News
Medford Mail Tribune
Paul Fattig
September 11, 2007
Congress mulls new wild area
Legislation calling for the creation of a 13,700-acre wilderness in the Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest's Elk River drainage near Port Orford was introduced Monday to Congress.
The bill by U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., and U.S. Rep. Peter DeFazio, D-Springfield, proposing the Copper-Salmon Wilderness would also protect 10 miles of the Elk River with a Wild and Scenic River designation.
The short river, whose champagne-clear water flows into the Pacific just north of Port Orford, is known as a world-class stream for silvery steelhead and lunker salmon.
Located about 14 miles as the crow flies east of Port Orford, the proposed wilderness is in the Copper Mountain roadless area between the Copper and Salmon mountains and immediately east of the 17,000-acre Grassy Knob Wilderness. That wilderness area was created in 1984 to preserve fish habitat in the Elk River.
More than 10 fishing and hunting groups as well as the Port Orford Chamber of Commerce, the Port Orford City Council, the Curry County Board of Commissioners and Gov. Ted Kulongoski have supported the wilderness proposal. The wilderness would be in Oregon's 4th Congressional District represented by DeFazio.
The river is considered one of the best coastal salmon and steelhead streams in the state, said Eagle Point resident Mike Beagle, Pacific Northwest coordinator for Trout Unlimited, the nation's oldest and largest cold-water fisheries conservation organization with more than 150,000 members.
"Sen. Wyden and Rep. DeFazio are acting on behalf of the sporting community in Oregon who value the Elk River fishery and want to see it protected for salmon and steelhead anglers today and for generations to come," he said in a prepared statement. "This bill will be very beneficial to the sport fishery as well as the commercial fishing industry. We're very grateful to both of these men for recognizing the value of this special place."
The bill is the result of Wyden and DeFazio listening to local people, said longtime Port Orford resident Jim Rogers. The forester first became acquainted with the river as a young timber manager for a logging firm in 1968.
"When I first saw it, I thought what a great place it was," he said, noting it remains a largely unchanged watershed that is a rich hatchery for a valuable fishery.
Many people in the region, from members of the commercial fishing industry to local businesses and those who fish for sport, depend on the river, he said.
"The tremendous support from the Port Orford community for protecting the Elk River fisheries is symbolic of the efforts of the community to develop a sustainable economy based on conservation and wise stewardship of the land," he added.
In addition to local residents, people from throughout the West Coast enjoy what the river has to offer, observed Mark Kimball, owner of Steelblue-Chameleon Lodge on the Elk River.
"Every winter, our fishing lodge fills up with people from every walk of life from throughout the West, and they come to experience the wonders of this fishery," he said. "We all know that habitat is the key to the health of this system and to our way of life."
Creating the wilderness would establish a permanent source of income for the local area, according to David Smith, president of the Port Orford Chamber of Commerce.
"The citizens of Port Orford understand what the sport and commercial fishery means to our economy," added Port Orford Mayor Jim Auborn, in a prepared statement. "We are pleased Wyden and DeFazio have introduced this legislation because we all know it will protect the spawning and rearing habitat for these salmon and steelhead that are such an important part of the fabric of this community."
Reach reporter Paul Fattig at 776-4496 or e-mail him at pfattig@mailtribune.com.