Submitted by Ken Watts
The Island Park Sustainable Fire Community (IPSFC) organization hosted a tour of the Sawtelle wildfire area on August 31, the anniversary of the fire. You will find detailed information about the tour, written by Liz Davy, elsewhere in the paper. This was probably one of the best tours that I have had the pleasure of participating with, in the Island Park area. What made it so great was the level of expertise that was assembled to educate the public on wildfires and defending your property from wildfires. The expertise included staff from IPSFC, the Forest Service, Fremont County Emergency Management, and others. Likely the most informative portion of the tour was the discussion of how the decision was made to “fight” the fire. This process is not only very scientific but it also includes many logistical considerations that are critically important to attaining the desired outcome. A team is assembled to make the decisions and there are many levels of checks and balances in the process. In Island Park, you are in very good hands when it comes to wildfires. The expertise and experience of the Forest Service District Ranger, Bill Davis is evident. His support, including Jon White, is also very impressive. Jon has been working to keep the Island Park public safer for many years. You are part of the equation. Keith Richey (FCEM) discussed our responsibilities for our own safety via the Ready-Set-Go program of preparedness. The public must play a vital role in assuring their safety. Keith can provide you very valuable information. When it comes to boots on the ground for private property owners, the IPSFC is an incredibly valuable resource. IPSFC is supported by the Idaho Department of Lands, donations, and other agencies. For years, they have helped the people of Island Park evaluate their properties for fire risk and have helped to mitigate the risk in many cases. They can help you mitigate your own risk also. Their slash pickup effort has been wildly successful and popular. Liz Davy has been an integral asset to IPSFC for many years. The Forest Service and the BLM (Channing Swann) have been working for years in fuel reduction efforts in the Island Park area. These efforts not only reduce wildfire danger but also promote a better ecosystem. Wildlife and people benefit. It takes a real team of talented people to mitigate the risk of wildfires and we are part of that team. Please get involved and do your part to protect us all, including our fury friends. We really do have some local agencies that work in the public interest. Take time to thank them. They really care about you and your safety.
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Submitted by Ken Watts
The Idaho Transportation Department continues to march forward with their obscene 4 lane, high speed, limited access FREEWAY designs for US Highway 20, Ashton to near the Montana state line. These designs are ghastly expensive, up to $700,000,000. The environmental damage will be extensive and there may never be recovery from it. This is a seasonal highway segment with higher traffic about 5% of the hours of the year. This money could be better spent elsewhere in Idaho. ITD has not published any social or economic analysis for their designs. The Planning and Environment Linkages process, that ITD is using, requires that these analyses be done as part of the alternatives screening process. There were no independent sociologists or economists on the screening committees. These committees were made up almost entirely of ITD engineers and construction contractors. The communities of Island Park and Ashton and Fremont County must insist that the social and economic analyses be done before this project proceeds any further. A complaint should be filed with the National Highway Administration, the ITD Board, Representative Rod Furniss, and Governor Brad Little. ITD must follow the process. We must not let the NHWA sign off on the PEL process until these analyses are completed to the satisfaction of the communities and the county. Submitted by Ken Watts
Remember those recommended 17 wildlife overpasses and underpasses and miles of wildlife fencing that were suggested years ago on US 20. The person who recommended those, Dr. Patricia Cramer, has just been hired by the State of Idaho, ITD, to the tune of $100,000 of our taxpayer dollars. No doubt she will be recommending more of the same for the obscene and environmentally destructive 4 lane freeway that ITD is planning for Island Park on US 20. The following is an Idaho Department of Transportation Board Agenda Item, ITD 2210 (Rev. 10-13) Page 1 of 1, Meeting Date August 16-17, 2023. This agenda item is for a Non-Construction Professional Service Contract, issued by the ITD Business & Support Management. “Background Information: The purpose of this Board item is to comply with the reporting requirements established in Board Policy 4001 -'Each month the Chief Administrative Officer shall report to the Board all non-construction professional service agreements entered into by the Department during the previous month.' Business and Support Management section executed the following professional service agreement(s) in the previous month.” “Document Description: Identification of Wildlife Vehicle Conflict, Vendor Name: Wildlife