There will be a Congressonal Field Hearing on Tuesday, August 6, at the Sonora Fairgrounds at 2 pm. This event is hosted by Defend Rural America and Devin Nunez and Tom McClintock will be there.
This is about the designation of two million acres of the Sierra Nevada for critical habitat for the Mountain Yellow Legged Frog and the Yosemite Toad. This would have the potential to shut down the forest to human beings. They cite human activities as the cause – “Management activities that could ameliorate the threats described above include (but are not limited to) physical habitat restoration and responsible management practices covering potentially incompatible beneficial uses such as timber harvest and fuels management, water supply development and management, livestock and pack stock grazing, and other recreational uses.”
In the Federal register, they also say that the amphibians are dying from a virus introduced by another frog and that they are eating each other. That and fish predation are the true causes, but once again the want to blame it on the bad humans so they can keep us out of our forests.
They tried to sneak this one past us but we got wind of it. The paper came out in April but was not released to the public til May with the end of the comment period in June. On top of that they only wanted comment from the scientific community. There is an extension now til November 18, so it is time to push back on this before we loose more of our lands and rights to use them.
This will have an adverse effect on everyone. If you cannot attend get educated before it is too late. Check out Defend Rural America. This is just the latest Spotted Owl Boonedoggle.
Kevin Barry
Mariposa
