. The other two are the Grassland Reserve Program and Farm and Ranchland Protection Program.

Conservation easements enable landowners to voluntarily restore and protect wetland ecosystems. Landowners may select either a permanent or 30-year easement while retaining ownership of the land. In the past 20 years, more than 2.6 million acres of wetlands have been restored through conservation easements.

Through the easement program, Budeau began restoring the wetlands in 2008, converting an existing pond and other low-lying areas into wetlands.

“Wetlands are home to so many species,” said Les Bachelor, NRCS district conservationist in Salem, Ore. “We need to make sure that wildlife has a place to live.”

The restoration work created the ideal habitat for the Oregon chub, which was listed as endangered at the time. Budeau wanted his land to serve as a sanctuary for them. Loss of key wetland habitat had pushed the chub to the brink of extinction.

Scientists with NRCS and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service monitored the depth and temperature of Budeau’s ponds for two years to ensure they provided suitable habitat before introducing 623 chub in 2010. By May 2012, more than 10,000 chub lived in the ponds.

Wetlands like the ones on Budeau’s property are integral to the increasing chub population. Since 2010, the Oregon chub has joined more than a dozen other species that were downlisted from endangered to threatened.

Chub isn’t the only success linked directly to Budeau’s property. Plant and wildlife diversity is steadily increasing. “Every year it seems like a new bird shows up,” Budeau said. “I’ve also seen red-legged frogs, long-toed salamanders and amazing invertebrate diversity.”

Budeau is excited with how the conservation easement with NRCS has led to so much success.

“This is the (conservation) easement we all dreamed of,” Budeau said. “It turned out as good as I could have ever expected.”

To get started with NRCS, visit your local USDA Service Center or www.nrcs.usda.gov/GetStarted.

The new Farm Bill bundles major easement programs into one – the Agricultural Conservation Easement Program. NRCS photo.

    

- See more at: http://blogs.usda.gov/2014/03/24/conservation-easement-enables-landowners-to-restore-wetland-help-protect-fish/#sthash.Xj4qHBHs.dpuf