Connectivity Institute, Line Amount: $100,000, Unit Name: HQ Environmental Programs (SPR Funds), Service From 07/31/23, Service To 07/30/24.” So it appears that ITD has issued a contract to the Wildlife Connectivity Institute, for $100,000, to identify wildlife vehicle conflict in Idaho. Who is the Wildlife Connectivity Institute???? An internet search reveals that it is “a science-based 501(c)(3) non-profit organization with the mission of identifying, protecting, and restoring wildlife ...” The director of the Institute is none other than Dr. Patricia Cramer, formerly of Utah State University in Logan, Utah. You should remember her as the person who recommended 17 wildlife overpasses and underpasses and dozens of miles of barrier fencing along US Highway 20 in the Island Park area. The mailing address for this Institute is Gallatin Gateway, MT. This is not surprising as the Bozeman, MT area is home to the Center for Large Landscape Conservation, the Western Transportation Institute, ARC Solutions, and many environmental and conservation groups. Yellowstone to Yukon Conservation Initiative provides funding to some of these organizations. We (taxpayers) are paying the Idaho Department of Fish and Game to do this kind of work. Why aren’t they doing it? They have an MOU with ITD that has been in place for years. Why are the taxpayers being asked to fund this project? Identification of wildlife vehicle conflict was done years ago in Idaho. Nothing new here! Any notion that this study will result in an unbiased evaluation for the taxpayers of Idaho is extremely optimistic. Just look at the organizations based in Bozeman!!! DO NOT FORGET THAT THE VOTERS OF FREMONT COUNTY, IDAHO VOTED 4 TO 1 TO OPPOSE WILDLIFE OVERPASSES, UNDERPASSES, AND MILES OF FENCING IN THE COUNTY. ITD JUST DOES NOT GET THE MESSAGE. Submitted by Ken Watts
It is time for the Fremont County Commissioners to step up and send a letter of opposition to the US 20 four lane, high speed, limited access freeway from Ashton to SH-87. Two of the county commissioners stated that they opposed the freeway at a campaign event in Island Park. Please honor your commitment to the people of Island Park and Fremont County by sending a letter to the Idaho Transportation expressing your opposition to the freeway. We ask that you support the community solution (JUB Engineers solution) which includes adding more passing lanes and adding stop lights at the critical intersections. The community solution will save the taxpayers more than $500,000,000 when compared to the freeway option and considerably reduce environmental damage. The City of Island Park has stepped up. See their letter below. Submitted by Ken Watts
A Super 2 highway (alternating passing lanes) provides many benefits. The Super 2 improves mobility by allowing faster traffic to pass slower moving vehicles on regular intervals. Congestion is also reduced for the same reason. According to the Texas Department of Transportation, safety is improved by about 50% over conventional 2-lane highway designs. The economy of the area is not destroyed by highways that bypass the businesses. The Super 2 highway design totally addresses the, mobility, safety, and economics, mission of the Idaho Transportation Department. JUB Engineers says that a Super 2 highway will serve the Island Park area until 2042 and beyond, at a MUCH lower cost than a four lane, high speed, limited access freeway. JUB engineers has already established (prioritized) the order in which the new passing lanes should be built. The new passing lanes could likely be built using a categorical exclusion in the NEPA process and save a vast sum of money and possibly avoid extremely expensive litigation. But the real beauty of a Super 2 highway design is realized when you consider environmental and conservation issues. Island Park is a very sensitive environmental and conservation area. It is the headwaters of the Snake River Aquifer and is home to abundant wildlife. The forests and meadows provide for pristine water and air and extremely valuable habitat for wildlife. They should be protected and should not be sacrificed for a FREEWAY that serves out of state tourists and truckers primarily! When wetlands are encountered it is possible to just keep the highway within the current footprint and not create a bypass that destroys the environment. When rivers are encountered, again, just stay within the existing footprint of the highway. There is no need to build very expensive new bridges and risk destroying the pristine waters and the world class fishery. Bypasses will destroy forests and wildlife habitat. There is no need for this destruction. Building a 4-lane freeway will cause incredible pollution from fossil fuels used in the construction process and the dust and sediment that is created. The pollution will be 7 to 10 times more than building passing lanes. A Super 2 highway design for US 20, in Island Park, is a winner on all fronts. Add a few stop lights and all the left turn anxiety is gone and safety if greatly improved. It won’t be long before Yellowstone National Park sets daily quotas for entry. That will stop traffic growth in its tracks! To my conservation and environmental friends, it is time for you to come out of the basement and take a stand on US 20. What do you really stand for? Tell the people of Island Park. Submitted by Ken Watts
