Ken Watts and I have been quite busy going through recent record requested information that we have received from the IDFG. Ken has told you already about the ‘quiet’ working group that was directed by Kim Trotter of Y2Y. This group calls themselves the Island Park Safe Wildlife Passage Initiative Working Group and they coordinate with the IDFG and other non-governmental groups. You can also find their presence on Facebook and the related groups noted on that page include groups referenced on the list below.
These are the members list, according to email contacts on the messages: David Weskamp - The Nature Conservancy Davy, Elizabeth - USFS Caribou Targhee National Forest Dennis Glick - Future West Hannah Jaicks - Future West Jamie Laatsch - The Henry’s Fork Foundation Jean Bjerke Kathy Rinaldi - The Greater Yellowstone Coalition Nick Clarke - Yellowstone to Yukon Parmer VanFleet (Mary) Rachel Caldwell - National Parks Conservation Association Renee Seidler - IDFG (uses both a .gov and private email address) Tim Reynolds Gregg Servheen - IDFG State Wildlife Coordinator Matt Pieron - IDFG Kim Trotter - Yellowstone to Yukon Nancy Goodman (Kim Trotter’s mother) Sheryl Hill Nancy Olson Bonnie-Boone Altshuld We found reference to this group in a comment in the scoping report made by Jean Bjerke. I wish to focus on one document contained in the record requested information we received, and one topic within it. It is a document produced by Kim Trotter US Program Director-Y2Y and Rene Seidler IDFG. It is entitled: Island Park Safe Wildlife Passage - Get the Facts Straight It is a document that I have never seen published. It is formatted in two columns, one titled Myth and the other Fact. While it addresses 21 multiple comparative topics, I will focus on just one of them in this article. The document states: MythIdaho Transportation Department didn’t coordinate with Fremont County Fact ITD’s Bill Shaw convened monthly meetings in an effort to update the US 20 corridor plan to the new iPlan software. This planning group consisted of Liz Davy, CTNF Island Park District Ranger, Tom Cluff, Fremont County Planner, and Kathy Rinaldi, representative of the Henry’s Fork Legacy Project. Let’s autopsy that information. ◾️Please note as you consider: coordination is a government to government process. ◾️Liz Davy does not represent Fremont County, she works for the USFS and IS NOT an elected representative from Fremont County. Liz Davey has NO authority to coordinate for Fremont County and other record requested info indicates she was an active working group participant. ◾️Kathi Rinaldi is also a regional representative of the private NGO -Greater Yellowstone Coalition. The Henry’s Fork Legacy Project no longer exists, it has been removed from the web, and was never more than a front organization for the safe wildlife passage working group and it’s collaborating partners which included the USFS, the BLM, the Henry’s Fork Foundation, Yellowstone to Yukon, the Greater Yellowstone Coalition, Future West, and the IDFG. Kathi Rinaldi has NO authority to coordinate for Fremont County, other record requested info indicates she was an active working group participant. ◾️Tom Cluff is an employee of Fremont County and his position is unelected. Other than having his name appearing, associated by the reference made to him by these two individuals, he is not included in any other meeting documentation we have received. Tom Cluff is the Fremont County planner, he has NO AUTHORITY to coordinate for Fremont County. Keep in mind that this is Trotter and Seidler developing this document, and as they are attempting to do so, apparently trying to rebut opposition points being made throughout these many months of public dialogue on the issue, were they trying to claim that Cluff was the contact in Fremont County, along with Davy and Rinaldi, and that coordination that had never happened somehow did through these people? One thing is for certain: None of these entities or persons have the authority to coordinate about anything for Fremont County. In many public opportunities and meetings the Fremont County Commissioners have definitively stated that COORDINATION DID NOT HAPPEN with Fremont County, as is required by multiple federal laws. Ken has also pointed out in his previous article that Trotter and Seidler also developed the talking points that were given to some Island Park residents, many of which were presented when they appeared before the county commissioners asking them not to hold an advisory vote on this issue. It appears that Trotter and Seidler have fulfilled many orchestration roles, and disclosure about this private working group speaks to some of their efforts. Trotter directed this group, and it should also be noted that dates coincide with her cancellation of all future meetings of it, right after inquiry was made about it. Leanne Yancey This article was published in the IP NewsReprinted here with permission
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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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