In the middle of his campaign for reelection, Senator Ron Wyden may find himself defending the River Democracy Act, the subject of a lawsuit. Senator Wyden introduced S. 192, known as the “River Democracy Act” with Senator Jeff Merkley. The legislation designated nearly 4,700 miles of rivers, streams, creeks, gulches, draws and unnamed tributaries in Oregon as “wild and scenic.”

On June 22, 2022, Western Resources Legal Center filed a Civil Right - Freedom Of Information Act lawsuit against United States Department of Agriculture. Federal land managers are being accused of failing to release documents about the controversial River Democracy Act violating the Freedom of Information Act.

The controversial land grab applies to half-mile buffer zones along designated segments. It could impact public access, water resource management, forest and vegetation management, ranching and grazing, mining and other uses on an estimated 3 million acres of public lands.

It is Western Resources Legal Center’s intent to provide farmers and ranchers that rely on public land for their livelihood, with information to better explain the River Democracy Act.

The WRLC requested information backing government official’s testimony at the hearing on S. 192. The lawsuit indicates testimony included that the U.S. Forest Service and U.S. Bureau of Land Management had documents analyzing potential impacts of the added waterways, the river miles and acres, and effect and methods of enforcement. They suggested a comprehensive river management plan for implementation.

A D V E R T I S E M E N T

A D V E R T I S E M E N T

After eight months of delay, exceeding all legally mandated deadlines, WRLC concluded they believe the government is seeking to hide records from the public and question where the information came from used in their testimony. Prior to the passage of S. 192, Senator Merkley was asked about streams flowing through highly mineralized areas by Ken Alexander of Unity. Merkley said, “What that does is it prevents any future mining or prospecting on those rivers and I’m concerned about the process going ahead of how you’re going to investigate what rivers really belong in this bill.”

Merkley passed the buck claiming Wyden compiled the areas based on nominations he received from residents across the state. It seems that the commercial river guides and stewards promoted some 15,000 river nominations. They state on their website, “The River Democracy Act includes many important tributaries of the Wild and Scenic Illinois River, acknowledging its significance as a botanical and wild fish stronghold. It furthers this long-term effort by withdrawing the delicate serpentine source wetlands surrounding the Illinois from mining.”

What isn’t clear is whether all these miles qualify as a National Wild and Scenic River. To qualify, waterways must be within public land, free-flowing and contain noteworthy characteristics that make them unique. The Wild and Scenic Act thus labels these traits “Outstanding and Remarkable Values” that can include cultural history, geology, recreation, botany, water quality, etc. It is further classified in degrees of accessibility on foot and primitive. The River Democracy Act goes beyond preservation by enhancing Southern Oregon’s river productivity, encourages restoration projects and land acquisitions by doubling the protection zone around river segments to a half-mile impacting public access.

Environmentalist have been at odds with miners for decades. The River Democracy Act takes Oregon’s battle to the federal level. It isn’t that Wyden and Merkley were not aware their bill prohibits future mining within these zones. Oregon is the only producer of emery in the U.S. and a major producer of diatomite, perlite, bentonite, gemstones, and zeolites. Oregon’s mineral industries provide essential goods and services, from the construction materials needed to build and maintain our communities and roads to energy sources that power our day‐to‐day lives.

What information did Wyden and Merkley authorize to pass the River Democracy Act? Why does it take a court case to find out? The case was filed in U.S. District Courts, Oregon District Court. The Judge overseeing this case is Jeffrey Armistead. The case status is Pending.


--Staff Reports

Post Date: 2022-07-15 14:52:26

Last Update: 2022-07-15 17:39:43