ITD Statement On US 20 Project The Fremont County Republican Central Committee (FCRCC) passed a resolution opposing a four lane, high speed, limited access freeway on US 20 from Ashton to SH 87 near the Montana border. This resolution was taken to the State Republican Central Committee 2023 winter meeting where it also passed and became an approved State level resolution. The FCRCC received the following email from State Representative Jerald Raymond regarding the resolution: From: Representative Jerald Raymond Sent: Friday, March 10, 2023 7:43 AM To: [email protected] Subject: ITD Statement Rachel, Attached is the breakdown of the ITD statement I referenced last night at our meeting. Please let me know if there is anything else you need or would be of help . Thanks, Representative Jerald Raymond Legislative District 31 Clark, Fremont, Jefferson, and Lemhi Counties ITD Statement Follows:
At the latest (June 27, 2023) public meeting on the US 20 Ashton to SH 87 project, ITD seems to have honored some portion of the statements made above. Most of the ITD project team had been replaced but their contractor support was not. The ITD Chief Engineer was present at the latest public meeting. ITD did display charts on a Super 2 highway design which was preferred in the community solution document sent to ITD. Progress? You decide. ITD still has two major shortcomings in the PEL study. These are no detailed social analysis has been completed for the design alternatives and no detailed economic analysis has been completed for the design alternatives. The PEL process requires that each of these analyses be completed. “….by the content of their character” Submitted by Ken Watts
US20 Open House June 2023 This is a summary of what I learned at the Idaho Transportation Department’s open house (June 27, 2023) on US Highway 20 project, Ashton to SH 87. Most of the ITD project team has been replaced. I was told that this was a result of a resolution, presumably, from the Fremont County Republican Central Committee (more on this in a future article). Most of the contractor staff seems to still be in place. Most of the posters depicted a 4 lane freeway for all the highway segments. The posters showed only one solution for each segment. There were a couple of posters on the Super 2 design (added passing lanes). The posters included pros and cons of the Super 2 and where additional passing lanes would be added to improve traffic flow and safety. There was also a video of a Super 2 highway playing. One of the posters said that top level social and economic analyses had been completed for the highway design alternatives. I asked for the analyses and was referred to another person. These analyses are a requirement of the Planning and Environmental Linkages (PEL) process that ITD is implementing. Top level analyses are not acceptable when the future of the people and businesses in Island Park are at stake. It makes me angry to see so little regard for the well-being of the people of Island Park and Ashton. This matter has been discussed with Representative Rod Furness (D31). I expect it to be addressed. It was clear that ITD and their contractors had read our community proposal (over 50 pages) for the highway. This was also evident at the Capitol For A Day meeting in St. Anthony a couple of weeks ago. Your time was not wasted preparing this proposal. There were not posters on the stop lights at the major intersections in Island Park. Recall that ITD met with the county and city on this issue and action was expected. These intersections were addressed in detail in the community proposal. The stop light at Elk Creek was specifically discussed and an ITD person thought there was a right of way issue. The right of way is around 200 feet! I suspect the trucking lobby had influence on this issue. They likely oppose any stop lights as it slows them down. For the people of Island Park, safety is the issue at these intersections, not speed. Maybe the biggest win of the night was the discussion on re-striping at the bottom of Ashton Hill. This discussion involved the ITD project engineer, the ITD state engineer, Commissioner Blair Dance, and several concerned citizens. The issue is that people traveling north on US 20 must turn left from the passing lane to enter Ashton Hills Estates. This is extremely dangerous because the traffic is moving at 65 mph+. The solution is very simple and cheap to implement. The lines can be re-painted so that the passing lane starts just north of the access to Ashton Hills Estates and there would be a long left turn lane added. A downhill right turn lane could also easily be added for safety. ITD “may” have committed to addressing this near term solution. The trucking lobby will likely oppose this solution because the truckers like to get a high speed run at the hill. Please get involved. I am always amazed at how few business owners attend these meetings. Your future depends on the alternative that is selected. An opportunity to give your input to the US 20 transportation project. RIGBY — The Idaho Transportation Department (ITD) will host two public meetings in late June to share project developments for the U.S. Highway 20 (US-20) corridor between Ashton and the State Highway 87 (SH-87) junction.
These meetings will provide an update on the study and gather feedback from the public. Welcome messages will be given at 5:15 p.m. and 6:15 p.m. and the remainder of each meeting will be an open house, including visualizations and computer mapping stations. The format and content will be the same at both meetings. Please plan to attend at one of the following locations: Ashton Community Center and Library925 Main Street | Ashton, ID 83420 June 26, 2023 | 5 p.m. – 7 p.m. Island Park EMS Building4378 County Circle | Island Park, ID 83429 June 27, 2023 | 5 p.m. – 7 p.m. For those who can’t attend in person, an online meeting will be available from June 27 – July 13, 2023 at itdprojects.org/projects/us-20-ashton-to-sh-87-jct/. Submitted by Ken Watts - Published with permission
BLM’s Upper Snake East Travel Management Plan is definitely something to be concerned about. The following are the alternatives they are proposing: • Alternative A: Alternative A represents no action/continuation of current management for travel on the BLM-managed lands within the TMA. This alternative serves as the baseline against which potential effects from any of the action alternatives B-D can be compared. LEAST RESTRICTIVE ALTERNATIVE IF YOU USE AND APPRECIATE THE TRAILS ON PUBLIC LANDS THIS IS THE ALTERNATIVE YOU NEED TO REQUEST! • Alternative B: Alternative B provides for lower levels of motorized use opportunities while emphasizing more natural and cultural resource protections than Alternatives C or D. EXTREMELY RESTRICTIVE AND WILL CLOSE MOST TRAILS. • Alternative C: Alternative C represents a variety of route designations which resolve resource and access needs in a blended manner while accommodating a wider variety of the BLM’s programs and priorities than Alternative B. This alternative also includes seasonal human entry closures for three locations where no entry is allowed in these areas, including motorized and non-motorized activities. ALTERNATIVE C IS SOMEWHAT RESTRICTIVE. • Alternative D: Alternative D emphasizes an expanded range of travel route use opportunities as compared to Alternatives B and C while still providing required protections for natural and cultural resources. ALTERNATIVE D IS SOMEWHAT RESTRICTIVE. The BLM has extended the comment period to July 10th. It is very important that you comment. Get everyone you know to comment. The more responses we can get to BLM the better. We have got to be proactive, or we will lose our ability to enjoy the beautiful trails in our area. Please take a moment and go over their plan and the maps provided on the BLM website. The link to make comments is here, just click on the green Participate Now link on the left.Direct links are listed below. The link to the map is located here. The link to the proposed plan can be found here. Comments can also be emailed to [email protected] or by regular mail to BLM Upper Snake Field Office, 1405 Hollipark Drive, Idaho Falls, ID 83401 SEND YOUR COMMENTS INTO THE BLM BEFORE JULY 10th. Please share with everyone you know and ask them to comment. Get involved now before it is too late! Risch Introduces Wildfire Prevention Bill Ahead of Wildfire Season
(This press release is very relevant as the fire season approaches here in Island Park.) WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Jim Risch (R-Idaho) today introduced the Forest Improvements through Research and Emergency Stewardship for Healthy Ecosystem Development and Sustainability (FIRESHEDS) Act to increase active forest management in high fire risk areas. “Years of federal mismanagement have transformed Idaho’s once-healthy and productive forests into a tinderbox. These misguided policies have led to extreme fuel buildup and hampered timber economies all in one,” said Risch. “The FIRESHEDS Act is the solution for America’s forest health crisis by advancing rapid and aggressive management and empowering on the ground land managers to reduce fire risk.” U.S. Congressman Blake Moore (R-Utah) introduced the House companion bill, and Senators Mike Crapo (R-Idaho), Steve Daines (R-Mont.), and John Barrasso (R-Wyo.) are original cosponsors on Senator Risch’s bill. “Over a billion acres of land in the U.S.—including nearly one-third of Forest Service lands—face the escalating threat of wildfires. Even with this year’s snowpack, the historic drought season in states like Utah, California, Idaho, and across the West amplify the risk of wildfire,” said Moore. “In the past decade alone, 75 million acres have burned, threatening our communities, our health, and our environment. The FIRESHEDS Act will empower our land managers with cutting-edge technology to target the high risk firesheds with landscape-scale treatments. By expediting analysis and review of forest management practices, we can protect public health and safety, restore watershed health, improve critical habitat, and safeguard critical infrastructure. I am proud to lead this crucial effort as our nation continues to tackle threats from wildfires.” Over a billion acres of land in the United States are at risk for wildfires, including one-third of all Forest Service lands. Over 70 million acres have burned in the last decade, indicating serious changes in land management strategies are needed to combat this trend. Supporters of the FIRESHEDS Act include the Idaho Forest Group, the Associated Logging Contractors of Idaho, the American Forest Resource Council, the American Forest & Paper Association, the American Property Casualty Insurance Groups, the Hardwood Federation, the American Loggers Association, and the National Association of Counties. The FIRESHEDS Act will: Reduce the risk and severity of catastrophic wildfires in the West by:
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Making Sense of It All
This blog will help you make sense out of all the information on the website, how it affects IP, our history, and how efforts continue to put IP into various forms of conservation status. Archives
May 2023
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